Drew Hunter gets profiled in Washington Post: “When I watch NCAAs, I get a gut-wrenching feeling..."

Clearly Hunter doesn't think he's too good for college and thought he would benefit. Adidas must have given him a great offer. It's good to see that he's progressing well, and I wish him the best.

Anyone who knows Drew knows he NEVER thought he was too good for college. He knew he would benefit from learning to race against others at his level in the NCAA, and he knew it would be a hard leap to learn those lessons against guys faster, older, and more experienced. But he seems to be doing pretty well with it!

Drew has the best head on his shoulders I've seen in a talent this young. His progression isn't just luck. He will succeed in whatever situation he finds.

A ten year deal at the values Hunter got is almost impossible to pass up.

However, if I have a kid that is as good as say Mary Cain, I'd try to get the best of both worlds. Have them go pro but also convince a Stanford to let them in so they can go to practice every day with the team. Yes, the racing is different but they would have a schedule, have other young people for whom running is important to hang out with, etc.

Now some coaches may not be for it as it could mess up the team dynamics but an outside the box thinker might go for it. At the end of the day, I think a school like Stanford wants to put an Olympian in an alumni magazine more than they care about winning a Pac 12 title. Now this doesn't actually really apply to a Mary Cain as she showed in HS being on a team wasn't a priority for her.

This is exactly what I have said about all those who have gone pro in an individual sport like track in or straight out of high school or even after just a year. In basketball or football, at least you have the team aspect and lots of attention most of the year. In track, you miss the xc, which is great off-season training for track runners, and you miss the cameraderie, the school spirit, possibly the education, and the championships. The money may be hard to make up later, but for an American distance runner it is very rare to be competitive on the world stage (which he is not yet--this was a 3:36 race with Souleiman and Willis not close to their best shape) in hs or college.

On scale, Drew Hunter's high school mile PR is only slightly better than a 10.3 100m sprinter. Very impressive, but better suited for the NCAA as opposed to the pro circuit. Drew would have been a good fit for NCAA cross and t&f for at least a year or two. After watching about a half dozen high school athletes turn pro early, Felix is the only one I can say truly benefited and with out a doubt made the right decision. Ajee Wilson is another athlete who has done well, but I think she could have had the same success had she entered the NCAA. There are some athletes who turned pro early like Kaylin Whitney, Alana Hadley, Candance Hill, Alexa Efraimson and Mary Cain who have either almost disappeared and/or can't match their teenage performances. Obviously these athletes are still young and time will tell, but these athletes would have been wonderful additions to an NCAA team and would have benefited from the NCAA level of competition and lifestyle.

Obviously, I am not a fan of turning pro early and I certainly don't think it should be considered because you win some high school cross country championships and run a sub-4 mile.

The issue is that Hunter's goal was always going to be something like the contract he got: 10 years, well-paid, college education included. If, in some alternate universe, he had gone to Oregon, somehow won NCAA XC (he wouldn't have, he'd probably have gotten around 5th-10th), won the indoor mile (he wouldn't have, Josh Kerr and Cheserek were better), and won the outdoor 1500 (he wouldn't have, Josh Kerr and Craig Engels were better), while running really fast times, and then tried to go pro, his stock would actually have fallen from when he was a high school senior. There was no realistic or possible scenario in which he would have gotten a better deal had he first spent some time in the NCAA. And for all of the fun of the NCAA, the end goal for all these athletes is the same: a juicy pro contract.

Hunter has a very good head on his shoulders and is doing well. In any event, he'll be less lonely in a year or two once Sean McGorty, Grant Fisher, and some of his other peers go pro.

I don't see why any coach or athletic director worth a hoot would let an athlete who never has and never will compete for the university team use TEAM resources. Budgets are limited, and all that.

Without knowing how much adidas is throwing at him, it's more than a safe bet that Drew made a reasonable gamble to take the money while it was there, because (worst case, of course) bad things can happen quickly to derail or destroy the career of a star who has been annointed as "the next great thing". The door to economic success can be slammed in a sick or injured or not-successful-enough athlete's face just like that.

