David Barney was hired as the first cross country coach at PVCC when the program was started in 1995.  He was also the first track & field coach at PVCC when that program began in 1999. He has helped develop the Pumas’ programs into some of the most successful programs in the country.

Since 1996, Puma men's and women's cross country teams have combined to win an impressive nine NJCAA national championships (five women/four men), been runners up six times, were 3rd four times and 4th six times. Four PVCC runners have captured individual national championships and 60 have earned NJCAA All-American honors. The Puma Cross Country teams have claimed a combined 20 NJCAA Region I Championships.

Since its inception in 1999, the PVCC Track & Field program, has also had a great deal of success. The Pumas have 29 times been in the top 10 at the NJCAA national meet. Numerous PVCC student-athletes have excelled individually, capturing 48 individual NJCAA national championships and 139 NJCAA All-American awards.

Barney grew up in Arizona and has strong ties to its running community. He was a state cross country and track & field champion, as well as junior college national champion. Following his days as an NCAA All-American athlete at the University of Arkansas, he returned to Arizona. He competed in the U.S. Olympic Trials four times and twice represented the USA in the world championships as a member of the U.S. National Team.

Barney has been named NJCAA Cross Country National Coach of the Year seven times and was named NJCAA Indoor Track and Field National Coach of the Year in 2002. In 2012, Barney was honored as an inductee into the Arizona Runners Hall of Fame (along with Olympians Jesse Owens, Herman Frazier and Lynn Nelson). Currently, he lives in Scottsdale with his wife Tracy. They have six children, Michael, Meghan, Matthew, Jonathan, Elizabeth, and Rachel.