Mike Carignan
Photo by: Kelly Gorham
Montana State Track & Field’s Carignan Set to Retire
10/27/2017 10:37:00 AM | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field
One of the most successful throws coaches in the Big Sky Conference, Mike Carignan will carry a legacy at MSU in the record books and among his athletes for years to come
BOZEMAN, Mont. – Longtime Montana State assistant track and field coach Mike Carignan announced his plans to retire effective on Wednesday, Nov. 1. Carignan has been a member of the Bobcat coaching staff in some capacity for over 35 years.
"It was a great opportunity," Carignan said. "I got started because I really loved track and field and I came to Montana because it has everything I like, but I didn't know that it had an opportunity to coach. I like the people here and the progress I've seen in our athletic program. The growth I've seen at Montana State has really been something that I'm proud to say I've been part of."
Mike Carignan's tenure with the Bobcats began in 1977 when he was hired as an assistant track and field coach by longtime coach and Bobcat Hall of Famer Rob Stark. He returned to MSU in the fall of 1989 when he served as a volunteer assistant (1989-90) and part-time (1990-94) coach. He became a full-time throws coach in 1995 and has also helped with the pole vault and high jump.
"The competitive success has been phenomenal under Mike," Bobcat track and field head coach Dale Kennedy said. "The record I think for all of his career, or at least two-thirds of it, we've had the highest-scoring throwing group in the Big Sky. When we've went to every championship, the MSU throwers usually outscored all of the other throwing groups in the conference. There's a real legacy behind their excellence and as a coach he's a real technician."
"I think it's real special that I came here and got to be part of this coaching staff," Carignan said. "The continuity of our staff is amazing. The four oldest coaches here have about 110 years here at MSU alone. We know each other very well, we work together well, there's a lot of pride and tradition which is one thing I really liked. It was good for me to be part of that."
During his tenure, Carignan coached student-athletes to all-Big Sky Conference honors 170 times. He also coached four athletes to All-America status (David Phillips, Josh Henigman, Emily Tyrrell, Lance Deal).
Under his direction, the Bobcat throwers led the Big Sky in throws scoring from 2001-2009. Overall, 57 conference throwing titles have been garnered under his tutelage. In addition, several first-second-third place finishes have come in the javelin, shot put, hammer throw and weight throw with Carignan at the helm at the Big Sky meet. He's helped guide MSU to 16 individual appearances at the NCAA Championships, with half of those coming in the javelin.
One of his athletes that had plenty of athletic success as a Bobcat is current assistant coach, Jennifer Allen, who picked up four Big Sky Conference titles during her senior campaign in 2004.
"I think he is so knowledgeable about the sport," Allen said. "He's been around it, he's worked with so many people, he's been to track meets and takes extra time at them to watch other people throw and to talk to coaches. He has an endless amount of knowledge about throwing and he's able to apply that to so many different people and so many different personalities. No matter what you're working on or what you're struggling with, he's seen it or he's been around it or he knows what's worked for somebody else."
Carignan was also instrumental in Lance Deal's athletic career development. Deal, who served as a coach on the Oregon track and field coaching staff and is currently the director of track and field venues and program support for the Ducks, was coached by Carignan when he became an All-American in the discus and Big Sky Conference double event champion as a Bobcat in 1984.
Deal went on to participate in four Olympic Games and earned silver in the hammer throw in 1996. He has kept in contact with Carignan over the years, with the two serving as recognized figures in their discipline.
"Mike is one of the four men in my life that have shaped me as a person," Deal said. "When I got to Montana State, we weren't that far apart in age, so it's hard to really express what he means to me personally from the time I was at Montana State through my throwing career. Watching him and talking and listening to his throwers throughout the years, (what I think of is) just the massive contribution that he's given to the young people that he came in contact with."
Under his tutelage, Carignan's athletes have continued their success in recent seasons.
Last season alone, MSU throwers represented four of the nine Bobcats that advanced to the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds in Austin, Texas. The Bobcats had representatives in all four throwing disciplines at the west regionals. Carignan's throwers put together a total of seven all-conference performances across the indoor and outdoor seasons, while Kyle Douglass earned his first Big Sky title in the shot put during the outdoor campaign.
"I hope they realized their potential," Carignan said of his influence on the throwers that have been through the Bobcat track and field program. "That they're capable of doing things, that when they started here, I'm sure seemed impossible.
