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Madill head cross country coach Cale Eidson (far left) was recently named the Oklahoma Track Coaches Association girls cross country coach of the year. Courtesy Photo
Cale Eidson has been the cross country and track and field coach for Madill for the past five years.
He coaches both the high school, and junior high programs. In that time, he has led the teams to some pretty amaz ing things. In October 2019, the girls’ cross-country team were the runners up for the Class 4A state meet in Shawnee.
Eidson was also named the Oklahoma Coaches Association Cross-Country Coach of the Year for Region Six in 2019.
It seems like the accolades for Eidson are still rolling in. In January 2020, he was named Oklahoma Track Coaches Association girls coach of the year. To be bestowed such an honor, the coach must be nominated at the OTCA Track and Field Business Meeting.
Eidson said this is first time to be named Coach of the Year, and the feeling is immeasurable.
“It’s a cool honor to have been nominated and selected as the girls’ cross country coach of the year for the state of Oklahoma, but the credit is to the kids for being coachable and doing the work that is asked of them to be successful,” he said.
On top of the honor of being named Coach of the Year, the Madill cross-country team was also won the Great American Conference All-Decade Cross-Country Team.
This is given based on the accomplishments achieved in the conference since 2011, when the conference began.
Eidson and Madill was named three-time all-conference first team, two-time individual runner up, and Eidson said he was part of three conference championship teams in 2011, 2012, and 2014. He said winning this was confirmation of what he learned from college.
“I was really proud to be selected to the All-Decade team because it was a testament to my college coach Steve Sawyer and the standard he set for our teams at East Central University,” he noted.
Eidson said even though he was given the award, the actual commendation belongs with his teams.
“Being selected as coach of the year is a big honor, and it helps feel that all the hard work is worth it,” he said. “But again, I give the credit to my athletes because I work to help them and make them better, and that’s what I enjoy.”
The coach said he counts his blessings. “I just want to say that I couldn’t ask for much more here in Madill with the programs I’m lucky enough to be a part of.”