AUBURN, Ala. - Auburn track & field assistant coach Ken Harnden and sophomore sprinter Ja’Kobe Tharp were selected as the 2025 Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year and Men’s Track Athlete of the Year, respectively, the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced Thursday.
Harnden, who is in his third year at Auburn, is responsible for coaching the Tigers’ sprints and hurdles. At the NCAA Indoor Championships, he used four scorers on the men’s side to lead the Tigers to a third-place finish in the overall team standings with 32 points.
Competing in his first NCAA Indoor Championships, Tharp won an individual national title in the 60m hurdles. The Murfreesboro, Tennessee native took the title with a time of 7.45, giving Auburn their first individual sprints title since U.S. Olympian Coby Miller won the 200m in 1999. He broke his own program record and moved up to No. 5 in collegiate history.
At the SEC Indoor Championships in February, Tharp set a meet record in the 60m hurdles (7.48).
Auburn’s third-place finish was the team’s second consecutive trophy on the men’s side after finishing second in at the 2024 NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Oregon.
Following the indoor championships, the men earned six All-America honors, including four with first-team distinctions. First team accolades were awarded to senior Makanakaishe Charamba, sophomores Kayinsola Ajayi and Tharp and freshman Israel Okon. Second team honors were given to senior Dario Matau and junior Azeem Fahmi.
Last season, Harden was named as the 2024 USTFCCA South Region Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year and the 2024 USTFCCA National Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year. He helped lead the men to a second place-finish at the 2024 NCAA Outdoor Championships, equaling the best finish in program history. Of the 40 points that the men earned, 36 came from his unit.
Each of the nine regions – Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Mountain, Northeast, South, South Central, Southeast and West – honored both gender’s top track athletes and field athletes as well as the top men’s and women’s head coaches and assistant coaches.
Award winners were determined by a vote of USTFCCA member coaches following the conclusion of 2025 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships in Virginia Beach, Virginia at the Virginia Beach Sports Center.
For a full list of the 2025 USTFCCCA regional winners, visit here.