"What I actually liked most are the friendships they developed amongst themselves. Not just within the throws, but with the entire track team. The opportunity they had to be a part of this great athletic department and meet the other athletes here and benefit from all of the things MSU Athletics has to offer."
"They really grew as people and bought into the idea that respect, honor and doing the right things are the most important ideals that he could teach to these student-athletes," Kennedy said of the impact Carignan has had. "That part of it epitomizes what we think is the core of our program. This value system that we hold so dearly is an emphasis for our whole coaching staff, but I think it started with Mike a long time ago. It meant a lot to him, it was important and I think he's just an outstanding teacher, coach and really great person first."
With the retirement of Carignan, throws coaching duties will be resumed by Allen who has been assisting him since last season.
Quotables on Carignan
Head coach Dale Kennedy
"I thought many times he took modest high school throwers and they turned out to be Big Sky champions, and have even moved on to the NCAA first round and on multiple occasions to the finals. His coaching record is truly outstanding and he has a legacy not just at Montana State, but also in the Big Sky Conference."
"The things that aren't so obvious is the impact of the stress that he's put on value systems and doing the right thing, respect and honor. Those are some of the things that he cherishes and tries to impart and instills that into the athletes that he's coached over the years. I know those athletes that he's coached over the years are really appreciative of the difference he's made in their lives."
"I like to think 'they don't care about what you know until they know you care.'" Mike had a lot of information, but what let him get it across is that the athletes knew that he really cared for them as people, not just throwers."
"I think he has really been a great mentor for Jen. There was a great coach-athlete relationship when he coached her, but over this last year I think he's been a great model for Jen for what a collegiate coach's responsibilities are and what they can do. Jen had a great high school coaching career, but when you move into this next level you take on some extra responsibilities. He's done a great job of being a great role model and mentoring her along the way. He's set her up to continue the legacy of throwing events here at Montana State."
Distance Coach Lyle Weese on Carignan
"He is just unique in so many ways. It really helps him with student-athletes because he has that way of interacting and identifying with people. I remember when I was here as a student-athlete, it was always just nice to talk to Coach Carignan and hear some of his stories. Hear about the previous athletes that went through the program and just to hear his thoughts."
Throws Coach Jen Allen on Carignan
"It's definitely been a different experience to work with him and learn from him. I've just learned so much about what he knows. He's been very patient with me, he's made sure that he isn't just thinking things, but that he'd say it out loud so I could get that knowledge also. He's allowed me to put my take on his so that we can work our ideas out together."
"I think all of his throwers would agree that he trusts you. He looks at you as a smart and intelligent athlete. He will give you ideas and then the space to make them your own. He gives you the space to work on them and will be there with you, but not on every throw, because he trusts you to do it."
Jumps Coach Tom Eitel on Carignan
"During the time when I had left until I came back, he worked with the vault and high jump so he's familiar with my own group. But with the throws, he's a technician. Everybody has an eye for something, his is with what goes on in the throws. I see things differently because I'm a jumper. He's always got ideas, cues, people that he emails looking for new ways to do something well. He's always looking for things to make people better that he works with. "
"He's looking for a certain type of athlete that will come here. He wants them to throw well coming in, but that's not the bottom line. He looks at if they're a good person, are they smart, he doesn't put up with swearing and people complaining. He just wants a hard-working group. He doesn't like drama and those are the type of athletes he recruits. They get after it and they get it done. When they go on after college, a lot of his athletes are really successful."
"It's made it really easy to coach with one another because of our continuity as a staff. if I ever need anything he's the first one I'd call. He's just always there. You can always count on him being there to help."
Former Bobcat Lance Deal on Carignan
"I meet up with people that I only know through being a thrower. I use to come do clinics (in Bozeman) and I'd meet some of Mike's throwers that were younger than I was at the time and we have this commonality. Yeah, we all were Bobcats, but really, we were all Mike's throwers. That means something other than we threw at Montana State, it means we buy into the way Mike accesses the world and how he thinks. It's something much greater than just learning how to throw far. Obviously, he's one of the best in the country at that.
One of the big things about coaching the throws that I learned from when I coached, you move to a heaver implement from high school to college. It's a big thing to make that jump. Mike regularly coaches guys within a year to do that. There's just nobody else that does that like he does. There's people that come to nationals that throw far, but they threw far in high school. But Mike will get a 52-foot thrower in high school and have him throw 60 feet in college, which is just amazing. It's got to do with the intangibles. It's more than just throwing. It's knowing Mike, he's an example in a hundred different ways of how to be a good thrower and be a good person.
