When the final whistle blows or the last runner crosses the finish line at the end of this spring season, it won't just mark the conclusion of another academic year at Fitchburg State University.
It will mark the end of an era that has defined Falcon athletics for nearly half a century. Jim Jellison, the venerable cornerstone of the university’s cross country and track and field programs, is hanging up his whistle after 48 seasons of grit, grace, and unparalleled success.
“I’m going out a happy man in a lot of ways,” said Jellison, who started the “One Team, One Dream” slogan at Fitchburg State. “I’ve had great experiences here, with some incredibly good kids here and great athletic directors.
“I’ve gotten probably 300 texts and Facebook messages from former athletes and kids that I grew up with,” said Jellison. “I sat there and kind of cried one day reading them. A lot of them have become friends and they are still in contact with me.”
Fitchburg State Executive Director of Athletics & Recreation Matt Burke said that Jellison’s career was defined by an unwavering devotion to his students’ success, both on and off the track.
“(Jellison) saw potential in everyone and worked tirelessly to help them reach it,” said Burke. “We thank Jim for all the years of mentorship and for making Fitchburg State a better place for our athletes."
Jellison admits he has a tough exterior, but said it emerged from a defense mechanism developed while growing up as "one of the littlest guys around." His athletes know that he also possesses a gigantic, caring heart.
The story of Jellison, who was named the BSN Sports Men's Cross Country Coach of the Year as voted on by the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) coaches this fall, is about a man who built a powerhouse from the ground up, transforming a fledgling program into a regional contender.
In 1978, when Jellison first stepped onto the Fitchburg State campus to coach women's track and cross country, the landscape was vastly different. By the time he took over the men's track position in 1994, the program was in a state of rebuilding—and that is perhaps an understatement.
For many, a roster of five would be a discouragement. For Jellison, it was a blank canvas. With the same dedication he brought to his career as a physical education teacher, he began the painstaking process of recruitment and culture-building. He wasn't just looking for the fastest runners; he was looking for the "Falcon Spirit"—a combination of work ethic and resilience.
Today, the fruits of that labor are undeniable. Jellison’s cross country rosters now average over 22 dedicated runners, and the track and field teams boast upwards of 40 athletes. He didn't just fill a roster; he built a community.
Jellison’s trophy case is crowded, to say the least. Under his leadership, the Falcons have captured 17 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) team titles. His ability to maintain a winning culture over four decades is a feat rarely seen in coaching at any level.
(Jellison) saw potential in everyone and worked tirelessly to help them reach it. We thank Jim for all the years of mentorship and for making Fitchburg State a better place for our athletes.
The middle of the last decade saw a particularly impressive run for the program. Jellison was named the 2017 MASCAC Coach of the Year after leading the Falcons to a conference crown, a feat he followed up with another MASCAC championship in 2018. These recent successes proved that even after 40 years on the job, Jellison’s tactical mind and ability to motivate young athletes remained as sharp as ever.
His impact, however, extended far beyond the conference limits. Jellison has been a fixture on the national stage, guiding the Falcons to numerous appearances at the Division III New England’s, All-New England’s, and ECAC Championships. Perhaps his most staggering achievement is the individual success of his athletes: Jellison has coached 51 NCAA All-Americans and seven National champions. To produce one national champion is a career highlight for most; to produce seven is a testament to a master technician of the sport.
Jellison said he’ll also never forget the 1983 women’s team that won the ECAC championship and finished 12th at the Nationals. Jellison said that It’s the only state women’s team to ever qualify as a team.
Fitchburg State University freshman sensation Paulino Guevara Mateo, who burst onto the Division 3 collegiate running scene, ended his unbelievable freshman cross country campaign this fall by being named the U.S. Track and Field Cross Country Coaches Association East Region Men’s Athlete of the Year.
Guevara Mateo credits Jellison with a lot of his success to start his collegiate career.
“(Jellison) is a good coach,” said Guevara Mateo. “He has helped me a lot in my competitions and training, and he also helps all his athletes improve. He is always willing to do what’s best for his athletes, and I think that’s what makes him so good.”
Senior captain Michael Burns said that Jellison, while on the recruiting trail, was the only coach in Central Mass. to attend multiple meets during his high school career.
“That shows that he cares about developing his athletes,” said Burns. “I also knew about the insane amount of historical success that the program had seen over the last half century, so it made it special to be able to compete here, and compete under Coach Jellison.”
It will be hard to forget about Coach Jellision, said Guevara Mateo.
“I appreciate the time we spent with him as a team and also individually, like traveling to nationals and all the moments in competitions and training,” Guevara Mateo said. “Those were very special moments for me, and also for him, seeing the team improve little by little.”
