COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The results testify that Geoffrey Sambu
was the leader on the Tennessee Tech men’s cross country team
in 2014, setting records and earning numerous awards.
What the numbers don’t show is the leadership provided by
the first-year Golden Eagle runner from Kenya, a transfer from
Florida A&M who could very well serve as the initial building
block of an entire program for first-year coach Wayne Angel.
It’s that quiet, behind-the-scenes leadership, documented by
his coach and teammates, that has earned Sambu the November Unsung
Leader Award from Tennessee Tech Athletics.
“Since his arrival on the Tech campus, Geoffrey has been a
shining example of leadership I the classroom and on the field of
competition,” said Angel in his nomination of Sambu for the
award.
“His very presence commands respect and he helped to bring
out the best in all whom he has contact with. He is truly an
inspiration to all.”
Angel said that leadership extended not only to his teammates, but
to the Golden Eagle women’s team, as well.
“Geoffrey is a team player who cares about his team and the
entire running program at Tech,” Angel said. “He cares
about Tennessee Tech and what we stand for. He is teaching his
teammates the importance of sacrifice and commitment. Because of
Geoffrey, they all work harder to become better and bring relevancy
to the Tennessee Tech cross country program.”
Sambu was named the team MVP after leading the Golden Eagles in
every meet during the 2014 cross country season. In the first meet
of his Golden Eagle career, Sambu finished first the Carolina
Invitational, and one week later he placed in the Top 10 against
nationally ranked Indiana University.
He set a school 8K record at the Commodore Classic despite falling
early in the race. He placed fourth among 250 runners at the
event.
A month later, he shattered his own school mark with an 8K time of
24:28.18 at the OVC Championships, finishing sixth overall to earn
first-team All-OVC honors.
At the NCAA South Regional meet in Tallahassee, Fla., he placed
13th overall to earn All-Region honors. His finish
narrowly missed qualifying him for the NCAA National
Championships.
He was twice named the OVC Runner of the Week.
The Unsung Leader Award was created this year to recognize
leadership by student-athletes, with an award to be presented each
month throughout the academic year. A year ago, Tech’s
student-athletes and staff attended a leadership seminar, and
Director of Athletics Mark Wilson wanted to find ways to keep
student-athletes motivated toward following the ideals learned at
the event.
“The seminar allowed student-athletes to learn, interact and
discuss traits of leadership, and in turn we see our
student-athletes demonstrating those traits every day,”
Wilson said. “This award is a way to recognize that
leadership, which many times isn’t reflected in headlines or
other ways. It’s quiet leadership, behind-the-scenes
leadership, that makes everybody better.
“These young men and women are leaders, pure-and-simple, not
doing the right thing for recognition but to make themselves, their
teammates, and their teams better,” Wilson said.
One student-athlete, nominated by his/her coaching staff, will be selected and recognized for exemplifying outstanding leadership qualities during the month. The leadership can be shown on the field, in the weight room, at practice, in the classroom, in study hall, on campus, in the community, for a student club or organization.
This award honors a varsity student-athlete who has made a
positive impact on their team and the Tennessee Tech community as a
whole, through his or her dedication to demonstrating leadership
traits, such as:
* Keep Learning, Growing,
and Improving
* Follow Through with
Excellence
* Accomplish More than
Expected
* Inspire and Motivate
Others
Previous Unsung Leader Award winners have been Ellen Conti (volleyball in September) and Austin Tallant (football in October).
