Over the summer, Colorado Mesa University hired Brad Gamble to become the new head track and field coach after last year’s dismissal of Brian Beeman. Gamble was the serving as the head coach over at Chadron State University for the past three years prior to coming to CMU.
During Gamble’s three years with the Eagles, the team’s student-athletes earned seven of the school’s nine individual NCAA titles, earned NCAA runner-up five times and got the Eagles their first NCAA team trophy. Gamble also helped the team bring home 17 All-American honors for indoor track and field and 15 for outdoor track and field.
Gamble now comes into a CMU program that he believes can compete and win at the highest level, but it is an added bonus that he grew up in Eagle, which is not far from Grand Junction.
“I am here because I think it can be a very successful program, but it is an added bonus that I grew up two hours from here. I competed at the track in Stocker Stadium and it [CMU] seemed like a match made in heaven for me.”
Despite only being here for a few weeks, Gamble has already noticed many differences between CMU and Chadron.
“They are both incredibly different,” Gamble said. “Chadron is in a town of 5,000 people and it is a very small campus. In that respect, it was a lot of fun and an incredible experience to be in such a small community. Here, it is exciting to have such a bigger community.”
Growing up, Gamble was a multi-sport athlete on the Western Slope for Eagle Valley high school. There he competed in football, cross country skiing and of course track and field.
“I loved the dynamic of being able to work hard, but at the same time being able to hang out with good friends,” Gamble said about being a multi-sport athlete.
However, Gamble wasn’t just competing in those sports. He was winning, too. While competing at the high school level, Gamble was a five-time gold-medal winner at the Colorado State Track Meet.
“That is pretty big for a coach to be able to say that they were such a good athlete,” distance runner Mike Fera said.
Fera was one of the athletes selected to go to the initial interviewing process of Gamble. There, Fera heard Gamble speak of what his goals are coming to CMU.
“The main thing that stuck out was he wants to beat Adams [State University],” Fera said. “When he left his job, Adams offered him the job and he said, ‘No, I want to beat you guys.’ So he came to us and told us that that is his goal to be the top team in the RMAC.”
In Gamble’s short time since being named the head coach, he has already distilled this confidence in his athletes that they will be able to compete with the best the conference has to offer.
“I am super excited for him to become the head coach,” 400-meter runner Zeke Sandoval said. “I think it is going to bring in a new era in our track and field program. And I think with everyone on board, the sky’s the limit.”
Gamble and the rest of the track and field team will begin their training on Sept. 5 to start getting ready for the upcoming season.
