STATESBORO, Ga. - Ken Hunt joins Georgia Southern Athletics as assistant track and field coach after gaining experience as an assistant coach at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and Marquette. Hunt, who will be responsible for coaching student-athletes who compete in short sprints, jumps and combined events, was a Horizon League champion and is the conference's current record holder in the indoor and outdoor triple jump. Prior to joining the collegiate coaching ranks, Hunt spent five years as the women's track and field coach at Rufus King High School in Milwaukee, Wisc., and as a volunteer coach with the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

"I am excited Coach Ken Hunt has joined our staff as he brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to our team," said Head Cross Country and Track and Field Coach Natalie Smith. "I believe that our working relationship will be one that will be productive and successful in every area because it brings about balance, and that balance will be injected into everything that we do as a staff and as a team."

Hunt organized event training for the long jump, triple jump, high jump, pole vault and combined events at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Three SIUE records were set in the pentathlon, long jump and pole vault as the program was transitioning to NCAA Division I status. Coordinating recruitment and alumni activities for the Cougar track and field program also fell under Hunt's areas of responsibility.

Prior to his position at SIUE, Hunt was an assistant track and field coach at Marquette where he handled training for student-athletes in the sprints, hurdles, long jump, triple jump, high jump, pole vault and combined events. During his two years with the Golden Eagles, 15 student-athletes recorded personal best marks with 10 qualifying for the Big East Championships and four for the NCAA Regionals. Hunt also assisted with recruitment and other administrative duties.

"Coach Hunt is going to be a great recruiter for us and will be a strong asset for helping us gain positive attention for our program," Smith said. "Coach Hunt has a true passion for what he does, and more importantly, he understands the vision and purpose of our team -- to build young ladies who will leave a legacy everywhere that they go in life because of what they gained as part of the GSU cross country and track teams."

In four years as the head coach of the Rufus King High School program, Hunt coached100 all-conference athletes, 20 state champions and 15 all-state athletes. He also led the team to 12 conference championships and four top-five state championship finishes. He grew his initial co-ed roster of 45 to more than 150 participants in two years.

Hunt spent time as a volunteer/part-time assistant coach at UW-Milwaukee before taking over at Rufus King High School. During his two years assisting the Panther program, Hunt was a part of four conference championships and coached student-athletes to 19 personal best marks, 15 event championships and two school records. One student-athlete also competed for the French Olympic team.

A Wisconsin recruit and eventual standout student-athlete for UW-Milwaukee, Hunt holds the Horizon League and university indoor and outdoor triple jump record. He earned conference championships in both events two consecutive years and ranks in the top 10 in Panther history in numerous other indoor and outdoor events. As a USA Indoor Championship qualifier, Hunt holds a personal best of 54 feet, 2 inches in the triple jump and better than 24 feet in the long jump.

In 2004, Hunt was invited to the U.S. Elite Coaches Clinic at the Olympic Center by the United States Olympic Committee and the United States Track & Field Association. He has a USA Track and Field Level 2 coaching certificate for jumps.

Hunt volunteered his time in the Milwaukee area and surrounding communities by coaching youth track and field clubs. Since 1997, he has helped coach more than 200 national qualifiers and 30 top-eight national medalists in Amateur Athletic Union and USA Track and Field national competitions.

Hunt has a bachelor's degree from UW-Milwaukee in History with a minor in Africology.