Harter led the track and field and cross country teams to unparalleled success during his 11 years (1985-96) as head coach, winning five conference championships between 1985 and 1996. The women's cross country team won four American South Conference titles in a row and a Sun Belt Conference championship in 1995.
Under his tutelage, thrower
Delilah Johnson won 14 individual championships and runner
Nancy Mireles won 11. Both earned Outstanding Performer honors at conference meets as well. Johnson advanced to the NCAA Division I national championships three times while runner
Rene Guillen went twice and runner
Elizabeth Ortega and jumper
Monica Wesley [
Swift], who is also getting inducted this year, went once.
Harter's teams also posted 11 second-place finishes in conference meets.
Harter left the Broncs during the summer of 1996 to go into private business in the Pacific Northwest.
Harter earned his bachelor's degree at Oklahoma State University and a master's at the University of Southern California. He ran for an Oklahoma State cross country team that won the Big Eight title and finished number seven nationally.
In 1974, Harter captured a professional national championship when he set a record for the National 30-Kilometer Championship. He also competed on the United State track team that ran in Puerto Rico and finished second to Mexico in the team standings.
Harter ran 13
th out of over 2,000 runners in the 1974 Boston Marathon with a personal best of 2:19:12.
Harter coached as an assistant at New Mexico Junior College before becoming the head coach at Barton County Community College and then Blinn Junior College before taking over at Texas A&I in Kingsville, where he coached national champions in track.
Harter's wife, Portia, is a teacher. His children are Eamonn and Kersti.
