July 16, 2009
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Josh Langley, a former assistant track and field coach at Clemson, and Peter Watson, a former head cross country coach and assistant track coach at Auburn, have joined the University of North Carolina coaching staff, head coach Dennis Craddock announced today.
Langley will coach the pole vault and throwing events. Watson will be the head coach of the cross country programs and be an assistant track coach for distance events.
"We are quite pleased to welcome Josh and Peter to the Carolina athletic family," says Craddock, who will be coaching in his 25th season in Chapel Hill in 2009-10. "I watched Josh up close the last few years at Clemson both at meets and on the recruiting trail and was very impressed with his work. He will continue the strong tradition we have in the vault and throws.
"Peter has a lot of experience coaching cross country and distance running on the national level. We want to get our cross country program back among the top schools in the country and Peter has the experience and know-how to get that done."
Langley coached at Clemson the past three years. In 2007 and 2008 he coached the men's field events and multi-event athletes. Last year, he coached men's and women's pole vault and throws and men's multi-events. He also coached for three years at Gardner-Webb (2004-06). He is a 2003 graduate of Western Carolina and began his coaching career with the Catamounts. He was an outstanding javelin thrower at WCU and was a member of two Southern Conference championship teams in 1999.
At Clemson, he helped Mitch Greeley to a second-place finish in the pole vault at the 2008 NCAA Indoor Championships, the Tigers' best individual finish indoors ever by a field athlete. Greeley later qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials. Langley also helped Miller Moss qualify for the 2009 NCAA Championships in the decathlon; Nicole Lomnicka was ranked No. 7 in the nation last year in the hammer; and his athletes earned All-America honors in the heptathlon and triple jump.
Langley coached 49 all-conference selections and five regional qualifiers in his three seasons at Gardner-Webb. The Bulldogs won the 2006 Atlantic Sun Conference men's outdoor title. He is married to the former Layna Stoetzel, a former volleyball player at Western Carolina.
Watson was the head cross country coach and an assistant with the track team at Auburn for the past four years. A native of London, Ontario, Watson led the Tigers to a school-best fifth place finish at the 2008 NCAA Men's Cross Country Championships. Freshman Girma Mecheso won the 2008 Southeastern Conference title. Two of his runners, Felix Kibioywo and Hollie Knight, won the 2008 NCAA South Region men's and women's championships, respectively. Kibioywo also won the NCAA regional in 2007.
Watson helped the Tigers win the 2006 NCAA Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championship. Auburn was second in 2008 and third in 2007 at the NCAA men's outdoor meet.
Watson's runners won five SEC titles, earned nine All-America honors, had 31 NCAA qualifying marks, and set five school and 10 freshmen school records.
In 2006, Angela Homan won the individual SEC Cross Country Championship. Homan earned All-America honors in cross country, placed fifth at the NCAA Outdoor Track Championship in the 5,000 meters and won at the Penn Relays.
Prior to his tenure at Auburn, Watson worked for Kimbia Sports Management and was a volunteer coach at West Virginia University. He is a 2001 graduate of West Virginia and was a member of the 2000 and 2001 Canadian National Track and Field Team. He is married to the former Kristin Schreiber.
