It’s 6 a.m. on a Friday and most of Omaha is still asleep. Those half awake are hitting the snooze button for the third time and those awake are wondering why am I up? or why won’t my kid(s) go back to sleep? But still there is another group, aggressive go-getters, ahead of the pack, making the most of every day. In that final group is where you will find Creighton’s new men’s and women’s cross-country/track coach Chas Davis. The former CU standout recently took over as head coach and is ready to build a running tradition on the Hilltop. On this particular Friday, we found Davis running with a few returning runners on the riverfront trails. Davis knows that to get the program to where he wants it to be, he has to start at the top.
Davis has his work cut out for him. As a Bluejay assistant in 2007, Davis and the coaching staff placed a runner on the men’s all-MVC team for the first time in school history (last female runner on the all-MVC team was in 2001). That same year the men’s team finished a program-best 4th in the conference. Davis sees that kind of potential with his first group of runners.
“We have a lot of very raw, underdeveloped talent on the team that can do a lot of damage in the Missouri Valley if guided correctly. It’s going to take a lot of time and patience, a lot of personal and physical growth and maturity, but the elements for a successful team are in place,” he said. This is where the 26-year-old Davis fits the job perfectly.
Chas Davis (far right) leads runners on an early morning run in downtown Omaha
After graduating from Creighton in 2005, Davis spent three years as an assistant coach at his alma mater. Next, he took the opportunity to learn from one of the nation’s best programs, the Oregon State women’s cross-country and track teams. Out in Corvallis, Davis got to see firsthand how important a “runner’s lifestyle” is to running.
“On the D-I level, everyone is a (former) state high school placer, everyone was shockingly talented,” Davis explained. “It’s not just as simple as running more or faster in training than the other guy or girl anymore. There are certain things that have to happen in terms of recruiting, team policy, season planning, and the overall message from the top that cannot be left up to chance and poor planning and poor organization.”
Davis learned quickly at Oregon State. He was there one season when the head spot opened up at Creighton. After being name head coach on May 12th, Davis began his duties. But with one catch: he was still in Corvallis. How does one coach from so far? He spent a lot of time on the phone with the current runners discussing their summer training and focus. An even more difficult job was contacting the incoming freshmen and securing a freshmen class, reassuring them that running for Creighton was still in their best interests. Once he was able to strike some consistent communication with his teams, he started paving the way for his program.
“I want to help them recover from previous injuries, correct bad habits, and ensure that we are planting the right seeds for a successful, dedicated team culture in the future,” Davis said. Like many profitable businesses and strong organizations, a clear strong message from the top breeds a successful culture.
Davis has been off and running, literally, since his first day as head coach. “Day-to-day planning and preparation for the season has dominated much of my time. Setting up a racing schedule, planning for the team retreat before welcome week, planning and plotting out the course for our first meet of the season, the home meet we host with UNO, and recruiting for next year,” Davis said. He’s even hired an assistant coach, Marty Kinsey. And just like this early Friday morning, Davis will routinely run with those members of his team who are in town. But those runners who are gone shouldn’t feel left out. Davis tracks their summer training via the Website FloTrack.org. “I get to see what they’re doing, how they’re doing, and what I can reasonably expect them to be able to do once the season begins,” Davis said.
What he expects, among other things, is his athletes to embrace what he calls the “runner’s lifestyle.” Davis gave a few details of what he will use to guide his runners to the next level, some of which they may not be accustomed to coming from the high school ranks.
“What [the runner’s lifestyle] involves, how to apply it in their own lives, and why it is necessary for success on this level. The building blocks and components are all there, the desire and potential is in place. Now this team just needs to be able to piece it all together before real success can be found,” Davis said.
Dawn breaks for another cool July day, and Davis and his teams are off and running once again. Each day gets closer to the start of practice and their first meet, and Davis is a few strides closer to building his Creighton cross country program..