Cross Country/Track 10/20/2025 1:00:00 PM

Canisius Names Nick Wilson Head Cross Country/Track Coach

Canisius Vice President and Director of Athletics Bill Maher announced today (Oct. 20) that Nick Wilson has been hired as the next head coach for the Golden Griffin cross country and track programs.

Wilson, who previously served as the assistant track and cross country coach at Georgia State, replaces former head coach Tyler Scheving, who stepped down from the role to pursue another coaching opportunity. Wilson will officially take over as Canisius' head coach on Oct. 27.

"I am excited to welcome Nick to Canisius and I look forward to working with him as we continue to build our cross country and track programs in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC)," Maher said. "Through the interview process, Nick shared a vision with us on how he plans to develop our distance runners to be the best they can be in competition, in the classroom and in the community. His experience, enthusiasm and desire to help us grow the program are impressive, and I am confident he will do a terrific job leading our team.

"As we prepare to welcome Nick to Buffalo, I would also like to thank Ken Crawford, who served as the program's interim head coach while we conducted our search process. I appreciate Ken's professionalism and leadership and we are beyond fortunate to have had him join our program this season."

"I am incredibly excited to join Canisius and lead the cross country and track programs," Wilson said. "There is a strong foundation and tradition of success here, and I know this team can accomplish great things with the people we have in place. The student-athletes are talented, ambitious and hardworking. I am looking forward to helping them continue to grow and reach their goals. I am also very thankful to Bill Maher and Deputy Athletic Director Lisa Liotta for giving me the opportunity to be part of the Canisius family."

Wilson is veteran coach with 12 years of collegiate coaching experience, including eight as a head coach. He started his coaching career in 2013 when he was hired as the graduate assistant coach at the University of Rio Grande, an NAIA school located in Rio Grande, Ohio. After spending two years (2015 and 2016) as an assistant coach at Valley City State University in Valley City, N.D., Wilson was hired as the head cross country coach/assistant track coach at Lindsey Wilson College in Columbia, Ky., in 2016. He held that title until 2018, when he was promoted to serve as the director of track and cross country, a position he held through 2024.

In his time at Lindsey Wilson, he led the Blue Raiders to three conference championships and coached multiple NAIA national qualifiers, while expanding the roster to 95 student-athletes, boasting a better than 80 percent roster retention rate. His teams at Lindsey Wilson set 22 school records in his time in charge, and the cross country program there was regularly ranked in the national NAIA poll.

At Georgia State, Wilson doubled the women's cross country roster while using just one scholarship, and he also worked with the school's sprint, jump and throwing recruits during his time in Atlanta.

Wilson earned his bachelor's degree in sports and exercise from Rio Grande in 2013 and later went on to earn his master's degree in athletic coaching leadership from the University in 2015.

The Canisius men's and women's cross country teams return to action Nov. 1, at the 2025 MAAC Cross Country Championships in Montgomery, N.Y.

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