For the boys cross country team, their 77 consecutive wins stem not only from the work and talent of the runners, but also from the inspiration they receive from the deep passion of head coach Michael Glennon.
“He’s definitely super into the sport, and he gives everything he has to it,” said senior Mark Perry. “It’s a ‘tough love’ with Glennon. He’s not going to overpraise you, but he encourages you by criticism to achieve your best.”
According to Athletic Director Pete Rittenburg, Glennon has been coaching cross country at the school since 1995 and track since 2005. Rittenburg described Glennon as a coach who is firm and upfront when getting the best out of his runners.
According to alumnus Romey Sklar, class of 2011, Glennon’s reputation for being a strict and firm coach has helped his athletes both run better and become better people outside of practice and the sport.
“He talked about how it is really important to put in the effort outside of practice and that we should be consistent,” said Sklar, currently a freshman at Amherst College who runs for the school’s cross country and track teams. “He taught me that if you put in the work beforehand, you can be successful at anything.”
Perry agrees with Sklar. He believes that Glennon’s strict nature has helped push him towards becoming the best runner possible.
Assistant coach Chris Smith has been working with Glennon for four years with the cross country and track teams. Smith believes that the high standard Glennon sets is not only for his runners, but for the coaches as well.
“I want to meet the standard that coach Glennon sets for me, meaning both what he says he wants from me and in the example he makes for me,” said Smith.
After running for four years with Glennon, Perry distinctly remembers how Glennon has pushed him during races.
“I remember this year at the state meet where he was able to get everywhere on the course at once. I don’t know how he does it,” said Perry. “He has his famous loud voice that you can hear at all times over everything else.”
“I can just remember him yelling, ‘You got to go!’ It was a classic Glennon moment. You can always hear him. It’s kind of hard to describe, but you can hear it over everything.”
According to Smith, Glennon is always pushing every runner, whether it be the best runner or somebody on junior varsity.
“He puts as much passion into the last guy on the team as the first guy,” said Smith. “There are meets that I can remember where he is pulling for the last guy to finish and sprint. He is big on form, so he is often with the last guy, ‘Keep your arms straight and lift your knees.’”
Glennon’s passion for running does not stop at coaching the cross country and track teams. According to Sklar, Glennon also organizes running events for younger kids, as well as many different charity and professional events.
“At the end of the cross country season, there is always the Warrior Run, which is during Thanksgiving weekend. This year, we had 200 runners from people all around the community, including alumni,” said Smith. “The interest in running that coach Glennon has instilled not only in running, but in the whole community is what I hope will be his legacy.”
