The 2012-13 academic year is Tom Rutledge's 24th as head men's cross country/track & field coach at Missouri Southern. He has led the Lions to eight MIAA cross country championships (2000-03, 2005-07, 2009) and two MIAA Indoor Track & Field championships (2004, 2007), 10 championships in 12 years.

His MSSU cross country team has made 11 team appearances in the last 13 years at the NCAA Division II Championships, always finishing in the top 20 but highlighted by a sixth-place national finish in 2000, a seventh-place showing in 2002 and an eighth place finish in 2012

For his efforts, Rutledge was named MIAA Men's Cross Country Coach of the Year in 2000, 2002, 2003, 2007 and 2009 and Indoor Coach of the Year in 2004 and 2007. Rutledge was also honored as South Central Region Indoor Track & Field Coach of the Year in 1999, 2004 and 2007, and South Central Region Cross Country Coach of the Year in 2007 for his contributions to the sport. Coach Rutledge was inducted as a member of the MSSU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2008.

Rutledge has mentored four National Champions, eight cross country All-Americans and 55 in track and field, several of the 55 achieving multiple All-American statuses.  He has had numerous student-athletes earn academic awards, both on the conference and national levels.  In 2005, the pole vaulters took the top five positions in the MIAA Outdoor Conference and took the top three finishes at the NCAA Outdoor National Championships, a rarely achieved accomplishment for one school.

In the spring and summer of 2000, he coached Tongula Givens Steddum, a former Missouri Southern national champion in the triple jump, as she made her bid for the U.S. Olympic Team.

Rutledge became head cross country coach in 1989 when Southern first developed its men's and women's teams. Prior to joining the Southern staff Tom coached successful programs at Arkansas Tech and Colorado’s Adams State.

An assistant professor of kinesiology, Rutledge received a bachelor's degree in physical education and social studies from Ouachita Baptist University in 1974 and a master's degree in physiology of exercise from Henderson State University in 1976.

Tom is most proud of his efforts to bring cross country track and field to Southwest Missouri.  By designing an on campus cross country course he has been able to bring   five national cross country championships (AAU and NCAA) and seven regional cross country championships to Joplin.     These events have brought thousands of athletes and spectators to Joplin and significant revenue to the community.  The annual cross country Southern Stampede brings over 2,000 athletes to Joplin each year and is one of the largest cross country meets in the nation. 

Coach Rutledge has assisted in developing the MSSU International mission by establishing distance learning programs in Finland and Russia. 

Tom is married to Karen, a local State Farm agent. They have two sons, Chad and Kyle. Chad, a State Farm agent, and his wife Becky and granddaughters Morgan and Allyson and grandson Ethan, live near Salt Lake City. Kyle, a former All-American pole vaulter for MSSU, and his wife Natalie and granddaughter Emery live in Pittsburg, KS where he is an assistant track coach at Pittsburg State University.  

Bryan Schiding is in his fourth year as an assistant coach at Missouri Southern working with the men’s sprinters and both the men and women’s jumpers. 

In three years at Southern, his athletes have combined for nine individual and two relay All-American awards.  Last year the Southern sprinters and long/triple jumpers virtually rewrote the indoor and outdoor top-10 lists.  Freshman sprinter Jeffrey Fraley, was the indoor and outdoor MIAA champion in the 200m, and was ranked top three nationally in the 60m, 100m, and 200m dashes.  In addition, Fraley was a two-time All-American 200m sprinter last year.  Freshman jumper Darion Boure broke the outdoor triple jump record by nearly a foot, and was also an outdoor All-American.  All said athletes which he worked with combined for 62 NCAA qualifying marks and have set ten school records within three years.

One of Schiding’s more decorated athletes is Tyrone Smith.  Smith, a professional long jumper, currently owns the Bermuda national record.  He most recently finished 12^th at the London Olympic games, and had previously finished 15^th at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.  Smith currently has a personal best jump of 27’ 0”.  His collegiate career included two national runner-up finishes and a fourth place showing in the event at the 2006 NCAA Division II Indoor Championships.  

Prior to Missouri Southern, Schiding spent 6-years at Missouri S&T.  He was twice named as the NCAA Division II Men’s Regional Assistant Coach of the Year, earning the honor in 2007 for the Great Lakes Region after the Miners posted their highest finish ever at an NCAA championship meet, then again in 2009 as the Missouri S&T men's team swept the Great Lakes Valley Conference titles with strong performances from its sprinters and jumpers keying the title runs. 

While at S&T, Schiding developed one of the finest Pole Vault programs in Division 2.  Over a span of 6-years he had 14 All-Americans and 30 NCAA qualifiers in the Pole Vault.  In 2009, he coached three different pole vaulters over 17 feet.  The Miner sprinters and field event competitors had great success under Schiding's guidance.  His stay at Missouri S&T saw 74 individuals qualify for the NCAA Championships with 22 earning All-America honors.  His athletes set 61 new school records and had over 150 all-conference performances.  Missouri S&T also had four individuals earn the GLVC "Freshman of the Year" awards.

Prior to joining the Missouri S&T coaching staff, Schiding served as an assistant track and field coach at LaSalle University in Philadelphia for the three seasons.  He coached both the men's and women's field events and also worked with the sprinters and hurdlers.  He helped coach teams to a total of five Atlantic-10 Conference championships, including two men's and two women's titles in cross country, and the men’s indoor title in 2003.  His athletes established 11 new school records during his three seasons on the staff.

Schiding was the team captain while competing at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pa., from where he graduated in 2000 with a bachelor's degree in economics. He set the school record in the indoor long jump and won conference titles in the long jump (twice) and triple jump; he earned seven all-conference awards during his career at Bucknell.  Schiding also competed in the sprint and multi events as well as the relays.

He earned his MBA with a concentration in marketing from LaSalle. Schiding currently resides in Joplin with his wife, Stephanee and daughter Lilyan.