Tom Esslinger enters his third season as an assistant coach on the Samford track and field staff. Esslinger will coach jumps, multis, and javelin for the 2025-26 season.
In his first two seasons, Esslinger led Samford athletes to 12 individual gold medals and 32 top-three finishes at the indoor and outdoor SoCon Championships. Additionally, Esslinger has had six NCAA Championships East Regional qualifiers during his tenure.Â
Prior to being hired at Samford, Esslinger spent 20 years coaching at the high school level in the Birmingham area and is one of the most successful coaches in the history of the Alabama High School Athletic Association.  He was the 2017 National Coach of the Year and won Alabama Coach of the Year honors four different times.  Esslinger led teams to 33 state championships over the course of his career.  Additionally, Esslinger led individual athletes to two U20 World Championship silver medals, two national championships, 140 state titles, and four Gatorade Athlete of the Year Awards.  Â
Esslinger was a decathlete at the University of South Alabama and was top three at both the 2001 and 2003 Sun Belt Conference Championships.  He is still on South Alabama’s all-time list for the decathlon.  Esslinger is originally from Scottsboro, Alabama, and was inducted into the Jackson County Hall of Fame in 2021.Â
