David Burnett enters his third year as Iowa Western's Head Track & Field Coach for 2024-25.  Coach Burnett is in his 16th year of coaching track and field, and in his first 2 years as Head Coach at IWCC, he led the women’s team to the 2024 National Indoor Championship and was named USTFCCCA National Coach of the Year. The Men have finished 3rd on two occasions, 2024 outdoor and 2023 indoor. In 2024, the men’s and women’s squads have finished top 5 in the nation every season and they  won the triple crown for the Region 11 titles for the first time in school history in cross country, indoor and outdoor track with both squads.

 

Coach Burnett has helped the squad to a combined 12 National Champions, 145 All-Americans, 78 Region 11 Champions, and 51 school records. Geofrey Ronoh was named Male Track Athlete of the Meet at the 2024 Outdoor National Championships. Mercy Honesty along with Ronoh were named 2024 USTFCCCA Midwest Region Indoor Athletes of the Year. Miracle Ailes was the 2023 USTFCCCA National Field Athlete of the Year by the USTFCCCA. In 2023, both squads won academic team of the year for the NJCAA. Burnett has been named ICCAC Coach of the Year five times and has coached five ICCAC Athlete of the Year winners.

 

Coach Burnett spent a pair of years in the private sector coaching a range of athletes from youth to professional. He has been the speed and strength coach for 2022 Bejing Winter Olympian Kellie Delka who competes in the skeleton for Puerto Rico. He is also is the speed and conditioning coach of XFL wide receiver and former Washburn University All-American JJ Brania Hopp.

 

He coached Jordan Andrade to selection for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games in the 400m hurdles competing for Cape Verde. Andrade also participated in the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene. Burnett also coached Alex Donigian to break the Armenian national record in the 60m and 100m dash, a 3rd place finish at the Balkan Championships and a selection for the Tokyo Olympic Games as an alternate.

 

He spent the 2020-21 season as a volunteer assistant coach at Southern Methodist University, (SMU). While at SMU, he helped coach the Sprints, Hurdles and Relays. The Mustangs broke 4 school records in the 100m hurdles, 400m, 400m hurdles, and 4x4 Relay. Five athletes qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships and earned All-American certificates.

 

Coach Burnett spent years at The University of North Texas coaching sprints, horizontal jumps and relays. Notable accomplishments were: School records in the women’s outdoor 200m,400m, women’s indoor 60m,200m, 400m. C-USA Conference Champions in the women’s 400m outdoor, women’s indoor long jump. Karlington Anunagba finished runner up in the 60m posting the 2nd fastest mark in school history in 6.73. Aneesa Scott was a 3 time C-USA All Conference selection posting personal bests indoors of 23.86 200m, and 53.86 400m, 23.43 200m, 53.13 400m outdoors. The men’s 4x100 relay team in 2018 consisting of Porter, Jones, Delacruz and Campbell finished 13th at the NCAA Outdoor Championships First Round. The men’s 4x100m relay team of Porter, Jones, Delacruz and Cole finished second at the C-USA Outdoor Conference Championships and the foursome registered the sixth best time in school history in 39.96 seconds to finish seventh at the Texas Relays. Porter, Delacruz, and Jones went on to finish 5th, 7th and 8th, respectively, in the 100m dash to place three runners in the top eight in a CUSA Conference Championship final for the first time ever. Breanna Eckels was a NCAA First Round qualifier 3 times, CUSA Champion, and 2 time CUSA 2nd place in the long jump. During the 2019 indoor season, Alia Holmes broke the school record in the 200m dash at the Texas Tech Classic in 23.81 seconds and claimed the second fastest 60m dash in school history in 7.48 seconds. Holmes went on to finish 7th in the 60m and 3rd in the 200m at the C-USA Indoor Conference Championships. Burnett also helped start the huddle for Fellowship of Christian Athletes at UNT.

