Southern Nazarene University Athletics

Colten Covington was named the Head Cross Country of Southern Nazarene University in May of 2025.

Covington comes to Southern Nazarene from Indiana Wesleyan where he spent one season as a graduate assistant for the Wildcats. During his time as a coach at IWU, Covington helped lead the Wildcats to a fifth place national finish in cross country at the NAIA level in 2024.

Covington attended Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids, Michigan where he competed on the Men’s Cross Country team for four seasons. He then took his talents to Indiana Wesleyan in Marion, Indiana where he finished his career. During his time as a collegiate athlete, he was a 13-time National Qualifier at the NAIA level. He won two individual conference titles; one at Cornerstone University and the other at Indiana Wesleyan. Covington earned NAIA All-American honors twice in the Men’s Indoor 5k and once in the Men’s Outdoor 10k. He was also a part of five team conference championships, winning at both Cornerstone and Indiana Wesleyan. Covington’s success did not end there, he was named the Great Lakes Region Athlete of the Year in 2023. 

Covington graduated from Cornerstone University in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in sports management. In 2025, he graduated from Indiana Wesleyan with a master's degree in sports leadership. 

Colten is married to his wife Rebecca.