Zach Daniel joined UTRGV as a volunteer assistant coach prior to the 2018-19 season and was promoted to assistant coach for the 2019-20 season. He works with the distance runners on the cross country and track & field teams.
2020 Indoor: Guided Abraham Chirchir to WAC Championships in the 5,000 and 3,000-meter runs with fourth-fastest 5,000-meter run and the sixth-fastest 3,000-meter runs in program history.
2019 Cross Country: Coached Abraham Chirchir to his second-straight appearance at the NCAA Championships while guiding the women's team to a fourth place finish at the NCAA South Central Regional after previously being unranked.
2019 Outdoor: Helped Dorcas Koech to WAC Freshman of the Year honors.
2019 Indoor: Helped Dorcas Koech to WAC Freshman of the Year honors, Koech and Abraham Chirchir to WAC Championships in the 5,000-meter run, and Omer Almog to the WAC Championship in the 3,000-meter run.
2018 Cross Country: Helped both teams to their best rankings in program history, as the men were as high as No. 3 in the South Central Region while the women were as high as No. 7. The men had their best WAC finish in program history, coming in second, while Omer Almog and Abraham Chirchir finished 2-3 individually. Chirchir earned WAC Freshman of the Year honors and then finished second at the NCAA Regionals to earn a spot in the NCAA Championships. Chirchir was the No. 9 ranked freshman in the nation while Mercy Chelangat was ranked No. 7.
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Daniel was a volunteer assistant coach with the cross country and track & field programs at West Texas A&M in 2017-18, where he assisted with workouts and practices, oversaw injured student-athletes’ cross-training regimens, and assisted in the operations of meets. He also assisted in recruiting and camp promotion. West Texas A&M won the conference championship in men’s cross country and finished second on the women’s side. During track & field season, West Texas A&M produced All-Americans in the Indoor Mile Run and the Outdoor 5,000-meter run.
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Daniel competed at West Texas A&M for four years of track & field and three of cross country as a student-athlete from 2013-17 under the direction of current UTRGV head coach Darren Flowers. Daniel reached the NCAA Championships in cross country all three years and won conference championships in the outdoor 10,000 and 5,000-meter runs. He was all a two-time Academic All-American, the 2016 Lone Star Conference Academic Athlete of the Year, and the 2014-15 West Texas A&M Scholar Athlete of the Year.
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Daniel also competed in cross country at South Plains College I 2012, reaching nationals and earning all-conference honors.
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Daniel earned his Bachelor of Science in Sports and Exercise Science from West Texas A&M in 2016 and his Master of Science in Sports and Exercise Science in 2018.
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