Track and field | IMG Academy's Rob Jarvis named assistant coach for Team USA in annual Thorpe Cup | Bradenton Herald

BRADENTON -- In only his 10th year coaching track and field, IMG Academy's Rob Jarvis is still new to the game.

But that didn't prevent him from being named to the coaching staff for Team USA at the upcoming Thorpe Cup, an annual competition between the United States and Germany in the decathlon and heptathlon named after the legendary Jim Thorpe.

This year's meet takes place Aug. 8-9 in Bernhausen, Germany, and features seven men and seven women competing to accrue the most points. The top five men's and top three women's scores are combined to determine the overall men's and women's champion.

The meet also affords Jarvis the chance to reunite with his college track coach, Kevin Reid, Team USA's men's head coach for the event.

"It's kind of cool coming full circle being on the staff with him," Jarvis said.

Jarvis began his athletic journey in California with a standout prep career that earned him a chance to play football at San Diego State in the late 1990s.

Jarvis' size (5-foot-10, 170 pounds), though, was a hindrance in football.

Jarvis ventured into college track and field. Eventually, he landed at Azusa Pacific, where Reid mentored him.

While he was at the NCAA Division II school near Los Angeles, Jarvis was a teammate of future Olympian Bryan Clay.

That led to Jarvis training with Clay, who went on to capture the silver medal in the decathlon at the 2004 Summer Olympics and the gold medal in that discipline at the 2008 Summer Games.

"I got to carry his bag around the globe," Jarvis joked.

Traveling alongside Clay and Team USA coaches inspired Jarvis to coach, he said.

Prior to arriving at IMG Academy in December 2013, Jarvis was an assistant coach at UCLA from the summer of 2010 until departing for the Sunshine State.

During his time with the Bruins, Jarvis said USA Track & Field plugged him in as an "up-and-coming coach."

The success UCLA attained -- seven athletes earned NCAA All-American honors -- led to Jarvis popping onto USA Track & Field's radar for inclusion on the Thorpe Cup team.

"And then this past year, I got appointed to it," Jarvis said. "It happened pretty quick."

In addition to the Thorpe Cup honor, Jarvis has gained invaluable knowledge during his brief tenure at IMG Academy under renowned sprint coach Loren Seagrave.

"I've known about him for a lot of years," Jarvis said. " ... The first time he and I really connected was 2013. One of my UCLA athletes made the World Championships in Moscow. He was chatting me up there. That's kind of what started the conversation to see what my interest would be to come to IMG. And then from there, the rest is kind of history. So, it's worked out really well."