SMC California Athletics

Harlan Lopez joined Saint Mary's as an assistant in the spring of 2018 and was promoted to Associate Head Coach prior to the 2019-20 season. In 2022-23, Lopez was named the Head Coach of both the Men's Cross Country and Track and Field Programs.

The 2024 cross country season proved to be the best to date under Coach Lopez's tutelage. His team finished within the top-five at the WCC Championship meet for the first time in his tenure at head coach. The team also picked up their first meet win under his guidance, taking home first place at the Pacific Invitational. 

From July 2016 to March 2018, Lopez was the head men's and women's cross country/track coach at Holy Names University. He cultivated a culture of success through emphasizing commitment to teammates as well as investing in a goal setting atmosphere. He guided success for the program as he helped the men's team to a fifth-place finish at the 2016 PacWest Cross Country Championships, the highest finish for any sports program in school history. Lopez also led efforts to the women's team to a program best 11th-place finish.  

Lopez’s coaching expertise continued to the University of Texas at Austin where he was an assistant for the men’s cross country and track team from 2012-13. Lopez worked directly with the steeplechase group where three athletes made the regional meet and one athlete made the national meet. He assisted the Longhorns to a 2nd place finish at the 2012 Big 12 Cross Country Championships, a 1st place finish at the South Central Regional Championship and a 9th place finish at the NCAA Cross Country National Championships. 

In 2004 he was the head distance coach for the Diablo Valley Track and Field Club in Lafayette where he organizes travels, accommodates race entries for the Junior Olympics and most importantly introduces young athletes to encourage them to follow their passions while working in a holistic athletic lifestyle. 

Lopez was a student athlete at the Northern Arizona University where he received his Bachelor of Arts in liberal studies in emphasis in Psychology. While attending NAU he was qualified for Big Sky Conference Indoor and Outdoor Championships and scored in the 10,000 meters in 2007. From 2010-11 Lopez attended San Francisco State University and received a single subject credential program in Physical Education and was also a recipient of the Athletics Honor Roll. Lopez not only coached at Holy Names University, he also completed a masters degree in Urban Education. 

Lopez’s outstanding leadership and organization is a USA Track and Field Level 2 certified coach in endurance.