He's a superlative technician. He studies, he's a constant student and he's never complacent about what he knows or what he thinks he knows. He just makes you a better person, and a better person throws farther.
"It was a great opportunity," Carignan said. "I got started because I really loved track and field and I came to Montana because it has everything I like, but I didn't know that it had an opportunity to coach. I like the people here and the progress I've seen in our athletic program. The growth I've seen at Montana State has really been something that I'm proud to say I've been part of."
Mike Carignan's tenure with the Bobcats began in 1977 when he was hired as an assistant track and field coach by longtime coach and Bobcat Hall of Famer Rob Stark. He returned to MSU in the fall of 1989 when he served as a volunteer assistant (1989-90) and part-time (1990-94) coach. He became a full-time throws coach in 1995 and has also helped with the pole vault and high jump.
"The competitive success has been phenomenal under Mike," Bobcat track and field head coach Dale Kennedy said. "The record I think for all of his career, or at least two-thirds of it, we've had the highest-scoring throwing group in the Big Sky. When we've went to every championship, the MSU throwers usually outscored all of the other throwing groups in the conference. There's a real legacy behind their excellence and as a coach he's a real technician."
"I think it's real special that I came here and got to be part of this coaching staff," Carignan said. "The continuity of our staff is amazing. The four oldest coaches here have about 110 years here at MSU alone. We know each other very well, we work together well, there's a lot of pride and tradition which is one thing I really liked. It was good for me to be part of that."
During his tenure, Carignan coached student-athletes to all-Big Sky Conference honors 170 times. He also coached four athletes to All-America status (David Phillips, Josh Henigman, Emily Tyrrell, Lance Deal).
Under his direction, the Bobcat throwers led the Big Sky in throws scoring from 2001-2009. Overall, 57 conference throwing titles have been garnered under his tutelage. In addition, several first-second-third place finishes have come in the javelin, shot put, hammer throw and weight throw with Carignan at the helm at the Big Sky meet. He's helped guide MSU to 16 individual appearances at the NCAA Championships, with half of those coming in the javelin.
One of his athletes that had plenty of athletic success as a Bobcat is current assistant coach, Jennifer Allen, who picked up four Big Sky Conference titles during her senior campaign in 2004.
"I think he is so knowledgeable about the sport," Allen said. "He's been around it, he's worked with so many people, he's been to track meets and takes extra time at them to watch other people throw and to talk to coaches. He has an endless amount of knowledge about throwing and he's able to apply that to so many different people and so many different personalities. No matter what you're working on or what you're struggling with, he's seen it or he's been around it or he knows what's worked for somebody else."
Carignan was also instrumental in Lance Deal's athletic career development. Deal, who served as a coach on the Oregon track and field coaching staff and is currently the director of track and field venues and program support for the Ducks, was coached by Carignan when he became an All-American in the discus and Big Sky Conference double event champion as a Bobcat in 1984.
Deal went on to participate in four Olympic Games and earned silver in the hammer throw in 1996. He has kept in contact with Carignan over the years, with the two serving as recognized figures in their discipline.
"Mike is one of the four men in my life that have shaped me as a person," Deal said. "When I got to Montana State, we weren't that far apart in age, so it's hard to really express what he means to me personally from the time I was at Montana State through my throwing career. Watching him and talking and listening to his throwers throughout the years, (what I think of is) just the massive contribution that he's given to the young people that he came in contact with."
Under his tutelage, Carignan's athletes have continued their success in recent seasons.
Last season alone, MSU throwers represented four of the nine Bobcats that advanced to the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds in Austin, Texas. The Bobcats had representatives in all four throwing disciplines at the west regionals. Carignan's throwers put together a total of seven all-conference performances across the indoor and outdoor seasons, while Kyle Douglass earned his first Big Sky title in the shot put during the outdoor campaign.
"I hope they realized their potential," Carignan said of his influence on the throwers that have been through the Bobcat track and field program. "That they're capable of doing things, that when they started here, I'm sure seemed impossible.
"What I actually liked most are the friendships they developed amongst themselves. Not just within the throws, but with the entire track team. The opportunity they had to be a part of this great athletic department and meet the other athletes here and benefit from all of the things MSU Athletics has to offer."
