With 39 athletes on the track and field team and only three full-time coaches to help manage sprinting, distance running and field events, the coaching staff needs all the help they can get.

One student, junior Adam Lotito, is helping the program with whatever it may need in his first year as a student assistant coach. The position is nothing new for Lotito, who spent time at Missouri State University in a similar capacity from 2010-2012.

Lotito, a kinesiology major, said for the most part he has two main duties.

“Being a student manager for the cross country/track team, I help manage practices, and so that would consist of helping the coaches time during practices, since some of the athlete have multiple or different workouts,” Lotito said. “…I am the recruiting manager for the distance, field and sprints, and so that encompasses looking up the high school athletes database and basically having the database [find] like all the athletes in the high schools that meet our standard. Basically compiling that list and keeping up to date with their performances so it gives the head coaches a better idea of what athletes to look at for recruiting purposes.”

One member of the coaching staff worked with Lotito at his previous job: assistant head coach Greg Hipp. Hipp is in his second year as the distance assistant coach for track and field and is the head coach for NIU’s cross country team. Prior to coming to NIU, Hipp had been cross country coach at Missouri State for seven years.

“Well, you know, he’s just got a rare work ethic and loyalty, and that’s difficult to find,” Hipp said. “For somebody that’s in a position like he is, he takes it seriously as if it was his actual career because that’s what he wants it to be in the future. He always works really hard and…he’s positive, and he’s just a very loyal [person].”

Hipp believes Lotito can one day become head coach.

“Well, he’s certainly doing everything within his power to develop into a good coach,” Hipp said. “He’s spends a lot of time learning. He works hard, takes things seriously, he observes and asks questions, so I think if he continues on that path…he can certainly become…a college coach. He’s just gotta stay patient with it. It’s a tough line of work to get into, but if he stays patient and keeps doing what he’s doing, and I’m confident he’ll be able to find himself his own team in the future.”