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NEWS: Brandon Lawrence to Join Arizona State After Initially Being Hired at California
Written by Aimee Morganti, edits & additional commentary via Garrett Zatlin
Last month, Cal Poly assistant coach Brandon Lawrence was hired as the next Associate Head Cross Country Coach at the University of California, Berkley. However, The Stride Report has recently learned that Lawrence is now stepping away from that role. Instead, he will follow his former head coach, Ryan Vanhoy, to Arizona State University.
California has since removed their July 17th website press release regarding Brandon Lawrence’s hiring.
Lawrence will hold a similar assistant-type role at Arizona State University with Ryan Vanhoy as the program's newest Director of Cross Country and Track & Field. He will also continue to work alongside Michelle Chewens, Vanhoy’s wife and coaching partner.
It is unclear who will replace Lawrence at California moving forward.
With this move, Lawrence will return to a Power Four conference in the BIG 12. Lawrence began his Division One coaching career with a two-year stint as an assistant at Wake Forest, a member of the ACC. However, his latest two-year tenure at Cal Poly resided in the BIG West Conference.
Last fall, the Sun Devils did not compete at the 2025 West Regional XC Championships. At the BIG 12 XC Championships, they finished 12th out of 13 teams in the men’s race. Their women’s squad took last place.
Earlier this week, former Cal Poly distance star Chris Caudillo announced that he will be transferring to Arizona State. There, he will reunite with Ryan Vanhoy and the former Cal Poly coaching staff.
Lawrence's latest move leaves California's Associate Head Cross Country Coach position vacant while they begin a new search for a replacement. The Golden Bears have an almost 10-year gap since their last NCAA XC Championship appearance as a team. Their women’s cross country squad last qualified for the national meet in 2017 while their men’s cross country team last qualified in 2016.