I mean, adidas signed him despite Lyme Disease, but no matter what happens tomorrow, that door cannot be slammed in Drew's face now. We are assuming that he will be wise with his finances; some who come into such money aren't. We hope he will continue to improve as a runner.

Look at Drew's Youtube video of Loudoun Valley HS's .01 sec DMR win at the 2016 Penn Relays, and you'll recognize instantly that here's a guy who loves being part of a team. He would have loved being at Oregon. His professional money, he knew, would cost him dearly in non-$ ways -- losing his peers and teammates, and all the riches those interactions would bring (like competing at the NCAAs).

He seems to have done damn well so far, even though he admits that it hasn't been easy. Hopefully he'll be able to join a training group, which won't quite be the same as being on a team of kindred spirits at Oregon, but it will ideally provide essential support and brotherhood. Brotherhood -- it's a cliche-ish word, but I bet it's a powerful, and real, phenomenon.

Good luck, Drew!

zxcvzxcvzx wrote:

This is exactly what I have said about all those who have gone pro in an individual sport like track in or straight out of high school .

Says the completely anonymous troll named "zxcvzxcvzx"

Drew got an amazing opportunity and gets to keep the same guidance that lead to his success in high school and the present. He and his family made the right decision for long term development. His parents and Tom Schwartz are very intelligent people. It is crazy that Slagowski is from the same area as Schwartz and didn't go with him after Penn State was such a disaster.

Too bad he can't run in the NCAA and be a professional at the same time.

stage 13 ug wrote:

Too bad he can't run in the NCAA and be a professional at the same time.

Great point. I think?

Seems to me that most of the "horse" type athletes at UO don't really pan out post college. The under utilized guys (I would put Centro in this category) can keep progressing but if you're Mac Fleet, Ches, Wheating, Acosta, etc and you totally buy into the team atmosphere and peak three times per year, often doubling or tripling at several championships per track season, your future is limited.

I am probably wrong, but I think it's an adrenaline thing. Hard to get up when you're no longer in that situation. See also: Arkansas athletes in the McDonnell era.

Drew seems like the type that would be Acosta'ing the team to victory. The combination of taking the money and not being over-used makes going pro the much better decision.

TrackCoach wrote:

There are some athletes who turned pro early like Kaylin Whitney, Alana Hadley, Candance Hill, Alexa Efraimson and Mary Cain who have either almost disappeared and/or can't match their teenage performances. Obviously these athletes are still young and time will tell, but these athletes would have been wonderful additions to an NCAA team and would have benefited from the NCAA level of competition and lifestyle.

How often do young female distance phenoms actually get better through their college and early pro years? I'd rather bet on the young male phenom because he's more likely to continue something of a linear progression through his late teens and early 20's. Whereas the elite professional women tend to emerge a few years later than their male counterparts.

zxcvzxcvzx wrote:

....but for an American distance runner it is very rare to be competitive on the world stage (which he is not yet--this was a 3:36 race with Souleiman and Willis not close to their best shape) in hs or college.

A few solid scalps for a teenager

I do. While I think your point has merit, the chance to train alongside a Hunter-like athlete could boost a university's acceptance rate, and a Hunter-like athlete could transmit valuable insights to these other athletes such as the insights we sometimes glean here from, say, Nick Willis or Jim Spivey.

TrackCoach wrote:

On scale, Drew Hunter's high school mile PR is only slightly better than a 10.3 100m sprinter. Very impressive, but better suited for the NCAA as opposed to the pro circuit. Drew would have been a good fit for NCAA cross and t&f for at least a year or two. .

I agree with you but the money may not have been there. I talked to several people who were blown away he got so much money. There like, "I know he's good but he's dedicated and has a great coach already. Some guy who is barely training like maybe Ratcliffe could potentially be more talented."

He's being smart about things and progressing nicely. Let's hope it continues.

I wonder why he's going to Boulder and not flagstaff. In Flagg, he could drive down to sea level every now and then and do a speed session.

Rojo,

Do you know how much Hunter is making? I have not see the amount if you can share.

joho wrote:

Rojo,

Do you know how much Hunter is making? I have not see the amount if you can share.

Rumor is 400k/year, 10 years, first 5 guaranteed no reductions, plus some extra toward college tuition, coaching, and travel expenses.