Hall of Fame
The very first NAIA National Champion in men’s track and field, Russell Watson defined the term athlete. He won the 1996 NAIA Indoor and Outdoor National Championship. He also holds the school record in the decathlon with 6,653 points and high jump at 6-10.
He finished as a three-time NAIA All-American and took 11th in the decathlon. He also played basketball, averaging 12.1 points per game after transferring from Texas Christian University.
Watson earned a Bachelor of Science from SNU in 1996 and then earned an MBA from MidAmerica Nazarene in 1999 where he served as a graduate assistant in its cross country/track and field programs from 1996-99. He came back to Southern Nazarene from 2000-03 where he served as a volunteer coach to the track and field program and continued to compete in pole vaulting in various events.
In 2007, he married former SNU track standout and heptathlon record holder Lori Weaver. They had their first child, daughter Alli, in 2011 and their second child, son Bon, in 2014. Watson these days really enjoys spending time with family and playing with his children.
