Coyote Sports Hall of Famer Matt Hoyt, a native of Burlington, Wyo., took on his role as an assistant coach for the track and field and cross country programs ahead of the 2002-03 season as a graduate assistant. He is currently a volunteer assistant coach and also serves as a physical therapist at Sioux Valley-Vermillion Hospital.
One of the best cross country and track and field performers in USD history, Hoyt was a 2000 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship recipient. An eight-time All-American, he was named the NCAA Division II Track and Field Athlete of the Year in 2000 and the NCAA Division II Cross Country Athlete of the Year in 1998. At the 2000 track and field nationals, Hoyt had one of the most brilliant and gutsy performances ever in South Dakota school history.
Hoyt finished in the top five of three of the most grueling events in track and field (second, 10,000m; third, 5,000m; and fourth, 3000m steeplechase).
He also finished second in the 10,000-meter run at the NCAA Division II Meet in 1998 and was a member of the 1997 national champion cross country squad at USD. He was the NCC and North Central Region cross country champion in both 1997 and 1998, the only time that has been accomplished in school history.
Hoyt's sixth-place finish at the national cross country meet in 1998 is the second-best finish ever by a South Dakota runner. He is also the only student-athlete in school history to be an All-American in cross country, indoor and outdoor track in the same calendar year.
The NCC Athlete of the Year in 2000, Hoyt held six distance records at South Dakota, before 2014 Coyote graduate Jeff Mettler broke three of them. He was inducted into the Coyote Sports Hall of Fame in 2010, which was his first year of eligibility.
Hoyt and his wife, Katie, have two daughters, Kassie and Cameron.
