Bio

Chad Balentine joined the MMI Athletic Department as the head coach of the men’s and women’s cross country programs and Game Day Administrator during the summer of 2019.  He comes to Marion after serving as the head men's and women's cross country, men's and women's indoor track and field, and men's and women's outdoor track and field programs at Barton College (Wilson, NC) last year.

Balentine earned his undergraduate degree in human environmental sciences from the University of Alabama, and soon afterwards began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Troy. He accepted his first head coaching role in 2009 at Bevill State, where he guided the Bears to nine junior college All-American honors and seven Academic All-American awards in his two seasons at the helm.  In 2011 he joined the staff at Birmingham Southern College as an assistant track and field coach and then onto the University of Mpntevallo in 2015 for a three-year stint as assistant track and field and cross country coach.