The dude Drew Hunter kicked down in the Penn Relays DMR now has a faster mile PR

hobbyjogger18 wrote:

But we can only imagine what he would have become if he got more experience and growth on the collegiate level.

What makes you guys think he would have made it through 4 years of university academically? Has he ever shown any sign that he could handle that kind of workload on top of being an elite runner?

Gonna be honest this was a little bit of a clickbait but I did think it was interesting. It’s fair to say Drew’s still a better runner than Jack Salisbury but also cool to see Jack progressing. I went to high school in the northeast at the same time as Jack so I considered him a stud when I was in school. Will be interesting to see if he can be a factor at the NCAA level with the depth in the 1500m right now

It's gotta be the Shoes

The world as we know it will be a LOT different after the Trials.

This past year has been fun, with an awful of of folks still hanging around, far beyond their due date.

aardvarkman0402 wrote:

LOLOLOL wrote:

He's a junior

He graduated high school in 2016. Not sure when his eligibility clock started.

Jack didn't run in 2020, so he's a fifth year senior now.

Adidas is paying for his college credits and he has a 10 year contract. He made the right decision to take that deal. He made the wrong decision in coach and “team” formation. He should of moved to Flaggstaff and had Adidas find a pro level coach and develop a pro level training group around him. Also he could of used the NAU facilities, which are Adidas sponsored. Actually he should do that rate now. Dump this Tinman Elite nonsense and get Mike Smith to coach him in Flaggstaff. Highschool life is over it’s time to see this talent compete at the world level.

"Highschool life is over it’s time to see this talent compete at the world level."

With Cole Hocker, Hobbs Kessler, Harrison Rheinhardt and others coming up, time has passed by whatever talent Hunter might have had.

Justice wrote:

Hunter was (is) the most ungainly elite runner I have ever been forced to watch. After he fails to make the Oly. team hopefully he will hang it up.

Kind of thinking about Nick Symmonds saying this place was a toxic environment. I don't agree with that but this is one harsh comment.

Running 13:17 in 2019 before the supershoes took off and qualifying for the world championships team is a pretty above average result for foot locker champions and 18 year old sub-4 milers.

3:35 is far better than what the Georgetown guy ran

Ok7272 wrote:

Running 13:17 in 2019 before the supershoes took off and qualifying for the world championships team is a pretty above average result for foot locker champions and 18 year old sub-4 milers.

3:35 is far better than what the Georgetown guy ran

Hunter ran 13:21 in 2019 and 13:17 at the end of 2020. Not sure which shoes he was wearing, but that Luis Grijalva NAU dude blew his doors off over the last 200m.

Fun fact: Drew’s Wikipedia page mentions Grant Fisher in the narrative portion. LOL

hobbyjogger18 wrote:

Are they a grinder program? Someone similar is Blaise Ferro, has stayed healthy just about all year and is racing the best he ever has. Just about the only notable person to make noise on the collegiate level in a high school program that Christian Brothers Academy has. Lot of those guys burn out by the time they make it to college.

A lot of guys burn out in college period from whatever program - you just hear about CBA kids a lot in HS because the team is so good, so you might notice when they do. CBA has very good kids but not a lot of really top level (i.e. top 5 FL or NTN) folks that you might expect to see scoring at the NCAA level. They have had a bunch go on to be AA in college and produce some good times. Just when you step up a level there are a lot of great runners. Statistically are CBA runners more prone to burn out in college than any other top level HS, I probably not. Are they more likely to run faster in HS and fast enough to get noticed - most definitely.

Also Ferro has been pretty good at NAU for a few years l - beyond what you might expect based on his HS times (he was good but not but not nearly as good as he has been for NAU). But his sub 28 was exceptional - if anything this proves a kid who was beginning to look a little crispy his SR in HS can go on to do great things in college given health and a great program.

va coach wrote:

hobbyjogger18 wrote:

Impressive. What is he a fifth year? Georgetown always gets the fifth years it seems and has them finish on a high note.

Makes you wonder if Hunter should have gone to college. The answer is yes.

The answer is most definitely and most obviously yes.

It's amazing how pages and pages of Drew Hunter and/or Tinman threads miss this point.

The guy had a four year full ride to the premier mid-distance and distance program in the country. Actually the premier collegiate distance program in history.

Completely ridiculous decision to pass it up.

Yes and No.

$100,000 x 10 years is an amazing deal for a distance runner, and that doesn't include bonuses, plus his college education is paid for when he's ready. That being said, I'm sure there are some contingencies in the contract that if not met will alter the terms. He must run a certain number of races, as approved by Adidas, he must qualify for a certain number of national teams, and he must be nationally ranked in whatever event(s) he chooses. The problem is that Drew is now in-between coaches and subsequently in-between training partners. He desperately needs a consistent coach and group to work with. Can he make the move to Mike Smith? This seems to be the most logical choice both athletically and contract-wise (Adidas). Drew clearly has talent and is very young, if he gets the proper coaching and group he will improve on what he's already achieved. He needs to hand the reigns over to a coach that will push him and train with a group that kicks his A$$ day in and day out. That's the only way he'll get better.

My guess is Mike Smith and the boys at NAU.

Good Luck!

Heartless wrote:

Ok7272 wrote:

Running 13:17 in 2019 before the supershoes took off and qualifying for the world championships team is a pretty above average result for foot locker champions and 18 year old sub-4 milers.

3:35 is far better than what the Georgetown guy ran

Hunter ran 13:21 in 2019 and 13:17 at the end of 2020. Not sure which shoes he was wearing, but that Luis Grijalva NAU dude blew his doors off over the last 200m.

Fun fact: Drew’s Wikipedia page mentions Grant Fisher in the narrative portion. LOL

I mean that's just one race where he lost to Luis Grijalva. Centro lost to Craig Engels at the last world championship trials, Engels just lost to someone in the road mile, it doesn't mean he's not elite.

So after all these years, Salisbury finally recovered from letting Drew into his house and eat his dinner?

Seriously though, that was an epic race. It was definitely one of the major chapters in the Legend of Drew Hunter.

Drew should of got a better coach.

The CBA throwers are actually highly underrated. Andrew Liskowitz from CBA is a Umich record holder in the shot and won the Big 10's twice. He was ranked #1 in the NCAA last year.

Ok7272 wrote:

3:35 is far better than what the Georgetown guy ran

Drew Hunter's 3:35.9 1500 converts to a 3:53.17 mile using the MileSplit converter.

Salisbury's best 1500 is 3:40.48, which converts to a 3:58.12 mile. His recent 3:56.22 mile converts to a 3:38.72 1500.

LappedMiler wrote:

Ok7272 wrote:

3:35 is far better than what the Georgetown guy ran

Drew Hunter's 3:35.9 1500 converts to a 3:53.17 mile using the MileSplit converter.

Salisbury's best 1500 is 3:40.48, which converts to a 3:58.12 mile. His recent 3:56.22 mile converts to a 3:38.72 1500.

The fact that this is even being argued tells you that one of these fellas has been a pretty big disappointment.

Salisbury ran stupid in the Penn relay.

As a 4:08 guy the best he could hope to do is run 62s and start with an 8 second lead.

His team gave him the 8 second lead, but he opened with :57 and blew up later in the race.

With better pacing he holds off Drew Hunter.