Contributed/ETSU Athletics

After the retirement of Track and Field and Cross Country director George Watts, ETSU has officially signed veteran coach Connie Teaberry. She will be transferring after 22 seasons of coaching at Northern Illinois University. Before her long-held coaching positions, she had a promising career in track and field herself.

She was runner-up twice at the USA Nationals in 1993 and 1996, competed in the 1993 World Championship, and competed in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, finishing 15th in high jump. While attending Kansas State University, Teaberry originally had plans to become a nurse, but after becoming a graduate assistant coach for the University of Kentucky and a few other colleges, she chose a different path. 

Teaberry has proven to be a tremendous coach, as she was nominated MAC Indoor Track Coach of the Year in 2020 and 2021. She also led her teams to receive 46 MAC championships, 11 NCAA Championship qualifications, and 4 All-American honors. Alongside these awards, in 2025, she served as the women’s multi-event and jump coach for the United States national team at the World Athletics Championship in  Tokyo, Japan.

ETSU Track and Cross Country are excited to see what their new director has in store. Track and Field athlete Maddie Winchester states, “I’m very excited to see how she changes the program. I think having a woman in charge will be very impactful and inspire more women to pursue the sport of track and field.”

Teaberry wishes to represent this school with pride as she continues her prosperous career here at ETSU.

Author