Bryan Harmon joined the UCF track and field and cross country staff in August 2023 and oversees the Knights' cross country and distance programs.
Since arriving in Orlando, Harmon has helped reshape UCF's distance record book while guiding the Knights to continued growth on the track and cross country course. His athletes have produced numerous top-10 marks in program history, qualified for NCAA postseason competition and achieved several program firsts during UCF's transition into the Big 12 Conference.
The 2026 track and field season marked another significant step forward for Harmon's distance group. During the indoor campaign, Yvone Sandui established a UCF record in the 1000 meters, clocking 2:51.71 on Jan. 23 to surpass Charlotte Crook's previous program standard of 2:52.16.
Alexandra Raquet also emerged as one of the program's top distance performers. Raquet initially moved to No. 2 on UCF's all-time indoor 3000-meter list with a 9:29.11 performance before lowering her personal best to 9:25.33 at the Tyson Invitational in February. She also climbed to third in program history in the indoor 1000 meters with a 2:53.05.
The Knights displayed impressive depth in the 3000 meters during the indoor season, placing seven of eight competitors inside the top 10 at the Alachua County Sports and Event Center Invitational. Harmon also coached Kendall Hughes and Bailey McLain to continued development in the mile during the campaign.
At the Big 12 Indoor Championships, UCF's distance group achieved another program first. The distance medley relay quartet of Raquet, Genelle Stephens, Raquel Edwards and Hughes placed eighth in 11:31.86, earning UCF's first Big 12 medal in a distance event. The performance also ranked second in program history.
The momentum carried into the 2026 outdoor season. Raquet won the 5000 meters at the Florida Relays in a personal-best 16:18.50, moving into second on UCF's all-time list. Hughes also produced a breakthrough performance in Gainesville, placing third in the 1500 meters with a personal-best 4:32.01 to move into the program's top 10, while McLain lowered her personal best to 4:35.20.
One week later at the USF Invitational, Raquet continued her ascent through the record book with a personal-best 4:25.12 in the 1500 meters, the third-fastest performance in program history. Daisy Ross and Emily Wheldon gave the Knights a pair of top-four finishes in the 3000-meter steeplechase, placing second and fourth, respectively, while Edwards lowered her 800-meter personal best to 2:10.82 and Madison Patchan recorded a personal best in the 5000 meters.
The distance group continued to produce at the Tom Jones Invitational, where McLain led UCF in the 1500 meters with a 4:32.50 performance and Ava Quattrocchi recorded a personal-best 4:35.80. Edwards matched her personal-best 2:10.82 in the 800 meters.
UCF closed the regular season with another strong distance showing at the East Coast Relays. Patchan placed second in the 5000 meters with a personal-best 17:25.12, while Wheldon finished fifth in a personal-best 17:34.19.
Harmon's 2025 cross country squad also produced a historic campaign. The Knights closed the season with a 13th-place finish at the NCAA South Regional, the best team finish available in program records dating to 2004. Four Knights recorded personal-best 6K performances at the regional, led by Raquet's 20:29.29, which ranked second in program history.
Earlier in the season, Sandui delivered one of the top 5K performances in UCF history, running 17:11.9 at the Southern Showcase to move to No. 2 on the program's all-time list at the time. Her performance earned her Big 12 Runner of the Week honors, making her the first Knight to receive the award. Raquet also established herself as a consistent leader for the squad, pacing UCF in three of her four appearances and recording top-three program marks in both the 5K and 6K.
At the 2025 Big 12 Cross Country Championship, UCF finished 12th as Raquet placed 47th in 21:03.7, recording the best time and finish by a Knight at the Big 12 Championship since UCF joined the conference.
Across the 2025 indoor and outdoor track seasons, Harmon's distance athletes recorded 17 top-10 performances in program history. Raquel Edwards and Kendall Hughes each climbed into the top five in the indoor 1000 meters, while Sandui emerged as one of UCF's premier middle-distance runners during the outdoor campaign.
Sandui clocked 2:04.94 in the 800 meters, the second-fastest performance in program history, to qualify for the NCAA East Preliminary. Her qualification marked the first by a UCF distance athlete since 2022. She also added a 4:29.86 performance in the 1500 meters, which ranked among the top 10 in program history.
The distance group made additional progress throughout the 2025 outdoor season, including a notable performance in the 3000 meters in which three Knights moved into the top four on UCF's all-time list during the same meet.
During the 2024 cross country season, Harmon continued to develop a young Knights squad in its second campaign in the Big 12. UCF hosted its first home cross country meet under Harmon to begin the season before finishing 12th at the Big 12 Championship in Waco, Texas. The Knights concluded the campaign with a top-20 finish at the NCAA South Regional.
In his first track and field season at UCF in 2024, Harmon immediately made an impact on the program's distance record book. Charlotte Crook established a then-school record of 2:52.16 in the indoor 1000 meters as the Knights recorded nine top-10 performances in program history during the indoor campaign.
Outdoors, Ali Del Re moved to fourth on UCF's all-time 5000-meter list with a 17:02.01 performance, while Karin Dobiasch recorded the eighth-fastest 800-meter time in program history at 2:08.88.
Prior to joining UCF, Harmon spent seven seasons as the head men's and women's cross country coach at Stetson from 2016-22, transforming the Hatters into increasingly competitive programs in the ASUN Conference.
In his first season at Stetson, senior Joe Beery became the first men's runner in program history to earn all-conference honors, finishing ninth at the 2016 ASUN Championship while setting a school record in the 8K. Two years later, Harmon guided the men's team to a fourth-place finish at the 2018 ASUN Championship, the best conference finish in program history.
Under Harmon's leadership, Stetson repeatedly rewrote its cross country record book. Numerous school marks fell during his tenure as both the men's and women's programs made significant strides within the ASUN.
Before arriving in DeLand, Harmon spent two seasons as an assistant coach for the men's and women's cross country and track and field programs at Florida A&M. During his tenure with the Rattlers, 36 student-athletes earned all-conference honors, while one athlete advanced to the NCAA Championships and earned All-America recognition. In 2016, Harmon helped guide the Florida A&M women's track and field team to its second consecutive MEAC Outdoor Championship, with four of his athletes capturing individual conference titles.
Harmon previously returned to his alma mater, Tiffin University, where he served for one season as an assistant cross country and track and field coach.
His collegiate coaching career began in 2006 when he was named head coach of the men's and women's cross country programs at Lake Erie College in Painesville, Ohio. He helped launch the school's indoor track and field programs the following year and eventually guided athletes to NCAA Division II national championship competition in each season from 2010-13.
Among the highlights of Harmon's tenure at Lake Erie was high jumper Jamil Dudley's NCAA Division II national championship, making Dudley the first national champion in program history. Dudley later competed at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials.
Harmon's Lake Erie teams also excelled academically. Six squads earned USTFCCCA Team Academic Awards, while four individuals received Academic All-America recognition. Fifty-four athletes achieved NCAA Division II national qualifying marks during his tenure, and Lake Erie recorded three top-25 team finishes at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships from 2011-13.
A native of Mentor, Ohio, Harmon earned a degree in business administration from Tiffin University. He was a four-year letterwinner in cross country and a three-year letterwinner in track and field for the Dragons. Harmon also competed in the 2006 and 2007 Boston Marathons and is a member of the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.
*Updated September 2026