BENNY MITCHELL OF TAOS NAMED 2021-22 National Track and Field Coach of the Year
Twenty-three high school coaches from across the country have been selected as 2021-22 National Coaches of the Year by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Coaches Association. Among the winners is Benny Mitchell of Taos High School who was selected as the Boys Track and Field Coach of the Year.
Benny Mitchell has coached the Taos High School boys track and field team the past 14 years with a philosophy of developing student-athletes’ ability to build trust in themselves, their teams and their supporters. He also developed a mini-dynasty in the past decade when the Taos boys track and field program won five straight state championships from 2014 to 2018. Mitchell’s teams have also won seven district titles. In addition, Mitchell coaches the girls program at Taos, guiding them to three state titles and five district championships. Mitchell has led a wide variety of student-athletes at Taos having coached football, boys and girls basketball, and bowling during his time there. Mitchell is a current board member of the New Mexico Coaches Association and serves on the New Mexico Activities Association Track and Field Committee.
Twenty-three high school coaches from across the country have been selected as 2021-22 National Coaches of the Year by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Coaches Association. The NFHS, which has been recognizing coaches through an awards program since 1982, honors coaches in the top 10 girls sports and top 10 boys sports (by participation numbers), and in two “other” sports – one for boys and one for girls – that are not included in the top 10 listings. The NFHS also recognizes a spirit coach as a separate award category.
The NFHS receives nominations from its member state associations, which often works with the state coaches’ association in its respective state. The state association then contacts the potential state award recipients to complete a coach profile form that requests information regarding the coach’s record, membership in and affiliation with coaching and other professional organizations, involvement with other school and community activities and programs, and coaching philosophy. To be approved as an award recipient and considered for sectional and national coach of the year consideration, this profile form must be completed by the coach or designee and then approved by the executive director (or designee) of the state athletic/activities association.
The next award level after state coach of the year is sectional coach of the year. The NFHS is divided into eight geographical sections. They are as follows: Section 1 – Northeast (CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, RI, VT); Section 2 – Mideast (DE, DC, KY, MD, OH, PA, VA, WV); Section 3 – South (AL, FL, GA, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN); Section 4 – Central (IL, IN, IA, MI, WI); Section 5 – Midwest (KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD); Section 6 – Southwest (AR, CO, NM, OK, TX); Section 7 – West (AZ, CA, HI, NV, UT); and Section 8 – Northwest (AK, ID, MT, OR, WA, WY).
The NFHS Coaches Association has an advisory committee composed of a chair and eight sectional representatives. The sectional committee representatives evaluate the state award recipients from the states in their respective sections and select the best candidates for the sectional award in each sport category. The NFHS Coaches Association Advisory Committee then considers the sectional candidates in each sport, ranks them according to a point system, and determines a national winner for each of the 20 sport categories, the spirit category and two “other” categories.
A total of 870 coaches will be recognized this year with state, sectional and national awards.
