Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboy Cross Country & Track
- Title:
- Assistant Coach - Distance
- Email:
- Ryun.godfrey@okstate.edu
Godfrey joins the OSU staff after spending the previous season as head cross country coach and assistant track & field coach at Nebraska. While at Nebraska, he coached the cross country team to some of their best finishes in 12 years in 2023. The women tied their best finish at the Big Ten Cross Country Championships, taking seventh overall. That marked the top team placement since 2011, the year Nebraska joined the Big Ten. The women added a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Midwest Regional, their best regional finish since 2011. In each of the 2023 meets, a freshman crossed the line first for the Huskers.
During his Nebraska tenure, the Huskers won two Big Ten Team Championships and Godfrey coached five top-ten performances in program history, including two school records. Two individuals also earned Big Ten medalist honors as top-3 finishers in the conference.
Prior to Nebraska, Godfrey had coaching stints at Arizona State, Kansas State and North Dakota State.
The 28-time Conference Coach of the Year selection and six-time DII Region Coach of the Year honoree was twice named Midwest Region Coach of the Year, while also receiving DII Coach of the Year and North Dakota Sports Writers/Sportscaster Coach of the Year recognition.
Godfrey has coached four athletes who have qualified for the USA Championships and Olympic Trials, including two finalists. He has also helped two collegiate athletes to World/Olympic standards in the 800m.
On the collegiate level, Godfrey has coached a DI runner-up (800m), a DII champion (400m Hurdles and 800m), two DII 4x400m relay champions, 12 DI All-Americans and 16 DII All-Americans. At the conference championships, he has coached three Big 12 champions, 11 Summit League champions and 11 North Central Conference champions.
Prior to Nebraska and Arizona State, Godfrey spent eight seasons coaching at Kansas State, helping the Wildcats to two Big 12 Championships in 2017 and 2018. He coached the Wildcats to five school records and helped three K-State runners earn All-Big 12 honors in cross country, two athletes earned Midwest All-Region honors and a pair of qualifiers for the NCAA Cross Country Championships.
He also coached three Big 12 individual champions, five Big 12 medalists and a first-team All-American in the 800 Meters. 18 athletes coached by Godfrey cracked the Kansas State top-10 list in program history.
Before his time at K-State, Godfrey was the head track and field/cross country coach at North Dakota State for 15 years, helping the Bison set 24 school records. NDSU won the DII Indoor Championships in 2002 and finished in the top four in 10 seasons as a team at the NCAA Championships.
Godfrey’s guidance led NDSU to 30 conference championship titles, including 13 indoor titles, 13 outdoor titles and four titles in cross country.
Godfrey is a 1996 graduate of NDSU where he ran for four years before holding a one-year graduate assistant position. He earned all-conference honors and was a member of seven NDSU league champion squads. He has a bachelor’s in physical education, has USATF Level II certification in three different areas (endurance, sprints hurdles & relay and jumps) and is a member of the National Strength and Conditioning Association.
