This new era of UTEP track hasn’t taken long to find its face.
As the Miners head off to Middle Tennessee for its first outdoor championships under first-year coach Francesca Green, Elias Munoz has quickly (literally) come to epitomize this new-look program.
This time a year ago, Munoz was a star sprinter at Franklin, getting ready to run in the UIL state meet. The UTEP track team was on the eve of a transition to a new staff, prioritizing recruiting Texas and El Paso.
Munoz became one of the first recruits of the new era and a symbol of it.
“I’m blessed,” said Munoz, who heads to the CUSA championships as a freshman sitting seventh in the 200 meters and ninth in the 100. “I love representing El Paso, representing the city however I can, whether it’s sports or off-the-track things. I’m blessed and I love this city.”
Green loves having him.
“He is the vanguard,” she said. “When I’m looking at the team as a whole, he’s done an amazing job. He’s run fast; he’s a role model for the program. He works hard and it’s showing.”
That has started coming together this outdoor season. Franklin was a good launch point, an established high school program with a good history of producing college talent, and while the intensity of college track was eye-opening for Munoz, he was ready.
“Coming from Franklin, we were trained to work out from a big college standpoint,” Munoz said. “But the workload and all the technical things, I wasn’t used to it and all I had to work on until I came here. Coach Green helped me through that.
“It’s been fun. I love the guys; we have a great time every day. It’s a huge family out here. It’s been fun.”
When Munoz arrived, he said he was nervous for everything in front of him, but as soon as spring arrived, his times started dropping, and he now has personal bests of 20.86 in the 200 and 10.27 in the 100 (his Franklin bests were 21.45 and 10.39).
“It’s gone − not as expected, but for good reasons,” Munoz said. “When I came out, I was a little nervous, getting used to college, the big meets, the big schools, the big names. But once I got comfortable with it, it all started flowing and I remembered why I love to run. I remembered I can do this, I’m confident in myself.”
That will serve him well as he heads into a bright future.
“It’s his work ethic and mentality,” Green said. “That’s the biggest part. Ceiling? I don’t know, I don’t say what anyone’s ceiling is. Every day, we’re going to challenge limits and see what that is.
“He’s willing to challenge his limits. Who knows how fast he’s going to run? We do have goals, and there is a lot of work to do; there are things we didn’t get fully implemented this year, so I’m really excited to see where it keeps building.”
2026 Conference USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships
UTEP athletes to watch
Cydni Martin, 100, 100 hurdles 100 hurdles sprint relay
Freshman Martin comes in ranked second in Conference USA in the 100 (11.42) and 200 (23.41), and third in the 100 hurdles (13.52).
Juan Leal, 1500
The sophomore from Franklin ranks sixth in the 1,500 meters (3:48.56).
Amil Williams, 110 hurdles
The junior ranks fifth in the 110 hurdles with a season’s best time of 14.11.
Elias Munoz, 100, 200
Munoz ranks seventh in the 200 (20.86) and ninth in the 100 (10.27).
Bret Bloomquist can be reached, bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso freshman emerging as leader for UTEP track
Reporting by Bret Bloomquist, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
