Head coach Chris Bucknam begins his fifth season at the helm of Arkansas Razorback men’s cross country and track and field. Following 25 seasons at Northern Iowa, Bucknam was named Arkansas’ head coach on June 27, 2008.

In 2011-12, Bucknam guided the Razorbacks to the program’s 13th SEC Triple Crown and the first under his watch. With the three conference titles during the season, Bucknam increased his SEC haul to eight league titles in four years. For his part, Bucknam was named the SEC Coach of the Year for the cross country, indoor and outdoor seasons.

Arkansas’ 2012 success extended to the national stage with a pair of top-10 NCAA results at the indoor and outdoor track and field meets. The Razorbacks were second at the NCAA Indoor Championships and capped the collegiate season with an eighth-place showing at the NCAA Outdoor meet.

During the year, the Razorbacks captured NCAA indoor titles in the pole vault with freshman Andrew Irwin and in the 4x400-meter relay with Marek Niit, Akheem Gauntlett, Ben Skidmore and Neil Braddy.

For the second time in three years, Bucknam and the Razorbacks won two of the three SEC Championships with the team’s efforts in 2010-11. Arkansas began the championship season with a victory at the 2010 SEC Cross Country Championships, the first such league title for the Razorbacks under Bucknam. The team went on to win its second SEC title of the year with top honors at the 2011 SEC Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

On the national level, the Razorbacks finished 10th at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, their highest finish under Bucknam’s watch, and earned two All-America selections with Dorian Ulrey and Solomon Haile. Arkansas picked up another top-10 national finish with its team performance at the 2011 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

Propelled by five event titles, including two from Ulrey, and two runner-up finishes, the Razorbacks won the team title at the 2010 SEC Indoor Championships.

Ulrey was named the 2010 SEC Indoor Runner of the Year and Bucknam was named the 2010 SEC Indoor Coach of the Year, both for the second-straight season. Ulrey, the 2010 NCAA Indoor South Central Region Runner of the Year, and Bucknam, the 2010 NCAA Indoor South Central Region Coach of the Year, were also honored for the second-straight season.

Ulrey’s outstanding season started with a sixth-place finish and All-America honors at the 2009 NCAA Cross Country Championships. Ulrey was the 2009 SEC Cross Country runner-up and won the title at the 2009 NCAA South Central Region Championships. Ulrey was also named the 2009 NCAA South Central Runner of the Year for his cross country efforts.

The Razorbacks won the 2009 NCAA South Central Region Cross Country Team title and posted a runner-up finish at the 2009 SEC Cross Country Championships. The 2009-10 season saw the Razorbacks earn 23 All-SEC honors. Additionally, Solomon Haile was named the 2009 SEC Freshman of the Year in cross country and Lane Boyer was named CoSIDA ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District.

The 2008-09 season was another successful one for the Razorbacks as the squad captured both the Southeastern Conference Indoor and Outdoor team titles. Bucknam was named the 2009 SEC Indoor and Outdoor Coach of the Year and the 2009 NCAA South Central Indoor and Outdoor Regional Coach of the Year. In his first season as head coach, Arkansas student-athletes won 10 SEC individual titles and earned 16 All-America honors.

Since joining the SEC in 1992, the Razorbacks have the only two coaches--Bucknam and John McDonnell--to earn top coaching honors during their respective first seasons in the league. Bucknam also joins McDonnell as the only head coach, since 1992, to sweep the SEC Indoor and Outdoor Coach of the Year honors in the same season.

At the 2009 SEC Outdoor Championships, Arkansas student-athletes picked up six individual titles: Bailey (high jump and long jump), Shawn Forrest (5,000 meters), MacPherson (3,000-meter steeplechase), Alex McClary (800 meters) and Ulrey (1,500 meters). The Razorbacks added to their winning point total with two runner-up finishes from seniors Nkosinza Balumbu (triple jump) and Andy McClary (1,500 meters). The Razorbacks topped Florida’s 129 points with a score of 141 points.

At the 2009 SEC Indoor Championships, the Razorbacks won four individual and relay events (800 meters, mile, 3,000 meters, distance medley relay) and earned seven runner-up finishes (60 meters, 200 meters, mile, 3,000 meters, 5,000 meters, long jump and triple jump). Arkansas scored 130 points to Florida’s 102.

At the 2008 SEC Cross Country Championships, four Razorbacks earned All-SEC honors including two named to the SEC All-Freshman Team. MacPherson went on to earn All-America honors with a 32nd-place finish at the NCAA Championships.

Arkansas earned a runner-up finish and an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships at the NCAA South Central Region Championships. MacPherson was the top finisher in bronze place and six members of the squad earned all-region honors.

Ulrey had a stellar first season with the Razorbacks as he earned four All-America honors (1,500 meters, mile, 3,000 meters, distance medley relay) and won three SEC individual titles (1,500 meters, mile, 3,000 meters). Under Bucknam’s guidance, he anchored the distance medley relay to a school-record time of 9:28.35 with his 3:54 1,600-meter anchor.

