Carei reflects on his Fayette run

When Joe Carei took over the Penn State Fayette cross country and track & field teams in 2015, he quickly established the men's teams and worked to do the same for the women's teams by using a family mentality.

And now, after seven successful seasons, family is the reason Carei has stepped away from his head coaching duties.

"We just had our sixth baby," Carei said of him and his wife. "I will be pretty involved as a father.  With my job as a chef and with coaching, it was a tough decision and I was trying to get all my ducks in a row, but it would have been way too much to have continued coaching."

Carei was hired by former Director of Athletics Lou Zadecky.

"When I took the job, I told Lou he would have me until my kids are in junior high," he said. "Our oldest is 30, the third just graduated from college and the fourth and fifth are in junior high.  I had to sacrifice (as coach).  I will be supporting them, going to the school functions and what not."

Things could not have worked out better for Carei at Fayette.

"Penn State was a perfect fit for us," he said "It is lower key than an NCAA program, so there was some flexibility.  Education comes first so I didn't have to be like 'be at practice.'  We used a laid-back approach, but we were still serious.  Being at Fayette allowed our lifestyle to work."

Taking the family approach a step further, Carei explained what led to him taking the job.

"My sister (Sally Carei-Martinez) was a college coach at FIU (Florida International University) and Rider," Carei said. "She passed in 2013, and when Fayette opened, I applied.  My initial idea was to kind of extend her coaching career through me, and it was perfect timing."

To say Carei is the most important person in the history of Penn State Fayette's cross-country and track and field teams is an understatement.

"Everything fell into place," Carei said.  When I got here, there was no track and field program.  Being part of the coaching scene in the county, I spent a lot of time at the school.  Cross-country had no athletes, not a single one.  I was just going up there every day, combing the halls and the cafeteria.  I would get the wrestling team in shape for their season by having them run.  We finished last in the conference, but it was fun and a relaxed perspective.  I told Lou we would have a track and field team and to let me steam roll it.  The next year, we had a track team.  We had six people that year, and at our peak, we had 31.  During the Covid year, we would have had 36 had there been a season."

Carei led the cross-country team to the 2019 United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) national championship and was a two-time USCAA cross country national coach of the year, but it was what the teams did in the classroom that he is most proud of.

"The championship and the coaching awards, they are the least of what I feel was accomplished," he said. "We are academics first and having over two dozen academic All-Americans is at the top of the list of accomplishments.  Having athletes who could handle both was pretty impressive."

What else is Carei proud of?

"Fielding a women's team is up there as well," he said.  "It is very competitive for women's athletics, more so than men.  Last year was insane.  We won every invitational and were runner-up in nationals.  I told both Lou and Steve (Oberly, the current Fayette Director of Athletics) that if we don't win the conference with a women's team, we didn't accomplish anything (if just winning the men's title).  Well, mission accomplished and Lou owes me two t-shirts as part of a friendly bet we made."

Zadecky, who is now the Director of Athletics at Carlow, spoke about Carei.

"Coach Joe's passion for his student-athletes to succeed in school, athletics and life is unmatched," he said. "He put Penn State Fayette cross country on the map, but he always stood in the back and allowed his athletes to shine and be in the spotlight.  Joe was always in it for the athletes and the campus, always advocating for what was best both and built a powerhouse on that model.  He is one of the most knowledgeable, caring and respected coaches I have ever worked with.  I wish him only the best and I am glad to call him my friend."

When Zadecky stepped down at Fayette in August 2021, Oberly was promoted to Director of Athletics.  He had worked closely for years with Carei, and the relationship only grew during the 2021-22 school year.

"Coach Carei stepping away from his long-term role as head cross country and track coach was sad news," Oberly said. "But we're reminded of his legacy and dedication in revitalizing the cross country program from a near-shutdown to annual championships and student-athlete awards.  He was pivotal in building a track and field program that would eventually win the school's first national championship.  We congratulate him on all his success over the years, and specifically for his mentorship of student-athlete graduates.  I wish him and his family nothing but the best in this next chapter."

What will Carei miss the most?

"I will miss the athletes and watching them grow," he said. "You spend two to four years with them, and a lot of changes happen.  You are involved in a lot of things.  Deaths, relationship problems, mental health issues, they work 30 to 40 hours on top of class and are high-functioning athletes, you see them come out and be successful in their careers.  It is great to see.  You keep in touch with them, and they accomplished so much, just in seven years.  We did so much.  That is what I will miss.  To watch the growth of these athletes at the university.  The winning is secondary."

The Fayette men's cross-country team won their first Pennsylvania State University Athletic Conference in 2016 and never played second fiddle.

"We won the first, never lost again," he said "The women would get so close, and we finally got it this past year.  We put five (runners) across before anyone else got their second runner across."

The track and field team was a whole other story, being built from the ground up.

"It was great just to build it," he said. "We did it basically, the national championship in 2019, with all local kids.  Just to go from six to 30, go up and win a NC in the snow, that is crazy.  We were thrower happy despite being cross country guys.  There is a lot of talent in the area that doesn't get recruited."

Carei said the program is in good hands with new coach Steve Bush.

"I look forward to continuing to help Steve with whatever he needs, still doing what I can to help, will help Steve, Sam (Swetz) and (new coach) Shane Bush with the new transition.  I want to help keep the winning tradition going and get athletes to come here to get a great education."

Most importantly, Carei hopes to see the high academic tradition continue, as well as the family atmosphere.

It was family that brought Carei to the cross country and track and field positions at Fayette, and it was a family approach that helped Carei establish and strengthen the programs.  And while his blood family, his sister and his newborn baby, bookends his run at Fayette, it is his blue and white family that have cemented his legacy in the athletic department.

And there is no doubt that Carei's sister has looked down the entire time smiling, proud of her brother, seeing him carrying on where she left off both with her family and her program, much like he has now done himself.

For more information on the Penn State Fayette cross country team, go to https://psfathletics.com/sports/xc/index.  for more information on the Penn State Fayette track and field team, go to https://psfathletics.com/sports/track/index.

Written by Bill Hughes