Did Hobbs Kessler make a mistake to go pro?

yes.hes far too young.most teen phenoms dont go anywhere and theres no guarentee he'll even improve.every now and then teen phenoms improve and have spectacular results as seniors,but its rare.

Agree, School is not going anywhere.

krispy kremlin._._._. wrote:

Kessler needs a professional environment (tough for a kid to adjust to) that will develop him as an athlete understanding he's a teen. Case studies to avoid: Webb, Cain, Hunter (hope he gets back).

Not saying Webb's pro career was everything he hoped it would be, but 1:43, 3:30, 3:46 isn't exactly a failure and a case study to avoid.

American record, three time national champ, Olympian… tell me again how Webb is a case study to avoid? The guy had an amazing career.

Isn't you that were comparing him to Jim Ryun?

Remember also that Peter Snell retired after a season full of defeats.

[quote]BYURun4Her wrote:

Clearly talented for high school, but there’s a good gap between him and elite runners.

3:34.

One bad race

I do not know him, but I am surprised at all the responses that just see $$$. If he is academic at all (and hard to believe he is not at least somewhat having lived in AA and knowing that environment) then I think college is a serious consideration. But maybe he is not very interested in school.

Pros for school-training with a college team is one of the MOST enjoyable things runners do and even with the $, some still fondly remember their college days. Nothing like using college to transition to life. If there is ANY time in life I would love to re-live it was my college days.

I am also surprised that people think you need someone as fast as you to train. I guarantee there are plenty of runners at NAU who would push Mr. Kessler just fine

He was going to NAU prior to going pro. So your academic point is moot. He is still going to NAU and will have the same degree in 4 years but will have $1M in his account instead of $0. So nobody is onkyvseeing $. You are the one who is not considering all factors. The kid is smart and has smart parents and a smart coach and has real life pr runners as mentors. And thus is the decision that he made after considering recommendations from this people. How could you have more credibility than that group?

Also need to consider post-Tokyo.. the future of the 1500m will be players like Hocker, Nuguse, but Centro will be moving off the 1500m after 2024 after seeing the fate of Jenny Simpson.

The kid is the real deal. If he has half the career Alan Webb did it would be a grand success. This kid, however, is silky smooth with phenomenal speed. Just keep him healthy, focused and training and I see a sub-3:30 in his future with a sub-1:46 and a nice sub-7:40 shortly.

He’s already getting that group experience you get from being on a college team. Buts he’s training with Olympians. So why would he bother with college when the money is a no brainer and he’s already getting a great group experience.

It’ll probably take more than four years (Kessler’s said he’ll probably take spring off to race), but he’d likely stretch out his eligibility in the NCAA too. Either way, he gets a free degree if he wants one.

With that level of talent, the reasons to go through the NCAA system are more about structure and maturity than money or education. You could argue that Drew Hunter and Mary Cain would have benefited from the former, but there are plenty of promising NCAA phenoms who didn’t pan out and walked away with nothing. Kate Murphy comes to mind.

First, we will never really know. If he ends up winning championships and medaling many times then it was not the wrong choice. It looks like he is going to go to college (just as Allyson Felix did) so he can get an education. Considering he was not going to Stanford or Duke anyway that is really a non-starter. Of course he might have ended up with the exact same career had he gone to college.

If he does not succeed then there is no way to say he would have succeeded had he gone to college. Look at the number of distance runners who go to college with a great resume coming out of high school and do not progress very much. Isn't one of the knocks of running in college is the long season and college coaches not looking long-term (not that that applies to all coaches)?

The key is there are many ways to reach the top and we are not privy to the contract or his family situation (although I do not get the impression financial pressures play a role here). If adidas is paying for his college (not uncommon in such contracts it seems) and he is getting a paycheck then it seems like a reasonable move to make.

As I have written in other places, changes to NIL could mean kids like Kessler don't have to make such a choice in the future. Of course it might mean shoe companies have more influence over where a kid goes.

Breakfast In Bed wrote:

What was he going to study in school that would be as or more important to him as his current track career?

With what he's getting paid, he could probably go to college eventually if track ultimately doesn't work out and he wants to do something else.

What is he getting paid?

Does the contract call for adidas to pay for his education? (Some in the past reportedly have.)

It seems like Nick Willis is being a mentor to him. I'd say that is a pretty good set up.

Alexi Santana wrote:

BYURun4Her wrote:

Clearly talented for high school, but there’s a good gap between him and elite runners. Doubt he makes much as a “pro” and he could have gotten great training and exposure at a place like NAU or Oregon or a great education at an Ivy, Duke, or Stanford.

He probably gets paid ~$400K/year considering what Drew Hunter makes…don’t minimize that type of money

Out of curiosity, what are the terms of contracts like these? For instance, are there performance markers that he has to hit each year in order for the contract to continue? We hear $X for Y years but I doubt that is not really guaranteed.

Also what does he have to pay for? Does he write the check to Warhurst each month (and how much would that be)? Does he have to pay for massages, travel (obviously once he starts to gain traction meet promoters pick that up). Does the contract provide for health insurance?

I have been around many top runners (Olympians and medal winners), but never talked about this side of the sport.

He’s still a teenager, so he can stay on his parents health insurance for another eight years.

In the Drew Hunter model, the athlete would pay for the coach and other services. That’s the norm with most professionals outside of Nike’s marquee groups.

BYURun4Her wrote:

Clearly talented for high school, but there’s a good gap between him and elite runners. Doubt he makes much as a “pro” and he could have gotten great training and exposure at a place like NAU or Oregon or a great education at an Ivy, Duke, or Stanford.

Another Site Shill or moronic poster who knows zilch about running. He ran 3:34 numbnuts!!!!

Sounds like he’s getting way too much money for anyone to consider it a mistake. I think the bigger mistake is by adidas. If kessler doesnt compete for wins at a pro level it just looks bad for them. Them sponsoring Drew Hunter has turned me off from adidas big time. Can’t stand drew and everyone he associates with. Hopefully Kessler doesn’t turn out to be as big of a disappointment

I have been around many top runners (Olympians and medal winners), but never talked about this side of the sport.[/quote]

No you haven't. Nice stealth boast, you're just incredible!!!!