"They really grew as people and bought into the idea that respect, honor and doing the right things are the most important ideals that he could teach to these student-athletes," Kennedy said of the impact Carignan has had. "That part of it epitomizes what we think is the core of our program. This value system that we hold so dearly is an emphasis for our whole coaching staff, but I think it started with Mike a long time ago. It meant a lot to him, it was important and I think he's just an outstanding teacher, coach and really great person first."
With the retirement of Carignan, throws coaching duties will be resumed by Allen who has been assisting him since last season.
Quotables on Carignan
Head coach Dale Kennedy
"I thought many times he took modest high school throwers and they turned out to be Big Sky champions, and have even moved on to the NCAA first round and on multiple occasions to the finals. His coaching record is truly outstanding and he has a legacy not just at Montana State, but also in the Big Sky Conference."
"The things that aren't so obvious is the impact of the stress that he's put on value systems and doing the right thing, respect and honor. Those are some of the things that he cherishes and tries to impart and instills that into the athletes that he's coached over the years. I know those athletes that he's coached over the years are really appreciative of the difference he's made in their lives."
"I like to think 'they don't care about what you know until they know you care.'" Mike had a lot of information, but what let him get it across is that the athletes knew that he really cared for them as people, not just throwers."
"I think he has really been a great mentor for Jen. There was a great coach-athlete relationship when he coached her, but over this last year I think he's been a great model for Jen for what a collegiate coach's responsibilities are and what they can do. Jen had a great high school coaching career, but when you move into this next level you take on some extra responsibilities. He's done a great job of being a great role model and mentoring her along the way. He's set her up to continue the legacy of throwing events here at Montana State."
Distance Coach Lyle Weese on Carignan
"He is just unique in so many ways. It really helps him with student-athletes because he has that way of interacting and identifying with people. I remember when I was here as a student-athlete, it was always just nice to talk to Coach Carignan and hear some of his stories. Hear about the previous athletes that went through the program and just to hear his thoughts."
Throws Coach Jen Allen on Carignan
"It's definitely been a different experience to work with him and learn from him. I've just learned so much about what he knows. He's been very patient with me, he's made sure that he isn't just thinking things, but that he'd say it out loud so I could get that knowledge also. He's allowed me to put my take on his so that we can work our ideas out together."
"I think all of his throwers would agree that he trusts you. He looks at you as a smart and intelligent athlete. He will give you ideas and then the space to make them your own. He gives you the space to work on them and will be there with you, but not on every throw, because he trusts you to do it."
Jumps Coach Tom Eitel on Carignan
"During the time when I had left until I came back, he worked with the vault and high jump so he's familiar with my own group. But with the throws, he's a technician. Everybody has an eye for something, his is with what goes on in the throws. I see things differently because I'm a jumper. He's always got ideas, cues, people that he emails looking for new ways to do something well. He's always looking for things to make people better that he works with. "
"He's looking for a certain type of athlete that will come here. He wants them to throw well coming in, but that's not the bottom line. He looks at if they're a good person, are they smart, he doesn't put up with swearing and people complaining. He just wants a hard-working group. He doesn't like drama and those are the type of athletes he recruits. They get after it and they get it done. When they go on after college, a lot of his athletes are really successful."
"It's made it really easy to coach with one another because of our continuity as a staff. if I ever need anything he's the first one I'd call. He's just always there. You can always count on him being there to help."
Former Bobcat Lance Deal on Carignan
"I meet up with people that I only know through being a thrower. I use to come do clinics (in Bozeman) and I'd meet some of Mike's throwers that were younger than I was at the time and we have this commonality. Yeah, we all were Bobcats, but really, we were all Mike's throwers. That means something other than we threw at Montana State, it means we buy into the way Mike accesses the world and how he thinks. It's something much greater than just learning how to throw far. Obviously, he's one of the best in the country at that.
One of the big things about coaching the throws that I learned from when I coached, you move to a heaver implement from high school to college. It's a big thing to make that jump. Mike regularly coaches guys within a year to do that. There's just nobody else that does that like he does. There's people that come to nationals that throw far, but they threw far in high school. But Mike will get a 52-foot thrower in high school and have him throw 60 feet in college, which is just amazing. It's got to do with the intangibles. It's more than just throwing. It's knowing Mike, he's an example in a hundred different ways of how to be a good thrower and be a good person.
He's a superlative technician. He studies, he's a constant student and he's never complacent about what he knows or what he thinks he knows. He just makes you a better person, and a better person throws farther.
Players Mentioned
Throws
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