AUBURN, Alabama — Auburn national champion and world record holder Ja’Kobe Tharp and assistant head coach Ken Harnden received national male runner and male assistant coach of the year honors, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association announced Monday.
Tharp becomes just the fourth athlete in Auburn track and field history to receive national honors from the USTFCCCA, joining Donald Thomas (indoor field) and Kerron Stewart (indoor track) in 2007 and Cory Martin (outdoor field) in 2008.
In his fourth season at Auburn, it marks the third consecutive outdoor season Harnden has been named the men’s outdoor national assistant coach of the year. The Tigers’ sprints and hurdles coach, Harnden also received the same award after the 2025 indoor season.
Tharp won the NCAA and SEC outdoor 110m hurdles titles, including setting a world record in the event during the semifinals of the NCAA Championships two weeks ago. It was the first time in 50 years that a world record had been eclipsed at the outdoor national meet.
The national title was Tharp’s fourth consecutive, including wins as a sophomore indoors and outdoors. He equaled Harvey Glance’s four individual sprint titles five decades ago.
Harden’s sprints squad scored all 33 of Auburn’s points at NCAAs en route to a team sixth-place finish. Along with Tharp’s record-setting performance, Harden coached 100m national champion Kayinsola Ajayi, 200m runner-up Israel Okon and the men’s 4x100m relay squad that broke the collegiate at meet record during the semifinal round in Eugene.
The national assistant award is the seventh for Harden, who also won three times while an assistant at Florida State.
Member coaches voted on the award winners following the conclusion of the 2025 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon. Performances throughout the outdoor season were considered when voting for the honors.