CLEVELAND — The Truett-McConnell College athletic department announced the hiring of Jarret Holland as its new men's and women’s track and field coach on Monday.
Holland, who has spent the last 11 seasons at the helm of the Truett-McConnell Bears cross country program, will now coach both programs.
Truett-McConnell athletic director Stacy Hall expressed his enthusiasm with the new hire stating, “After a national search and an extensive interview process, we confirmed what we already knew. That Jarret Holland is an exceptional head coach and just the man that God has called to lead our new track and field program and to continue our recent success in cross country. I'm thrilled to have coach Holland expand his role at Truett-McConnell.”
Prior to leading the cross country team at Truett-McConnell, Holland spent two years in New York City as an operations manager upon graduating from the University of Georgia in 2002.
Holland has amassed an unprecedented track record while at the helm for the Bears, collecting 36 invitational championships, two Men’s NJCAA Region XVII Conference titles (2006, 2008), and two Women’s NJCAA Region XVII Conference titles (2005, 2006). Holland is also a four-time recipient of the NJCAA Region XVII Coach of the Year award. During Truett-McConnell’s inaugural year in the NAIA, Holland coached the men’s cross country team to a third place overall standing in the men’s conference. He also coached the fastest NAIA SSAC male freshman in 2012 and the first runner in school history to qualify for and compete in the NAIA National Championships (also in 2012). Holland has had a runner represent Truett-McConnell in the NAIA National Championship race for the past four seasons in Vancouver, Wash., (2012), Lawrence, Kan., (2013 and 2014), and most recently in Charlotte, N.C. (2015).
In the 2015 season, the men’s cross country team finished second overall in the NAIA Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) standings and had their top finisher, Luis Gonzalez, qualify for his fourth consecutive trip to the NAIA National Championships. The men’s team also came away with three overall race wins during the course of the season, including the Mount Saint Mary Invitational in New York that played host to over 23 top-tier teams from six different states. The Bears also won the NCAA Division II sanctioned meet held by Southern Wesleyan in Central, S.C., and the Toccoa Falls Invitational in Toccoa Falls.
Holland is a native of Stone Mountain but attended Cherokee High School in Canton, where he ran cross country and qualified for the state championship in 1997. Upon graduation, he attended Truett-McConnell College where he ran with the school’s inaugural cross country team in 1998-99 and graduated with an Associate’s in Arts degree.
Holland continued his education at the University of Georgia, where he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Public Relations, and then earned his Master’s and Specialist’s degrees in Education from Piedmont College.
During his tenure at Truett-McConnell College, in addition to serving as the cross country coach, Holland has also served as an adjunct professor of English, sports information director, and even the men’s and women’s golf coach for one season, leading the Bears golf program to a second place finish in the conference standings.
Holland’s goal for the Bears inaugural track and field team is to build a team of upstanding, disciplined, Christian athletes that are intelligent and talented and have a commitment to excellence both in the classroom and on the field.
“I’m very fortunate and thankful to have been given an opportunity yet again to lead an exciting chapter in the history of Truett-McConnell College,” said Holland. “I feel blessed to be a member of the Truett-McConnell family, and I’m excited about the challenge of overseeing another team in our quest to bring a championship to our campus. I feel like all the tools and resources are in place for us to not only build a competitive team, but to compete on a national stage.”
Holland himself is still an avid runner and sports fan. In the fall, he can be found on most weekends cheering on the Georgia Bulldogs football team and training for marathons. He most recently competed in the Rock and Roll Marathon in Las Vegas. Holland, his wife Kristin, and his daughter Layla Marie, welcomed the newest additions to their family in March of 2015 with the birth of their identical twin girls, Carolina and MaryBelle. The family resides in Buford.