The 2007-08 season will never be forgotten. It was a year that showcased the depth and reach of the program. Jellison led the Falcons to the NCAA Division III Regional Championships at Connecticut College, where three of his runners qualified as individuals.
The men’s team finished a grueling race in 23rd place out of 59 teams, while the women’s squad held their own with a 44th-place finish. It was a weekend that put Fitchburg State on the map nationally, proving that a state school from Central Massachusetts could run stride-for-stride with the best programs in the country.
“Those guys worked so hard and they pushed so much to be where they were,” said Jellison. “Those guys never gave up.”
What makes Jellison so unique and a special coach? If you talk to the hundreds of athletes who have passed through his program, they rarely start by talking about the accolades. They talk about mentorship.
Ben Sacramone, a 2023 Fitchburg State alum and current head strength and conditioning coach, said that Jellison is the type of coach who cared about his athletes’ lives just as much as he cared about their performances.
“I will always remember Coach Jellison as a person who invested in my success in everything that I did, whether it be as a captain on the track team, in any extracurriculars, or now as the strength coach for his team,” said Sacramone. “Although I may have been the source of the occasional angry coach, I never doubted that Coach Jellison was always on the side of my best interests. He is an integral influencer of who I am today, and I am extremely grateful for the support he’s given me over the years. He was a mentor and a role model to me, and now a colleague and a friend.”
As a retired physical education teacher, Jellison’s approach to coaching has always been rooted in education. He understood that the track was a classroom. Whether he was teaching a freshman how to pace a 5K or helping a senior refine their hurdle technique, his patience was legendary. He was a catalyst in the truest sense—a person who caused change in others without being consumed by the process himself.
“It’s hard for me to understand how much impact I’ve had because it’s not what I was gearing toward,” said Jellison. “I wasn’t sitting there saying, ‘I’m going to impact your life.” No, it was, ‘I’m going to do the best I can for you to be as good as you can be, and those things will carry over into your life because you’ve learned how to either win or lose or work hard to get what you need to get.’”
Jellison managed the dual demands of men’s and women’s cross country alongside the year-round grind of indoor and outdoor track and field. This required a level of organizational stamina that is almost superhuman. For Jellison, the spring season wasn't just the end of the semester; it was the culmination of a year-long cycle of preparation.
As Jellison prepares for his final coaching lap, he does so with the support of the Fitchburg community he has called home for so long. A city resident, Jellison’s life has been a blend of public service and family devotion. Alongside his wife, Alice, and their three sons—Rob, Chris, and Shane—he has modeled what it means to be a dedicated family man and coach.
“It makes you realize that you did something right when my son Chris says the reason that he wants to coach is because I was a coach and because of what I did and he learned so much from me coaching him and he also learned the things not to do,” said Jellison. “No coach does everything right.
“One of the things that I always told the kids is that family comes first,” said Jellison.
The university’s athletic department will undoubtedly feel a void come next autumn. How do you replace 48 years of institutional knowledge? How do you replace the person who remembers when the program only had five jerseys to hand out?
The answer is that you don't replace a Jim Jellison; you simply try to honor the standard he set.
“The only legacy I really want is that this program stays good,” said Jellison.
Every time a Falcon runner digs deep in the final 100 meters of a race, or a thrower finds that extra inch of distance, they are echoing the work ethic that Jellison instilled in the program since 1978.
Jim Jellison’s career is a masterclass in longevity and loyalty. In an era where coaches often jump from school to school in search of the next big contract, Jellison stayed. He stayed for the students, he stayed for the city of Fitchburg, and he stayed for the love of the sport.
“It’s been home for me since 1972,” said Jellison, when he first started teaching at the McKay School. “I had a couple of chances to leave, but there was nothing that drew me to them more than what I was already doing here.”
Burns said he thinks that Jellison’s career should be viewed as nothing short of legendary.
“Every single record set in athletics has been set under the tenure of coach Jellison,” said Burns. “I'm sure there are a bunch of numerical facts to describe it, but there is also just the knowledge that there are few who have been this dedicated to the students and the athletes.”
As he heads into retirement, Jellison leaves behind more than just 17 banners in the gym. He leaves behind a sprawling network of alumni who are better citizens, parents, and professionals because they spent their collegiate years running for coach Jellison.
Jellison said that he wants to be remembered as a coach who helped his athletes, pushed them and believed in them to reach levels they never thought were possible.
“I hope they enjoyed it,” said Jellison. “My goal has always been for whoever we’ve had that they just get better. Hopefully I treated them well and I look at them more as a human being and a student than an athlete, and when they had problems they could come to me to get help.”
What a legendary run. The finish line is finally in sight, and Jellison has won the race in every way that matters.