Jefferson Cook has been named women's and men's golf coach at Kansas Wesleyan.
Cook has extensive experience in the Kansas Conference, having played for Southwestern and as the current head coach at York. He will begin his duties at KWU after the completion of the 2024-25 season.
"Excited, and ready for the next chapter of my life," Cook said. "My wife (Jordyn) and I both are super excited to be moving to Salina, ready to get in and work hard to build a championship program again."
Cook has played or coached in the KCAC the last seven years - five as a golfer at Southwestern, one as a graduate assistant at the school and one at York where he has been since last May.
Cook said he was impressed with the KWU program as a player and coach and was sold on the institution during his visit to campus.
"I've actually never seen a KCAC/NAIA campus quite like K-Dub's," he said. "Not that other campuses don't have anything nice, but it just has a different feel to it. It felt more like a smaller Division One and I really liked that aspect.
"The people that I met with were super friendly, super nice and just the overall atmosphere at K-Dub feels right. It's closer to home for my wife and I, closer to our family and our friends."
A 2023 graduate from Southwestern Cook had several top 10 finishes as a player and was the team's MVP for the 2022-23 season. He also was a KCAC Scholar Athlete and KCAC Champion of Character.
Cook's experience in the KCAC stood out during the interview process.
"It's a great hire because he's familiar with the conference," KWU Director of Athletics Miguel Paredes said. "He's able to recruit, he's hungry for success and I believe with the right support he can accomplish everything he wants to. We are the missing link to what he needs to really make a name for himself. He fits what we're trying to do here."
As a competitor at Southwestern Cook was impressed with the Coyotes approached the game.
"When I was playing it was usually pretty tough to beat Kansas Wesleyan," he said. "They were very professional. They knew what their duty was out on the golf course, and they just seemed to carry themselves differently than some other teams.
"I coached against Coleman (Houk, former KWU coach) and he was always super kind and super ready to go out and get a (win) every time. A go-get-'em kind of attitude towards golf."
Hard work is the hallmark of his teams.
"That's what I've been telling my players that I have currently and all my recruits - if you're going to come play for me come ready to work hard," Cook said. "That's the expectation I have for them, basically instill that in them so we can build a winning program.