NORMAL, Ill.—Brenton Emanuel is no stranger to the Illinois track and field circuit—both competing and coaching at Eastern Illinois – and looks to bring his recruiting prowess, along with his hurdles and sprints knowledge to the ISU staff in his new role as assistant track and field coach, as announced by director of track and field and cross country Jeff Bovee Wednesday.
"I would like to thank Coach Bovee and the Illinois State University athletic administration for the opportunity to be a part of this great institution," Emanuel said. "I'm excited to work with the student-athletes and help start building something special here at ISU."
Emanuel joins the ISU staff after serving as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for one year at California University in Pennsylvania. Emanuel supervised and mentored the short sprinters and hurdlers, in addition to being the Vulcans main recruiting contact.
"Brenton has a tremendous background with sprints and hurdles," Bovee said. "He was at Eastern Illinois for quite a few years and was able to work with some of the Olympic trials qualifiers. He has great Illinois ties, growing up in the Chicago suburbs, and he will be able to recruit well in the Midwest. He definitely will play a big role in developing our program at Illinois State."
Before joining the Vulcans' staff, Emanuel spent three years as the assistant track and field coach and recruiting coordinator for Eastern Illinois, where he helped coach the Panthers to nine team championships. Emanuel guided All-American sprinter Zye Boey, 44 OVC individual champions, 55 All-Ohio Valley honorees and aided student-athletes to eight school records. He also served as meet manager for Eastern Illinois, in addition to managing Illinois State high school meets and National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Championships.
Before embarking on his coaching career, Emanuel served as a compliance assistant, Student Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC) advisor and game day operations assistant for the Panthers' athletic department.
Emanuel is also a respected student-athlete, serving as the EIU team captain for four years and was named a second-team All-OVC sprinter. Emanuel graduated from Eastern Illinois with a bachelor's degree in physical education with a concentration in sport management and a business minor. He also received his Master's degree from EIU in sports administration.
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