The competition from freshman cross country and track runner Jack Wilkes’ teammates is pushing him to new levels he didn’t reach in highschool, and he is flourishing because of it.
Wilkes attended Airline High School in Bossier City, Louisiana, where most elite athletes played football or basketball, leaving the track program behind. Wilkes didn’t face top-level competition every day, and he started doubting his love for the sport.
In fact, Wilkes — the top-ranked 800-meter prospect in the state — decided to forgo the opportunity to run in college despite offers from Mississippi State and Ole Miss.
“To be completely honest, I was pretty convinced on not running [in college],” Wilkes said. “I didn’t let myself be recruited. I didn’t call coaches back because I didn’t think I loved it. I enjoyed playing other sports too much.”
But then Wilkes was approached by LSU cross country coach Khadevis Robinson at the Texas Relays, where he set his personal record in the 1,600-meter race. Wilkes went on to win the Louisiana state title in the 800-meter race.
“I talked to [Robinson], and we planned a visit,” Wilkes said, “In my mind, I thought it was just a thing I could do to say I got recruited by LSU.”
Wilkes rethought his decision to give up running after learning of Robinson’s Olympic pedigree and his fast track in collegiate coaching.
On his official visit, Wilkes immediately fell in love with LSU and decided to become a Tiger when he saw the friendly competition at practice.
“[Sophomore] Blair Henderson was out there running really fast and my competitive juices started going,” Wilkes said. “I started thinking about how much faster I could run if I got to chase him every single day, and that’s when I made the decision to go through with this.”
This competition from his teammates, most notably Henderson, has brought Wilkes to love the sport again, and he is off to a hot start in his freshman season.
“The transition to now having a team of the best runners in the state — all these guys that are better than me, and not being the best on the team has been an amazing thing,” Wilkes said. “I love the fact that I have to compete every day. Every day in practice feels like a race.”
Training with the more experienced runners and working in Robinson’s system helped Wilkes obtain a sixth-place finish at the LSU Invitational, completing the 5K race in 15 minutes and 57.78 seconds.
Although Wilkes is shining in his inaugural cross country season, he expects to run better in the 800-meter race and is the mile runner in the distance medley relay during track season.
“Without a doubt, I am getting better, not only physically but mentally,” Wilkes said. “Being able to run what I am running really excites me about what I can do in the spring.”