Pirate track coach picks valley athletes to crew his ship

Modesto Junior College track and field head coach Demitrius Snaer is pictured on the field during the Coast vs. Valley Invitational in Modesto, Calif., on Friday, March 27, 2026. (Isaiah Manzo/The Tower) 

By ELISE DELEO
The Tower

MODESTO – Behind every fast sprint and every record-breaking jump at Modesto Junior College stands Demitrius Snaer, a well-traveled head coach of the track and field team. 

Despite an impressive resume as athlete and coach, Snaer will forever be a central valley kid.  

Growing up in Louisiana, Snaer moved to Manteca when he was in eighth grade and enrolled at East Union High School. From East Union to a Fresno State Bulldog, Snaer progressed in his sport until he became a coach.  

Snaer is now in his 13th season as head coach of men’s track and field/cross country at MJC. Since his arrival, Snaer has led the Pirates to several Central Valley Conference and Big 8 championships. On Friday, he and his Pirates hosted the Coast vs. Valley Invitational, welcoming nine school to the complex on the east campus.

The Northern California coach of the year also attended 10 new school records and more than 30 improvements to MJC's all-time list. An All-American sprinter and Hall of Famer at Fresno State, National Champion at Delta College, Snaer has established himself as a reference in his sport. 

Snaer’s influence goes far beyond technique and conditioning. For his athletes, he is a mentor, a sounding board, and sometimes even a life coach.  

“He is one of the coaches that will teach you the right way ... of course he is your coach, but we look at him like a great guy, a mentor,” said MJC freshman Joey Habibi, a graduate of Manteca High School. 

In a sport that often measures success in milliseconds, Snaer reminds his team that character and resilience matter just as much as speed and strength. 

He celebrates personal victories as much as competitive ones, building confidence that lasts off track. 

Snaer is building bonds within his team that go beyond what one can expect from a group of athletes. He wants them to be more than a team. He wants them to be a family, connected by their competitive nature, ambitions, and time together on the track. 

“I feel like it’s more than just a team, it’s a family,” said Habibi. “He wants to win as a team, not individuals. He knows what he’s doing and he’s doing it good.” 

Snaer also explained that his connection with his athletes goes beyond merely teaching them his sport. 

“Watching students athletes coming here not knowing what their future is going to give them and then becoming a top tier athlete, this is my best moment as a coach. It is more than sport,” Snaer said. 

Creating pathways for Valley Kids is a priority for Snaer, who points to the story of Marques Barosso, an East Union graduate, as one of his coaching highlights. 

Barroso was a track athlete at MJC who followed Snaer into the coaching ranks. Barosso is the head track and field coach at Cal State Fullerton.  

“It is because of people like him that I am very motivated to look out for the valley kids,” Snaer said. “We pretty much build our program off valley athletes." 

At the end of the day, all that Snaer hopes for his athletes is to always try. 

“I have seen so many people come in here with expectations and reach past those because they came in and put the work in,” said Snaer.  

Snaer will remain forever in the history of the fate of the central valley as a coach who listens, as someone who is a mentor to young athletes from throughout the valley, and above all else ... 

“At incredible man," Habibi said.