 

At Western Washington, Burnett spent 4 years as the top assistant coach. He helped produce a DII power by earning 5 Great Northwest Athletic Conference championships (two men’s indoor, three men’s outdoor). Burnett was the 2014 USTFCCCA West Region Assistant Coach of the Year leading the Vikings to five top 25 NCAA team finishes. Coached 10 student-athletes to All-America honors while overseeing 27 GNAC champions and five USTFCCCA Academic All-America honorees. His athletes broke school records in the men's and women’s 60m, 60m hurdles, men's 100, men's 200m, men's 400 indoors, men's indoor and outdoor 4x400 relay, men's 110m hurdles, women's 100m hurdles, women's 3000m steeplechase, women's 1500m, men's long jump and women's triple jump and high jump. Burnett’s most notable athletes included Alex Donigian, the NCAA Indoor Championship runner-up in the 60m in 2015 and five-time All-American, and Katelyn Steen, a seven-time All-American in cross country, 3000m steeplechase, 3000 and 5000. Burnett was selected as a recipient for the Presidents Excellence Award twice at WWU.

 

Before Western Washington, Burnett spent five seasons (2007-11) as an assistant coach at his alma mater, UTSA, earning Southland Conference Assistant Coach of the Year honors all five seasons. During his UTSA tenure, the Roadrunners won seven conference team track championships (five indoor and two outdoor). He coached 18 NCAA Midwest Regional all-stars, 20 SLC Conference champions and 12 school record setters. Burnett was the staff sponsor for The Fellowship of Christian Athletes and highly involved with the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).

 

Athletes Burnett has coached include: sprinter Teddy Williams who competed in Super Bowl L and has played for six NFL teams since 2010. Williams was a four-time All-American who reached the semifinals in the 100 meters at 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials and holds the 17th fastest all-conditions 100m mark in NCAA history at 9.90w. Burnett signed Keyunta Hayes, the No. 1 Hurdler in the nation out of high school who went on to finish as the 2011 SLC champion in the 400m hurdles, third place in the 110m hurdles and runner-up honors indoors in the 60m hurdles. William Vesse, a four-time SLC champion in the 110m hurdles, finished fourth in the 2008 Nigerian Olympic Trials. Jessica Jones was a four-time SLC Champion in the 100m and 60m hurdles.

 

In 2009, the UTSA Athletic Department created the David Burnett Roadrunner Pride Award to honor hard working student-athlete showing dedication and school pride.

 

Began his coaching career in 2006 as a volunteer coach with the women’s cross-country team working under 2012 and Team USA Olympic Head Coach Rose Monday.

 

A former student-athlete at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), Burnett earned the inaugural Southland Conference Steve McCarty Citizenship Award as a senior as the top overall student-athlete in the conference. As a senior, he helped the Roadrunners to its 1st SLC Indoor Conference Championship in school history. A team captain, he was a 10-time all-conference performer, winning the 400m at the SLC Conference Indoor meet in 2005. Burnett was a two-time NCAA Midwest Regional qualifier, a four-time member of the SLC Commissioners Honor Roll, an NCAA Inspiration Award nominee, and a semifinalist for the John Wooden Golden Cup Inspiration Award. He served as the president of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and SAAC and was selected to represent the Southland Conference at the SAAC National Conference.

 

Earned a bachelor's degree at UTSA, majoring in kinesiology. Attended the World Athletics Global Athletics Coaching Academy. He is a Certified Sports Nutritionist, Personal Trainer and Corrective Exercise Specialist through the International Sports Science Association, USA Weightlifting Sports Performance certification, USA Track and Field Level 1 certification and USTFCCCA Strength and Conditioning Specialist certification.

 

Graduate of Mary Carroll High School in Corpus Christi Texas ranked 11th nationally in the 100m in 2002. Texas State Championships 7th place in the 4x100m relay. 2002 South Texas High School Athlete of the Year. USA Junior Championships semifinalist in the 100m dash in 2002. He and his wife Jessica have 3 children.