At the 2009 USA Championships, Ulrey picked up a bronze finish in the 1,500-meter finals to earn a spot on Team USA for the 2009 IAAF World Championships in Berlin, Germany. Ulrey picked up the “A” standard in Rome with his clocking of 3:35.23, the second-fastest time in school history. In Berlin, representing Team USA, Ulrey advanced to the semifinals of the 1,500 meters. He clocked a qualifying time of 3:38.86 and a semifinal time of 3:39.33.

Ulrey earned ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District and All-America honors with his 3.50 GPA as a sociology major. He was named the SEC Indoor Runner of the Year, the SEC’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year and was the recipient of the SEC Sportsmanship Award.

In the classroom, 12 men’s track and field student-athletes earned selection to the 2009 SEC Spring Academic Honor Roll. Additionally, seven members of the squad were named to the 2009 SEC Freshmen Academic Honor Roll. Earning spots on the 2009 USTFCCCA Men’s All-Academic Track and Field Team were Lane Boyer, Luke Laird, Alex McClary, Daniel Quinn, James Strang and Ulrey.

Bucknam guided his UNI teams to 35 league titles, two top-10 and six top-20 finishes at NCAA Indoor and Outdoor Championships. A 33-time conference coach of the year, Bucknam produced three national champions and an outstanding 34 All-Americans, who earned a total of 85 All-America awards. That includes seven athletes who earned top-three finishes in NCAA championships competition, three of which came in 2008. In all, Bucknam has sent 146 qualifiers to the NCAA indoor and outdoor championships.

He was Northern Iowa’s head men’s track and field coach from 1984-2008 and the women’s head coach from 1997-2008 after beginning his career as a men’s assistant at UNI in 1979. UNI earned 69 All-America honors from 2000-08, including 51 total from 2005-2008. UNI’s 47 men’s All-Americans from 2005-08 ranked as the 10th-most in the nation over that time.

UNI dominated the action at the conference level in Bucknam’s era. During his time as an assistant and head coach, UNI won or shared 38 conference titles (Mid-Continent and Missouri Valley). UNI won nine-straight MVC men’s indoor titles (2000-2008). Bucknam also guided the Panthers to 25 MVC team titles and 231 MVC individual crowns.

Bucknam wrapped up his 25th season with the Panthers and tallied an all-time best outdoor showing for the program as UNI notched an 11th-place finish (22 team points) at the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Championships in Des Moines, Iowa. The Panthers put on quite a show for the home state as they crowned nine All-Americans who earned a total of 11 All-America certificates in seven events. UNI also posted back-to-back ninth-place finishes at the 2007 and 2008 NCAA Indoor Championships.
    
Bucknam’s men’s teams won 11 Missouri Valley Conference indoor titles, six MVC outdoor titles and four cross country championships. His women’s teams won two indoor titles, an outdoor title and a cross country title. His men’s teams had a current streak of nine-straight conference indoor titles (2000-08) and won three of the last four outdoor championships.

He also won 10 men’s titles while UNI was a member of the Mid-Continent Conference, including five indoors, two outdoors and three in cross country.

After moving from the Mid-Continent to the Missouri Valley in 1992, Bucknam’s men’s teams won 21 league titles and finished second 13 times while producing 231 individual event champions.

A 24-time MVC Coach of the Year, he was named United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Midwest Region Coach of the Year nine times, including five straight (1995, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008). His USTFCCCA honors include an indoor award for his men’s team and an outdoor honor for his women’s team in 2008.

Before UNI moved to the Missouri Valley, he earned nine Mid-Continent coach of the year awards in seven seasons.

Under Bucknam’s tutelage, Joey Woody was a three-time UNI All-American and 1997 national champion in the 400-meter hurdles. He placed second in the 400-meter hurdles at 2003 World Championships and was a member of the 1999 World Champion 4x400-meter relay team.

Former UNI pole vaulter Jacob Pauli, also a member of Bucknam’s squads, took the 2001 NCAA Indoor title and earned All-America honors five times. Pauli continues to compete internationally, including a third-place finish at the 2007 USA Outdoor Championships and a 15th-place showing at the 2007 World Championships.                           

Cedar Falls, Iowa native Dirk Homewood became an MVC legend as a member of Bucknam’s squads, as he earned nine Valley championships and three All-America honors from 2001 to 2005. Bucknam coached back-to-back MVC men’s cross country champions in Mate Nemeth (2000) and Balazs Csillag (2001). Csillag also earned three MVC track championships and was a two-time track All-American in the distance medley relay and 3,000 meters.

A native of Beverley, Mass., Bucknam attended Norwich University in Northfield, Vt., where he was a cross country and track letterman. He was elected cross country co-captain his senior year and is a member of the Norwich Athletic Hall of Fame. He earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education in 1978. He earned his master’s degree in physical education from Northern Iowa in 1982.

He and his wife, Cindy, are the parents of a son, Eric, and a daughter, Kate.