By T. Scott Boatright
Sometimes — maybe at the best times — life simply just happens.
And that’s how it happened as Choudrant High School principal Chris Jones was thinking about his search for a new cross country coach for Aggie distance runners..
And then it happened — Jones was driving down the road and passed Joseph Wohlers getting in a running session.
As he passed Wohlers running, Jones realized that he had just seen the coach he’s been searching for and soon asked Joseph Wohlers to become Choudrant’s cross country coach.
Wohlers, a former distance specialist for the Mississippi State track and field team, said it was an offer he couldn’t refuse.
Wohlers replaces former Choudrant cross country coach Mason Hixson, who has decided to step away from his coaching role due to family obligations.
“We’ve been knowing this was coming for a little while now and I was just trying to find the right person,” Jones said, “I was driving down the road the other day and I saw Joseph come running by and I realized, there he is. He lives across the street from the school. It was just fortuitous that he was running down the street and I saw him.
“So, we reached out to him and he’s all on board and is excited. He wants to make a difference in these kids’ lives. He said the most influential person for him growing up was his high school cross country coach and he is ready to step into that role here.”
Wohlers admits that he didn’t expect a vehicle passing him while running on a road would end up presenting a coaching opportunity.
“I had never considered coaching,” Wohlers said. “I was really surprised. I’ve known Chris a little bit here and there, but for him to ask me to coach was really surprising. But it’s a great honor that he asked me.”
“Coach Hixon has done a great job the past five or six years at Choudrant and when he told me he was not going to be able to coach anymore I knew I was going to have a hard time finding the right person. We did not get in a rush to fill the position because we wanted to find the right person to invest in our students. I knew Joseph and his family. His wife went to Choudrant and ran cross country for us. I was driving through the village and I saw him running down the road and thought that is exactly who I am going to get to coach our cross country team.
“Joseph is a great guy with a ton of experience as an athlete,” Jones said. “He ran in an SEC program and he is young and eager to compete. After talking with him and the other coaches we all feel like he is going to be a great addition to the Choudrant athletics program. He has the knowledge to get our kids prepared to compete at the state level.”
As a high school athlete, Wohlers attended American Christian Academy where he helped his team win seven state championships from 2016-2018.
He was a six-time All-State honoree and a member of the 4x400m relay team that set a state record.
Wohlers credits the coach of that high school team for inspiring him to accept Jones’ offer to take over the Choudrant cross country program.
“His name is Charles Tiller,” Wohlers said. “He owned some small businesses on the side as well. He was basically a role model for everyone on the team. He showed us that with hard work and dedication you can really go far in life.
“He was always there for us when we had tough life questions — someone we could always call on. He set a great example on the track, on the course or off the course.”
Wohlers is married to Choudrant High School graduate Alayna Batterton Wohlers, a former CHS cross country runner herself who later attended Louisiana Tech.
“We met at a wedding,” Wohlers said. “I was part of the groom’s party and she was part of the bridal party. And the rest is history.”
Wohlers has a private business doing especially content renovations where his company works to restore homes that have been damaged by fire or that have suffered water damage.
“We go in and take out the electronics, documents, textiles and artwork and we restore them,” Wohlers said.
Being an experienced distance runner himself, Wohlers feels he knows what his athletes at Choudrant will be feeling and how to get the best out of them.
“I think that what makes it so addictive for me and other runners is that ‘runner’s high’ and that competitive side of it, where you’re always pushing yourself past what you came in thinking what you could have done. That part where you get done with the race and you look back at your time and you realize that you just set a personal record — there’s no better feeling in the world than that.”
Wohlers also accepted the Choudrant coaching job as a way to tribute Tillman.
“I hope to be at least half the coach he was for me, honestly,” Wohlers said. “I hope to be that kind of role model for my runners — someone that if they want to take it to the next level they can come to me and ask me what I think about this program. If I know the coach or what the culture of that program is.
“That’s one of the biggest things — I want to be a role model for them. I think that if you can give something back to the kids, at the end of the day you can affect the future. And if I can affect the future in any positive way or manner, I think that’s a huge plus.”
Jones feels Wohlers is the right person to guide Choudrant’s cross country into a bright future.
“Joseph is a great guy with a ton of experience as an athlete,” Jones said. “He ran in an SEC program and he is young and eager to compete. After talking with him and the other coaches we all feel like he is going to be a great addition to the Choudrant athletics program. He has the knowledge to get our kids prepared to compete at the state level.”
And Wohlers feels Jones passing him on that road he was running on is a matter of simply being in the right place at the right time for both.
“It’s extremely exciting,” Wohlers said. “My wife and in-laws speak very highly of the school and the district. To get the opportunity to be part of what in my opinion is a very prestigious school, with a lot of potential — it’s very exciting for me to sign on with them. My wife was actually a part of the (Choudrant) cross country team at one point, and she loved it. So I’m excited.”
