Brett Ayers

Brett Ayers has been head cross country and assistant track and field coach at Winona State University since the 2012-13 season. The Warriors distance program has grown into a regional and national power, qualifying for the NCAA Division II cross country championships four times in the past five years with numerous student-athletes winning all-region and All-America performance and academic recognition.

Ayers began his coaching career as head cross country and track and field coach at Elmhurst College in Illinois before being tabbed to begin the cross country program at Guilford College in North Carolina. He moved to the international ranks in 1998 as director of athletics for GVAV Rapiditas in Groningen, the Netherlands.

Returning to the U.S. in 2002, Ayers coached at Cotter High School in Winona where Rambler athletes won four individual state titles. He then worked as an assistant coach at Saint Mary’s University before joining the Warriors coaching staff in 2012. This will be the fifth year that Ayers has directed the Nike Running Camp at Winona State University.

Ayers ran collegiately at the University of North Carolina and earned a degree in chemistry. He holds master’s degrees in physiology and athletic administration from Springfield College in Massachusetts. After college, Ayers ran professionally for New Balance.