JT Keith
Artesia head cross-country coach Nicholas Rivera is leaving the Bulldogs to become head cross-country coach at Lubbock Christian University.
“I poured my heart and soul into the Artesia job,” Rivera said. “This happened recently with the LCU job. I did everything I could. It is hard to turn down an opportunity like this.”
Rivera said he has wanted to coach college athletes for a long time. He said that if he were going to leave Artesia, it would be for an opportunity like this.
“I loved teaching and coaching the kids at Artesia,” Rivera said. “It was a great time, and I enjoyed it. College coaching is what I really wanted to do.”
A difficult goodbye
Rivera said the move to Lubbock Christian is a strong fit for him and an opportunity he could not pass up. He said he is excited about the chance and believes Artesia athletic director Jeremy Maupin will find a strong replacement.
Rivera said he is in California visiting his brother and attending his brother’s high school graduation. He said he will return to Artesia on June 8 and wants to tell his cross-country athletes in person.
Rivera has been the head coach since 2023. During his tenure, the Artesia girls won three district championships, and the boys won three district titles.
“I am sad to be leaving after the relationships I created,” Rivera said. “It was hard to have those conversations with the coaches and some of my athletes. I told a couple of my kids because I did not want them to hear it through the grapevine. I wanted them to hear it from me first.”
Rivera said he will return to leave the right way, clean out his classroom, and help however he can.
Rivera said coaching in college is uncharted territory, but he is ready for the challenge and understands it is a performance-based business.
What Rivera leaves behind
He said one of his favorite coaching memories was helping Zane Baize win the mile at the state championship and helping Makaylee Morillon and Sydney Boone win the 1,600-meter sprint medley relay title in track.
Rivera said his goal was to bring competitiveness to the distance program. He said he believes he did that and is sad to leave a strong group of returning athletes.
Rivera’s background
Rivera was a national-class middle-distance runner. In 2013, he won the U.S. junior outdoor title in the 800 meters in 1 minute, 49.55 seconds to earn a spot on Team USA for the Pan American Junior Championships. At Texas Tech, he was an All-Big 12 performer and posted career bests of 1:50.03 in the 800 and 3:46.63 in the 1,500.
Running shaped how Rivera understands pressure, pace and discipline. He said those lessons now define how he approaches coaching.
“Be relentless,” Rivera said of what he hopes athletes take away after four years. “Let’s see what every ounce is, because life is going to beat them up. When you don’t have any more, that’s when you get better.”
Rivera will take over a program whose men’s team finished 20th at the 2025 NCAA Division II South Central Region Cross Country Championships.
“It is never the right time to say goodbye,” Rivera said. “It was not an easy decision. The athletes I have coached are awesome. We created relationships, and I will miss them.”
JT Keith can be reached at 575-420-0061 or on X, formerly Twitter, @JTKEITH1.