Clayton State University Athletics

A veteran of 10 seasons of competition at Clayton State, Hickom brings a tremendous amount of experience to Laker Athletics. He moved into the coaching ranks as a Graduate Assistant from 2017-2020.  Coach Hickom came back to Morrow in the Spring of 2023 as an Assistant Track and Field and Head Cross Country Coach, working with the distance team.  Coach Hickom also has a major hand in assisting with Gameday Operations and Facility Management for the department as well.  
 
COACHING HISTORY (2023-Present)
The 2024-25 track & field season saw a lot of success for coach Hickom and the Laker distance team.  Coach Hickom saw several athletes earn all-conference and conference championship honors including Ivorie Smith who earned the individual 400m hurdles title and Marley Tate and Smith being a part of the team who won the 4x400m relay.  Under his leadership, the men's team finished sixth while the women's team finished fourth in the Outdoor PBC Championship meet.  In the Indoor Championships, the women finished in third and the men finished in fifth.  Most every athlete that Hickom coached went for new PRs and improved throughout the entire season.  Coach Hickom mentored Sancho Smith and JaBresha Palmer who earned PBC Team of Academic Distinction honors and CSC Acadmeic All-District recognition.  

The 2024 cross country season saw a lot of success for coach Hickom and the Lakers.  Coach Hickom saw his men's team finish four in the PBC Championships which is the highest team finish since 2011.  The women's team finished in seventh.  Coach Hickom guided a veteran men's team that included Camron Gaddis and Rakiem Barnes.  Gaddis finished first on the team in all six races this season and placed in the top-25 in the Conference Championships making him the first Laker to finish in the top-25 since 2016.  Gaddis and Barnes were two of six entries in the 2024 NCAA SE Regional Meet while he brought a pair of women's competitors including newcomer Marley Tate and veteran Story Alexander.  On the women's side, Coach Hickom guided Story Alexander, newcomer Marley Tate, and Ivorie Smith who finished in the top three on the team in each of the six meets raced in.  The 2024 season saw a lot of improvement from the 2023 season and Coach Hickom is looking for similar results in future years to come.   

The 2023-24 Track & Field season was the first full season for Coach Hickom. Hickom's distance team was critical to the success of the Lakers as the women's team finished second in the Outdoor PBC Meet, which is the best team finish in team history.  Additionally, under the direction of Coach Troy, Tanaeya Johnson broke her own record in the 3000m Steeplechase twice this season with times of 12:03.47 at the Emory Spring Break Classic and 11:47.88 at the UWG Legends Invitational.  Coach Hickom also saw Sancho Smith re-break his record in the 600m run with a time of 1:22.23 at the KMS Invitational. This season also saw Camron Gaddis become the first Laker since 2017 to go sub-four minutes in the 1500m run as he clocked a time of 3:58.99 at the PBC Outdoor Championships.  All athletes under Coach Hickom's direction also set up PRs this season, which is very impressive.  Troy also mentored Sancho Smith, Camron Gaddis, Rakiem Barnes, Ivorie Smith, JaBresha Palmer and Nehemiah Horton who earned All-Conference honors in either the PBC Indoor or Outdoor Championships.  

The 2023 season was the first year of serving as the head coach for the men's and women's cross country teams.  Coach Hickom replaced retired coach Mike Mead, who started the program in 1995.  The 2023 season saw its ups for the Laker XC program.  The men's team, led by Camron Gaddis and Rakiem Barnes finished fifth in the Conference which is the best team finish since 2020 when they finished fifth as well.  Gaddis was the top finisher in the meet with a 40th place finish.  Coach Hickom guided the women's team to a sixth place finish which ties the finish in the 2022 season.  Hickom saw Jada Warren lead his time this season and saw her win the GMC Brickyard Invitational on September 9th.  In addition, the women's team, as a team, finished first in that meet, giving them their first team victory in a meet since 2018.  He brought in four new men's runners while he brought in a pair of women's runners.  Those newcomers made an immediate impact on the team.  Among those newcomers was Story Alexander and Nevin Swanson.  Both Alexander and Swanson were consistently running either second or third on the team in all five meets.   

COLLEGIATE CAREER: CLAYTON STATE (2013-17)
Hickom was a member of the men’s cross country and track & field programs since the fall of 2013 before graduating in May 2017. During those 10 combined seasons, he established himself not only as a strong competitor but also one of the more academically accomplished individuals in the program.
 
He was named a Peach Belt Conference All-Academic honoree a total of five times, three in cross country and two in outdoor track & field, during his career. A recognition that is not available until a student-athlete reaches sophomore standing, he accomplished that feat every season he was eligible. The PBC does not sponsor indoor track & field and Hickom did not compete in track & field as a senior.
 
In cross country, he produced a pair of top three finishes, including second at the SCAD Cross Country Invitational as a senior.  Hickom posted his PR in the  8k at the Royals XC Challenge with a time of 26:21.6. His other top three marks was a third place finish at the West Georgia Wolves Cross Country Invitational as a junior. That performance would help Clayton State to a first place outing.
 
During his indoor career Hickom ran in 10 meets and 19 events, producing a total of eight top five finishes. Among those were first place performances in the distance medley relay at the Tiger Indoor Invitational (11:07.89) as a junior and BSC Indoor Icebreaker (10:54.79) as a sophomore. He also notched a third place finish in the mile (4:35.97) at that first meet and a runner-up outing in the 4x800-meter relay (8:41.72) at the Sewanee Indoor Invitational in 2014-15.
 
Over the course of 15 meets and 25 events in outdoor track & field he notched a first place finish and three runner-up outings. He was part of the 4x800-meter relay (7:59.73) that won at the 5^th Annual Adonica Ferguson Relays as well as the sprint medley relay (3:46.10) that finished second in that same meet. Additionally, he posted a personal best of 16:19.51 in 5,000-meters at the Tiger Orange & Blue Classic as a junior. He also notched a 10,000-meter PR of 34:39.76 that same season at the Peach Belt Conference Championships. His other runner-up finish came as part of the 4x800 (8:01.81) at the Emory Classic as a freshman in 2014.

Coach Hickom is a NASM-certified Personal Trainer as of 2020 and has coached privately.