INDEPENDENCE CROSS COUNTRY
Independence High School - 1776 Declaration Way Thompsons Station, TN 37179 - Est. 2004
Luke Finley (2007 to present)
Coach Finley came to Independence in 2006 and took over the boys program in 2007. He has also served as a head or assistant track coach over the same time period. The boys team has successfully qualified for the TSSAA state meet eight consecutive years, finishing in the state's top twelve for the past six years. Coach Finley attributes their success to the unique team dynamic, a willingness to be coached, and their strong response to adversity.
Finley ran cross country at Austin Peay State University where he became the program's first Academic All-American in 1998. He also has the odd distinction of racing all of his cross country races over his last two years at APSU barefooted. He earned his BS in physics and his MAE in administration from APSU and has been teaching physics and coaching distance runners ever since.
He and his wife Andrea have been married for almost 16 years and have two wonderful children.
Coach Finley with 4-time TN state XC champion Kathy Kroeger
Contact Head Boys Coach Luke Finley
Jaron Byrum (2015 to present)
Coach Byrum is entering his second season at Independence as the head girls cross country and track coach. This follows up his successful tenure at Louisa-Muscatine High School in Iowa where he was the boys and girls cross country coach as well as the boys track coach. He and his wife Chelsi are enjoying middle Tennessee and Jaron is hard at work building his vision for the Lady Eagles cross country program. He is an integral part of the the student support staff at Independence and looks to take the Lady Eagles to even higher heights in 2016.
Contact Head Girls Coach Jaron Byrum
Ryan Pett - Asst. Coach
Ryan Pett is the first Independence alumni to give back to the program in a coaching capacity. At Indy, Ryan ran on the first boys team to ever qualify for state and appeared in 3 state cross country meets and 3 state track and field meets running the 4x8 and the 1600m events. He then went on to run XC and track for UT-Martin under coach Gordon Sanders. Upon completing his degree, he has gone on to earn a masters degree from Arkansas State. An active fitness enthusiast, Ryan is content to be on the bike, in the water, hiking on trails...and of course, on the roads and grass with the Indy runners. This is Ryan's second year as the assistant with IHS.
Jon "The Cogginator" Coggins - Strength and Core
Jon Coggins is the father of Alabama sophomore cross country runner Calli Coggins and also of senior Indy superstar Addi Coggins. He is also the critical piece in directing the weight program and the core exercises that are a foundational part of our program. His knowledge and enthusiasm in areas of strength, flexibilty, nutrition and fitness has helped to move the team to the next level in terms of competitive prepardness.