David Barnett enters his fifth season as head cross country and distance coach with the Bears, joining Baylor in August of 2021.
In 2024, Barnett helped then-freshman Ruth Kimeli earn all-region honors with a fourth-place finish at the NCAA South Central Regional and a berth in the NCAA Cross Country Championships. She also became the first woman in program history to record a top-10 finish at the prestigious Gans Creek Classic, placing eighth with a time of 20:12.3 that ranks in the top 20 in the meet's history.
Outdoors, Kimeli led the distance crew again, qualifying for the 2025 NCAA Championships in the 10,000 meters and placing 18th overall. Baylor's distance crews earned a total of 32 Academic All-Big 12 honors in cross country and track and field, including seven on the All-Big 12 Rookie Team.
During the 2023 cross country season, Barnett helped guide the women's squad to its first non-dual meet win since 2018 at the season-opening UIW Twilight. Hayden Gold's silver medal at the UIW Twilight was the best finish from a Baylor woman in a non-dual meet since 2017. Barnett coached the men's team to a 10th place finish in a stacked field at Missouri's Gans Creek Classic, led by Ryan Hodge's 13th place finish. Among the men's and women's teams, both were named USTFCCCA All-Academic Teams with a total of 13 athletes being named to the Academic All-Big 12 teams.
During the 2024 outdoor season, the duo of Ellie Hodge and Rachel Hickey recorded impressive performances in the women's 1500 meters at the Battle on the Bayou. Both Bears punched new PRs for their career in the event and moved up the ranks in the program's all-time marks underneath Barnett's coaching.
Season No. 2 saw the arrival of Annamaria Kostarellis in the spring, who Barnett coached to an appearance at the NCAA DI Outdoor National Championships in the 10,000 meters. She just missed a podium finish in ninth place and was the first Bear to make the championships in over a decade. In the cross country season, the Bears took three All-Region spots at the South Central meet in Bryan-College Station with Ryan Day, Drew Snyder and Ellie Hodge en route to an eighth-place women's and a seventh-place men's finish.
In his first season in the green and gold, Barnett mentored Aaliyah Miller to All-America honors in the 800 meters and saw her win her ninth Big 12 Championship overall, the most of any student-athlete in the history of Baylor Track and Field.
Barnett came to Baylor from Auburn University, where he had served as cross country head coach since 2017. The Oneonta, Ala., native coached an NCAA champion, three NCAA medalists (top-3 finishers), nine All Americans, 12 NCAA qualifiers and eight SEC medalists during his time at Auburn. Barnett’s athletes combined to set 15 school records and were part of multiple top-10 and top-15 team finishes nationally.
Barnett coached the top female distance runner in Auburn history, Joyce Kimeli, to the 2021 NCAA National Championship in the 5,000 meters (indoor) and saw her become the SEC record holder in the steeplechase (9:31) and the SEC meet record holder in both the 3,000m and 5,000m. Barnett helped Kimeli set four school records - in the mile (4:38), 3,000m (8:56), 5,000m (15:37) and 3,000m steeplechase (9:31).
Prior to his time at Auburn, Barnett was the Head Cross Country Coach/Assistant Track and Field Coach at South Alabama from 2012-17.
At South Alabama, Barnett was honored as Sun Belt Cross Country Coach of the Year in both 2014 and 2015. He led the men’s team to its first conference title in eight years in 2014, and in 2015 helped the women’s team win its first league championship since 1993. Both the men’s and women’s championship teams earned the highest GPA in the Sun Belt during their respective seasons.
His distance runners at South Alabama combined for 39 all-conference honors and 15 conference championships, and five school records were established on the women’s side in the 1,500m, mile, 3,000m and 5,000m.
Barnett joined South Alabama as an assistant coach in October 2011 before taking over the the cross country program in December 2012. He served as the staff representative/huddle coach for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) at South Alabama throughout his time there.
As a graduate assistant/intern for Auburn from 2009-2011, Barnett helped lead the men’s team to back-to-back top-20 finishes at the NCAA Indoor Championships and the women’s team to a top-10 finish at the 2010 NCAA Indoor Championships and a top-15 finish at the 2011 NCAA Indoor Championships.
Barnett earned a bachelor’s degree in exercise science from Auburn after graduating in 2010, and has obtained USA Track & Field Level I and II Coaching Certification.
