Announced by Brooklyn College Director of Athletics, Erik Smiles, Eric Schrick has been hired as Head Coach to lead the Women's and Men's
Cross Country program. With two decades of coaching experience, Schrick's appointment will begin immediately. BC Cross Country plans to kick off the 2024 meet season the first week of September.
"Eric brings a wealth of knowledge when it comes to developing runners, his experience and track record spoke for itself, and his enthusiasm for his sport and the development of student-athletes during his interview really stood out," Smiles would say upon the announcement.
Returning to the high school ranks last season, Schrick served as Head Coach of the Far Rockaway High School Girls and Boys Varsity Track and Field team where he was tasked with daily workouts, meet management, and establishing a winning culture.
No stranger to CUNY, Schrick sat at the helm of the John Jay Women's and Men's
Cross Country program from 2021-2023. During his time with the Bloodhounds, he guided the women's team to a third-place finish and the men to a fourth-place finish at the 2022 CUNYAC Championships. That same year, he coached the women's CUNYAC and ECAC individual champion. He also coached five CUNYAC All-Stars during his tenure at John Jay.
"I'd like to thank Erik Smiles and those on the hiring committee. I'm excited about getting back into the college ranks. Brooklyn College has a lot to offer both academically and athletically, and a great foundation to build a successful cross country program," Coach Schrick would comment.
Schrick arrived at John Jay after coaching in different capacities at his alma mater, St. John's University. He began as Head Coach of the Women's and Men's Cross Country and Track club team in 2016 and kept the role until 2018. In those two years, he led the men's squad to a fourth-place finish at the Northeast Regional Cross Country Championships, and both teams would win titles at the Penn Sprint Class. Both teams would also place in number of other regional invitationals during his stint, and he would go on to coach nine All-Americans including a pair of national record holders and a national meet record holder in the triple jump. Along with his club team coaching experience, Schrick served as a volunteer assistant for the NCAA Division I squad at St. John's, coaching indoor and outdoor pole vaulters from 2017 to 2021. Under his guidance, St. John's would produce the first ever pole vaulters to score in both the Metropolitan and Big East Conference Championships.
Prior to St. John's, he had his first run at Far Rockaway HS, coaching the varsity girls and boys indoor and outdoor track teams from 2008 to 2017. In nine years, he coached six Queens Borough Champions, 21 nationally ranked athletes, a long jumper who holds the NYC Mayor's Cup record. Schrick returned to New York after a season as Head Coach of the Middle and High School Girls and Boys Cross Country team at Lincoln Charter in Denver, NC where he led the middle school girl's squad to an undefeated record and the program to a conference title.
An accomplished collegiate athlete himself, Schrick earned an athletic scholarship to the University of Arkansas and was an active member of five NCAA Division I National Championship teams there before joining St. John's University and earning a clean sweep of Metropolitan Championships in cross country and both indoor and outdoor track and field.
A graduate of St. John's University, Schrick has gone on to earn his master's degree in Secondary Education and is currently pursuing a PHD in Kinesiology. He owns several certifications in cross country and track and field, including a USATF Cross Country Specialist certification, a USATF Level I certification, USATF Level II and III certifications in Endurance, and a World Athletics Level 5 certification in Endurance.
