SPRINGDALE -- Lee Wood has never been a head coach before, but that didn't matter to Ecclesia College athletic director Dean Skinner.
Skinner said Wood is a perfect fit to lead the school's cross country program, which will begin competition in the fall.
The 35-year-old Wood talked with Skinner in passing at a college fair he attended with his son a couple of years ago. But he decided to give him a call about six weeks ago.
"He talked to me about wanting to start a cross country program a couple of years back," Wood said. "Something just made me call."
Skinner said Wood's timing could not have been better.
"Actually I was looking for his number," Skinner said with a laugh. "We had just finished our quarterly planning meeting. We were just waiting for the right person really and I think we found him. We were talking and he's got nine or 10 years of experience in the area."
Specifically Wood, who ran track and cross country at Missouri Southern, has been a high school track/cross country assistant coach in the Rogers School District for the past nine years, including the last six at Rogers Heritage. He's helped teams to six state titles in that span. Coaching in college has always been a goal, Wood said.
"I just felt like pursuing this opportunity to get into the college world," Wood said. "There are things like the recruiting that I'm still learning. I've had 23 athletes that I've trained with that went on to get college scholarships. I just thought let's go see what the other side has to offer."
Cross country will join soccer, basketball, baseball, softball and shooting as sports offered at the small four-year college located near Elm Springs.
Cross country seemed to be a good fit for the school since they own 200 acres of land, meaning there's plenty of room for a course and it won't cost much.
The school has been forced to utilize other facilities for basketball and baseball, but Ecclesia has its own softball field.
Wood said he should have a competitive course set up by next year. That way he could host events for area high schools, which could be a great way to tap into some of the rich area talent, Wood said.
But right now he's hitting the recruiting trail.
"Northwest Arkansas is a hot area for cross country," Wood said. "I've talked to three kids already. It's a challenge, but I'm excited."
Paul Boyd can be reached at pboyd@nwadg.com or on Twitter @NWAPaulb.
Sports on 07/07/2015