Doug Molnar has seen nothing but success since joining the coaching staff at The University of Texas-Pan American.

In his second year as the assistant coach in charge of the distance runners, Molnar has been instrumental as both the Broncs and Lady Broncs have shown a dramatic improvement.

Junior distance runner Westly Keating became the first cross country All-American at Texas-Pan American when he finished 25th at the NCAA Cross Country Championships last fall. He bettered that performance by finishing seventh this season, earning All-American honors again and leading the Broncs to their best finish ever at the regional championships. The Lady Broncs also improved markedly, posting their best finish since they were champions of the Sun Belt Conference in the late 1980s.

The head men’s cross country coach and an assistant track and field coach at Kent State, Molnar was the interim head women’s cross country coach while serving as an assistant track and field coach at Tennessee. He came to Texas-Pan American after serving as a men’s volunteer assistant cross country and track and field coach at Tennessee for two years. During his tenure with the Volunteers, Tennessee won two NCAA Division I championships, was runner-up once, and earned a berth in the NCAA Cross Country Championships. The Vols also won two outdoor Southeastern Conference titles during that time. While at Tennessee, Molnar earned a Ph.D. in Educational Administration and Cultural Studies, concentrating on sports psychology.

A native of Lorain, Ohio in the Cleveland area, Molnar earned All-State track and field honors and also played football at Admiral King High School before embarking upon a four-year career as a runner at West Virginia. Molnar served as team captain as a junior and a senior, earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in 1986, and remained in Morgantown to earn an MBA at West Virginia the following year.

Beginning his coaching career, Molnar accepted a position as a graduate assistant coach in track and field and cross country at Kent State, earning a Master of Arts in Physical Education in 1992. He was a volunteer coach at Oberlin College, then returned to Kent State as the head men’s cross country coach and an assistant in track and field. At KSU, Molnar assisted with a team that finished 20^th at the 1995 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. He also coached six conference champions and two relay teams that were ranked in the top ten by Track and Field News while working with several athletes who represented the United States in several international competitions.