Ben Thomas

Ben Thomas returned to his alma mater in July 2023 as the head track and field coach for the Hokies, directly reporting to director of track and field/cross country Dave Cianelli. Immediately following the retirement of Cianelli, Thomas assumed the role of Director of track & field and cross country.  Thomas spent 2018-22 as an associate head coach at the University of Oregon, leading its cross country and distance programs.

In his first season as the Director of Virginia Tech track & field and cross country (2024-2025), Thomas developed nine All-Americans, three ACC Champions, 11 All-ACC honorees, one NCAA Southeast Regional cross country champion and three All-Region finishers. The 2024 cross country season was the most successful for the Hokies since 2019, with George Couttie claiming the first All-American honors for the program since Peter Seufer in 2019.  The men's team qualified for the NCAA Cross Country Championships and finished 26th overall, the highest finish for the squad since 2019.  Couttie, joined by Nicholas Kipchirchir and Sharon Chepchirchir, each collected NCAA All-Region finishes, the first for the men since 2022 and the first for the women since 2021.  During the 2025 indoor season, Thomas coached Nick Plant to an ACC individual title (1:46.94) and the Rector Field House facility record (1:46.85) in the 800m, the men's DMR to the program record (9:19.88), an ACC title and First Team All-American honors, and George Couttie to Second Team All-American honors in the 3,000m.  The 2025 outdoor season proved fruitful as well, with Christian Jackson taking the ACC title in the 800m in record fashion, landing the NCAA lead, the NCAA No. 20 all-time performance, the program record, the ACC Championship meet record and the Kentner Stadium facility record with his 1:44.83.  Nick Plant collected the bronze in the 800m and the pair went on to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships, where Jackson earned First Team All-American honors.  Thomas continued the collegiate development of Lindsey Butler, guiding her back to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 1500m for First Team All-American honors after collecting All-ACC honors in the 800m.  Declan Rymer had a standout senior season under the guidance of Thomas, collecting All-ACC honors in both the steeplechase and the 5,000m.  Rymer went on to qualify for the Outdoor Championships where he finished 19th overall in the nation. Earlier in the outdoor season, Rymer posted an 8:40.22 in the steeplechase at the Wake Forest Invitational for the No. 4 all-time top performance in program history.

"I am very excited to announce that Ben Thomas will be returning to Blacksburg and joining our coaching staff," Cianelli said. "Coach Thomas spent 17 seasons here at Virginia Tech building our distance program into one of the best in the nation. Over the past five years, Coach Thomas has developed world class distance runners at the University of Oregon, in addition to elite athletes at the professional level.
 
"Coach Thomas is an outstanding addition to our staff. I wish to thank director of athletics Whit Babcock and senior associate athletics director Chris Helms for their support in this process of expanding our coaching staff."

Thomas is a three-time USTFCCCA National Assistant Coach of the Year, having most recently won back-to-back indoor honors for the Ducks' incredible success during the 2020 and 2021 seasons. He earned his first national award during his time at Virginia Tech following the 2017 season, becoming the first ACC assistant to ever win the award. Thomas is also a 10-time USTFCCCA Regional Assistant Coach of the Year, including four selections at Oregon.
 
"I'm excited to come home to Virginia Tech and very thankful to Coach Cianelli for bringing me back," said Thomas. "I would also like to thank Robert Johnson and the amazing staff I worked with at Oregon.
 
"I look forward to working with some great coaches and familiar faces at Virginia Tech, while helping the talented student-athletes reach their considerable potential."

Named the 2018 USTFCCCA Southeast Region Men's Assistant Coach of the Year for both indoor and outdoor, Thomas led the Virginia Tech distance medley team to the national indoor title while also coaching three men to the final of the mile. At the 2018 NCAA Outdoor Championships, Thomas guided Vincent Ciattei to a runner-up finish in the 1,500 meters and Rachel Pocratsky to a fifth-place showing in the women's race.
 
Thomas coached Virginia Tech student-athletes to a total of 74 NCAA All-America accolades during his tenure in Blacksburg while leading the cross country and distance program to new heights. In total, Thomas helped lead the Hokies to a combined 12 ACC team titles during his 17 seasons.

Under Thomas’ leadership, the cross country programs flourished. In 2006, the Tech women’s team made the NCAA Championships for the first time in program history, and the Hokies finished 18th. The Hokie women reached the national meet following a third-place finish at the NCAA Southeast Regional that year behind an unprecedented five all-region performers. Two years later, Thomas helped Tasmin Fanning to a third-place finish at the NCAA Championships – the highest finish by a Tech athlete in school history.

Before arriving in Blacksburg, Thomas served as the men’s and women’s distance coach at the University of Georgia. Prior to that, he was the head track and field and cross country coach at Brevard College in North Carolina. At Brevard, Thomas was named 1999 NAIA Region XII Coach of the Year after leading the men’s cross country team to the NAIA Region XII title. Before Brevard, Thomas was the women’s cross country coach and assistant track coach at Appalachian State University from 1995-99.

A native of Lynchburg, Virginia, Thomas earned a B.A. in English from Tech in 1992 before completing coursework for an M.A., in education from Lynchburg College in 1999. Thomas began his coaching career with the track and field team at E.C. Glass High School (1992-94) in Lynchburg and later coached cross country at Blacksburg High (1994-95).

Thomas, his wife, Ann McGranahan, and their children, Reilly and Seamus, reside in Blacksburg.