Kansas State University Athletics
SE: Hard Work a Key Component in LaMar Garrett’s Path Back to K-State Track and Field
Dec 04, 2018 | Track & Field, Sports Extra
By Corbin McGuire
When LaMar Garrett thinks of when it clicked for him, when coaching became a career choice, he thinks of a Home Depot and a radio station in Wisconsin. Images of building shelves and falling tools, along with memories of late nights with nothing but his music to keep him company immediately come to mind.
"I look back on it all the time," said Garrett, in his first season as an assistant K-State track and field coach. "You'd think I was crazy."
Or, that he really wanted to coach. While serving as a volunteer assistant coach at the University of Wisconsin, Garrett worked at Home Depot early in the morning and cleaned a radio station, followed by a strip mall, late at night, with his own music on to pass the time.
"At that point, if you're doing all that, it's definitely something you want to do," he said. "It helps me appreciate the fact that I worked to get here. It helps me appreciate that journey."
Garrett's journey, more than once, has brought him to K-State via hard work.
The Oklahoma City, Oklahoma native said he took 26 credit hours his third semester at Independence Community College, where he won two national championships in the high jump, to graduate early and get to K-State as soon as possible. The motivation to do so, he said, stemmed from meeting K-State Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Cliff Rovelto at a junior elite camp at the age of 19.
"At that point I realized he was one of the best in the world," Garrett said. "I figured at the end of the day, I could learn and grow under him and hopefully I can reach my goals."
Garrett earned All-Big 12 honors three times as a Wildcat. He left with a bachelor's degree in social science and a master's degree in counseling and student development/athletic administration.
He then moved back to Oklahoma City and volunteered as a coach for his high school's track and field team. About eight months later he got a chance to be a volunteer assistant for K-State, which led to his opportunity with Wisconsin. After two years with the Badgers, Garrett landed his first paying gig in the coaching world, as an assistant at Illinois State.
Specifically, he coached Illinois State's high jump and multi-events student-athletes. More accurately, he built the latter group from the ground up. When he arrived, Illinois State had one student-athlete in the multi-events between the men and women. By the time he left to return to K-State, the Redbirds had captured the first heptathlon, decathlon and pentathlon conference championships in school history. In 2018, Illinois State scored 141 points (71 women's, 70 men's) in the multi-events between the indoor and outdoor Missouri Valley Conference Championships.
"Honestly I have to give it to the athletes," Garrett said. "They're the ones doing it."
Garrett also admitted that his path to Illinois State and the influences he came across along the way played a role in his ability to build such a group.
He said Nate Davis, his coach at Independence who has been an assistant at Wisconsin since 2007, was a key figure in his growth as a coach.
"One thing that Coach Davis really showed me is let yourself be known to the athlete, share your personality. I get to know each and every one of my athletes and we have a good time," Garrett said. "I want to know who they are now and hopefully after they graduate we can talk 10, 20, 30 years later. Hopefully through their time with me as their coach they grow as people."
Rovelto, of course, and K-State, in general, taught him a lot as well.
"What I learned here is the technical aspect of everything and how to put together training plans. That was huge for me. I don't really know how I learned it. It's just something that I observed over time and I realized what was going on and the hard work that comes with it," Garrett said. "For me, hard work isn't something that I shy away from. If somebody needs to be done, at the end of the day I'll probably just get up and do it. That's the impact that K-State had on me."
When LaMar Garrett thinks of when it clicked for him, when coaching became a career choice, he thinks of a Home Depot and a radio station in Wisconsin. Images of building shelves and falling tools, along with memories of late nights with nothing but his music to keep him company immediately come to mind.
"I look back on it all the time," said Garrett, in his first season as an assistant K-State track and field coach. "You'd think I was crazy."
Or, that he really wanted to coach. While serving as a volunteer assistant coach at the University of Wisconsin, Garrett worked at Home Depot early in the morning and cleaned a radio station, followed by a strip mall, late at night, with his own music on to pass the time.
"At that point, if you're doing all that, it's definitely something you want to do," he said. "It helps me appreciate the fact that I worked to get here. It helps me appreciate that journey."
Garrett's journey, more than once, has brought him to K-State via hard work.
The Oklahoma City, Oklahoma native said he took 26 credit hours his third semester at Independence Community College, where he won two national championships in the high jump, to graduate early and get to K-State as soon as possible. The motivation to do so, he said, stemmed from meeting K-State Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Cliff Rovelto at a junior elite camp at the age of 19.
"At that point I realized he was one of the best in the world," Garrett said. "I figured at the end of the day, I could learn and grow under him and hopefully I can reach my goals."
Garrett earned All-Big 12 honors three times as a Wildcat. He left with a bachelor's degree in social science and a master's degree in counseling and student development/athletic administration.
He then moved back to Oklahoma City and volunteered as a coach for his high school's track and field team. About eight months later he got a chance to be a volunteer assistant for K-State, which led to his opportunity with Wisconsin. After two years with the Badgers, Garrett landed his first paying gig in the coaching world, as an assistant at Illinois State.
Specifically, he coached Illinois State's high jump and multi-events student-athletes. More accurately, he built the latter group from the ground up. When he arrived, Illinois State had one student-athlete in the multi-events between the men and women. By the time he left to return to K-State, the Redbirds had captured the first heptathlon, decathlon and pentathlon conference championships in school history. In 2018, Illinois State scored 141 points (71 women's, 70 men's) in the multi-events between the indoor and outdoor Missouri Valley Conference Championships.
"Honestly I have to give it to the athletes," Garrett said. "They're the ones doing it."
Garrett also admitted that his path to Illinois State and the influences he came across along the way played a role in his ability to build such a group.
He said Nate Davis, his coach at Independence who has been an assistant at Wisconsin since 2007, was a key figure in his growth as a coach.
"One thing that Coach Davis really showed me is let yourself be known to the athlete, share your personality. I get to know each and every one of my athletes and we have a good time," Garrett said. "I want to know who they are now and hopefully after they graduate we can talk 10, 20, 30 years later. Hopefully through their time with me as their coach they grow as people."
Rovelto, of course, and K-State, in general, taught him a lot as well.
"What I learned here is the technical aspect of everything and how to put together training plans. That was huge for me. I don't really know how I learned it. It's just something that I observed over time and I realized what was going on and the hard work that comes with it," Garrett said. "For me, hard work isn't something that I shy away from. If somebody needs to be done, at the end of the day I'll probably just get up and do it. That's the impact that K-State had on me."
K-State T&F | Gear Reveal
Saturday, August 30
K-State TF | NCAA Championship Recap
Tuesday, June 17
K-State Track and Field | Coach Geopfert Post Meet Comments - NCAA Championships / Women's Finals
Monday, June 16
K-State Track and Field | Coach Geopfert Post Meet Comments - NCAA Championships / Men's Finals
Saturday, June 14