Tony Davis was added to the NM State Track & Field coaching staff in 2017, and was promoted to the Associate Head Coach role in 2021. Davis works primarily with sprints, hurdles and jumps.
The 2023 season saw NM State send seven student-athletes to the NCAA West Regional - with Davis helping develop Jhana Downie, Terice Steen, Aliyah Logan and Valissa Brown. Under Davis' direction, Downie has evolved into one of the most dominant runners in the region, sweeping the 200m and 400m at the 2023 WAC Championships, while etching her name everywhere in the NM State record book (second in the 200m, third in the 400m, second in the 4x400m relay and first in the 4x100m relay).
During the 2019 outdoor season, six New Mexico State athletes qualified for the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds. Crissey Amberg, Lashira Tremble, and Hannah Smith returned for a second appearance while Keosha Sanders, Camira Haughton and Taniya Mitchell competed at the meet for the first time in their careers. Of those six, Davis worked directly with Tremble, Sanders and Haughton in the sprints and Smith in the triple jump.
As a team, NM State posted a second place finish and eight individual titles went home with the Aggie squad. Breaking a program record, under Davis' guidance during the 2019 season, was Asjah Wallace, who clocked in at 13.72 in the 100m hurdles. Additionally, Tremble came away with gold in the 100m, 4x400m relay and 4x100m relay while also placing second in the 200m, helping the junior earn the High Point and the Outstanding Female Track Athlete awards. In the triple jump, Smith competed came away with first, posting a personal-best mark of 12.82m (42-0.75).
The Aggies finished second at the WAC Indoor Championships in 2019 with seven individual titles belonging to the Crimson and White. With Davis' direction, Keosha Sanders (7.42) and Asjah Wallace (8.45) set program records for the 60m and the 60m hurdles, respectively, at the conference meet. Additionally, Wallace was named the meet’s outstanding track performer and the high point award winner. Smith came home with the indoor triple jump title, recording a mark of 12.44m (40-9.75).
During his first year with the program, Davis led the Aggies to a successful season with Katara Nelson, Hannah Smith and the 4x100 relay of Nelson, Lashira Tremble, Dominique Joiner and Tanisha Scott qualifying for the NCAA West Preliminaries. Under the guidance of Davis, Nelson capped off her senior season as NM State's record holder for the 200m (23.04) and the 400m (51.98). She also helped the 4x100m (44.66) and 4x400m (3:40.37) relay squads break the program record at the Desert Heat Classic in 2018. Smith was the lone jumps qualifier for the Aggies when she competed in the triple jump at the NCAA Regionals.
At the WAC Outdoor Championships, Davis saw Nelson (11.41) and Tremble (11.50) place first and second, respectively in the 100m. The duo also took home the top two spots in the 200m with Nelson clocking in at 23.45 and Tremble finishing with a time of 24.15. The 400m had Scott place third with a time of 56.83 and Camira Hughton take sixth, clocking in at 58.58. In the 100m hurdles, New Mexico State went home with two athletes scoring in Arniesha Mitchell placing third (13.93) and Nia Garcia taking fifth (14.02). For the relays, both the 4x100m (46.11) and 4x400m (3:43.54) teams came away with the WAC title. In the jumps, Keyarha Wilson took home second (1.68m, 5-6) while Smith placed sixth (1.59m, 5-2.5) in the high jump. Smith also took fifth in the long jump (5.89m, 19-4) but walked away with the WAC title in the triple jump (12.69m, 41-7.75). Jocelyn Jordan rounded out the Aggie jumpers in sixth when she posted a mark of 11.85m (8-10.5) in the triple jump.
During the indoor season, Davis had three athletes take home WAC titles at the conference championship. Tremble posted a time of 7.51 for a first place finish and a program record in the 60m. Scott brought home the WAC crown in the 200m when she clocked in at 24.35 for the race. Wilson was the third title holder Davis coached as the high jumper notched a mark of 1.69 m (5-6.5) to win the event.
Davis joins the Aggies after spending three seasons as an assistant coach at Barton Community College in Great Bend, Kan., where he served as the sprints and hurdles coach. While at Barton, he coached 11 National Junior College Athletic Association National Champions, 79 NJCAA All-American performances, and 30 NJCAA Region VI Conference Champions.
In 2017 alone, Davis guided the men’s and women’s programs at Barton to a second place finish at the NJCAA Outdoor Nationals. His women’s 4x400m relay team placed first at the outdoor national meet, clocking in with a time of 3:42.82. At the national indoor meet, his women’s 4x400m relay team broke the NJCAA meet record by finishing with a time of 3:38.93.
While with the Cougars, Davis earned NJCAA Women’s Central Region Assistant Coach of the Year honors from the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association on five occasions. He was also named the USTFCCCA NJCAA National Indoor Women’s Assistant Coach of the Year in 2017.
Prior to his time at Barton Community College, Davis spent time as an assistant coach at Allen Community College from 2012-2014 where he coached two NJCAA National Champions and 10 NJCAA All Americans.
Davis previously worked as a coach at Hallandale High School in Florida, where he coached three state champions and 10 regional champions. Some of Davis’ star pupils include Kyri Tabor, who was a two-time state champion in the 400m and Dwight Davis, who also won a state championship in the 400m. Both athletes went on to compete for the University of Alabama.
The Miami native earned his bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from Emporia State University in 2016. Davis is also a certified police officer and graduated from the Miami Dade College Police Academy in 2011.
