Newly hired head coach for men’s and women’s track and field and cross country programs, Josey Weaver, completed hiring the rest of his staff this summer. 

Weaver welcomed Ryan Davis as assistant coach for throwing events, Derek Jacobus as recruiting coordinator and assistant coach for jumps and multi-events, Jerod Wims as assistant coach for sprints, hurdles, and relays and, most recently, Danae Weaver as assistant coach for distance and pole vault. 

“We put a great coaching staff together that can definitely help build this program faster,” Josey Weaver said. “I’m only going to be as successful as the people that I surround myself with. That was my first priority to find a great group of coaches.”

The new hires not only bring a wealth of experience, but they also have a collective goal in mind: to be successful. 

“When you have a new staff, you give yourself some time to get together … and build a program, but I think all of us have a [mentality] that we want to win now so it will happen sooner rather than later,” Wims said. 

The hires come from all across the United States with different backgrounds, which makes the staff dynamic. 

“Each of them bring different pieces to the table,” Josey Weaver said. “They’re all great recruiters. They’re hard workers. They all have been successful not only in their coaching career but as athletes themselves, so they have lived and walked in the shoes that they’re trying to get their athletes to do the same.”

A critical factor in Josey Weaver’s hiring process was finding coaches that could “build relationships with student-athletes” to build the program as a whole. 

Wims said, “What I want to do this year is give [the athletes] my undivided attention.”

As a former decorated athlete at Florida International and Auburn University and head coach at South Carolina State University, Wims has valuable experience to add to the coaching staff. With his experience, he recognizes the importance of pushing limits. 

“I want to show [the athletes] who they are, meaning they may have not been taken to certain limits. Like I told them, you really don’t know who you are until you’re being tested,” Wims said. “What I want to do is show everybody who they are, and once I do that, then we can go around and add pieces to the puzzle.”

Similar to Wims, Davis, who was a former coach at Barton College and athlete at East Carolina University, also gravitated to a more hands-on coaching approach. 

“I take a different approach as far as when it comes to working with my athletes, I like to actually get into it myself,” Davis said. 

Davis continues to practice throwing and sees that as a benefit to connecting to the student-athlete throwers. 

“Last summer, I was blessed to have the opportunity to make it to the Olympic trials,” Davis said. “Being able to get all that type of experience … it makes me feel very confident in my abilities to be able to help grow this throws program and build this track program as a whole.”

Danae Weaver’s priority is to ensure expectations are understood between the staff and the student athletes and that these expectations are met through discipline and hardwork. Most importantly, she believes self talk will drive the athletes’ success. 

“As a staff, we are going to collectively work hard to better our student athletes as a team by being very upfront and honest and showing them and telling them what the expectations are going to be as far as being disciplined and putting their full attention on the task at hand,” Danae Weaver said. “We’re going to speak our goals out loud. That’s a big thing in athletics. Your body can achieve what your mind can think.”

With the coaching staff completed, Josey Weaver plans to emphasize recruiting to expand the programs. With Arkansas being landlocked, he sees an opportunity to explore surrounding states to find athletes to “elevate the program.”

Danae Weaver said, “We’re going to get our kids better that we have and we’re going to bring excellent recruits to add to the roster.”

Like the rest of the coaching staff, Josey Weaver’s ultimate goal is to win. 

“We’re looking to compete in the Atlantic Sun Conference, and the goal is to win the championship, and that will always be the goal whether we get there in the first year or not. That is definitely the standard that we set for our program,” Josey Weaver said. 

Wims and Davis both reiterated that Weaver’s plan of action to enhance the track and field and cross country programs significantly influenced their decision to coach at UCA. 

“I really believed in coach Weaver’s vision, and he believed in mine,” Wims said.