Petersmeyer leaves CMU, takes similar position at Boise State
After initially agreeing to join the track and field and cross country staff, Jeff Petersmeyer will not be coming to CMU after all.
Petersmeyer spent the past three years as a track coach at Texas Christian University, where he specialized in the horizontal jumps and multi-events. He was expected to be a part of the Chippewas coaching staff before unexpectedly taking a job elsewhere to work with a mentor of his.
“Jeff Petersmeyer will no longer be with the team because he has been recruited by Boise State University,” said director of track and field and cross country Willie Randolph. “J.W. Hardy is a mentor of his and the head coach, so he won’t be with us, and I am upset about it.”
Athletics Director Dave Heeke said Petersmeyer was already under contract, but was given permission to leave.
“It was a very unique situation that doesn’t normally occur,” he said, “but (it was) an opportunity that was right for Jeff.”
Heeke said most contractual terms are non-binding, and they follow faculty-union specifications.
“There are clauses in our faculty contracts that prevent them from breaking the contract,” he said.
Football coach Butch Jones, men’s basketball coach Ernie Zeigler and women’s basketball coach Sue Guevara are the only coaches in the athletics department who are non-union coaches.
Introduced at BSU
After just two days into his tenure as the head coach of the Boise State track and field team, J.W. Hardy added Petersmeyer to coach and look over the horizontal and vertical jumps.
Petersmeyer brings an accomplished resume to Boise State, coaching 11 Mountain West Conference champions in his time at TCU, along with three current school record holders.
“I am excited to get a coach of Jeff’s caliber at this time,” Hardy said in a statement. “He has an impressive background and I believe he’ll be an amazing asset to our staff and team.”
Petersmeyer and Hardy worked together when Petersmeyer coached at Northern Arizona University. He was an assistant track and cross country coach at NAU from 1999-2002. Petersmeyer helped the team win seven Big Sky Championships in cross country and track.
