NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State Director of Track & Field/Cross Country Jeff Bovee has announced the hiring of Davis Nguy to his coaching staff. Nguy will serve as an assistant coach, helping with jumps.
"We are thrilled to add Davis to the Redbird coaching staff," said Bovee. "Davis not only brings experience coaching at the Division I level, but he grew up in the area and has followed our program for many years as a local product of Normal Community High School and Illinois Wesleyan University. Due to his familiarity with the program, he will be able to hit the ground running at ISU and round out our staff quite well. His primary coaching responsibilities will be in the field events, but Davis will add to our efforts in recruiting to ISU as well."
Nguy joins the Redbirds after spending a year coaching at the University of Minnesota, assisting with men's and women's sprints, jumps, and multi events. The women's team finished seventh at the Big Ten Indoor Track & Field Championships and tied for 17th at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Student-athletes earned five All-American honors, two Big Ten titles, a pair of top-three performances at the Big Ten Championships, and broke a school record in the men's 100m during Nguy's lone year with the program. Additionally, he helped with women's pole vault, where a student-athlete ranked second all-time in program history after collecting a pair of top-10 marks at the Big Ten Indoor and Outdoor Championships.
Prior to Minnesota, Nguy began his collegiate coaching career at Saint Louis University for two years. He assisted with multi events, pole vault, high jump, and hurdles, where his student-athletes broke four school records in pole vault and the indoor heptathlon. Student-athletes set over 100 personal-best totals throughout Nguy's two years with the program.
The Bloomington, Illinois, native competed in track & field at Illinois Wesleyan University. He was an eight-time All-Conference honoree in the heptathlon and decathlon events. During his senior season in 2023, he won the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) title in the heptathlon at the CCIW Indoor Championships. Nguy was a three-year captain for the program, and an inductee into the Order of Titans, which recognizes student-athletes based on academic achievements, athletic contributions, and general citizenship. Plus, he was the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Vice President, serving as a member within the committee for four years. Away from the program, Nguy gained experience coaching his high school team at Normal Community High School and with the Central Illinois Track Club.
Nguy graduated from Illinois Wesleyan with a bachelor's degree in graphic design and two minors in coaching and sports management. He obtained his master's in organizational leadership development while coaching at Saint Louis University. He has earned a USTFCCCA Technical Certification, USTFCCCA Combined Event Specialist Certification, and a USTFCCCA Strength and Conditioning Coach Certification.
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