Coach Darin Schmitz is entering his second  year as Head Coach of the Ravens track & field program and also his second year as the assistant cross country coach. He came to Benedictine with a prestigious background in track and field. He was a high school All-American in the shot put and held both Salina Sacred Heart High School's shot put and discus records. As a multi-time state medalist he entered the historic track program of Kansas University. Under a long line of historic throwers Schmitz left his own niche.


As a Jayhawk he ranked as high as 2nd on the all-time hammer list and third on the all-time weight throw list. He was a two-time All-Big XII athlete and a conference medalist. He was a four-time Academic All-Big XII selection. In 2001, he was ranked nationally by Track and Field News in the hammer throw.



Graduating in 1999 he coached at the high school ranks for Lawrence High, De Soto High, and Eudora High ending with multiple school record holders and state medalists. In 2001, he began the USATF club Kansas Thunder and has had multiple throwing All-Americans and national leaders in the javelin. He has been trained and taught by legendary coaches and world record holders.



In 2004, he took his talents to Neosho County Community College. In just seven years as head coach at Neosho County, Coach Schmitz had 198 national qualifiers, 65 conference champions, 111 All-Americans, and five National Champions. He has a lifetime 92% graduation rate of his outgoing sophomores and has had 8 NJCAA Coach's academic teams of the year. Coach Schmitz was named the 2008 and 2009 Region VI Outdoor Coach of the Year, voted on by his peers. In 2009 he was named one of the top emerging elite coaches in the country by the USATF and has had multiple articles published about the throws. 


In his first year at the helm of the Ravens Schmitz’s teams made quite an impact.  The women’s team finished third in the conference in both the indoor and outdoor track seasons.  The Ravens accumulated 87 All-Conference honors along with a national qualifier.  The men’s and women’s team broke 13 school records.



Coach Schmitz received his Masters Degree from the University of Kansas in 2004 in Science Curriculum. His undergraduate degree is in Earth & Science, Middle/Secondary Education. He is married to Kelcey and has two children; a daughter Emily, and a son Drew.