Could I walk on to a D1 XC/Track team

walk on wrote:

Hey, so Im currently a freshman in college and really want to run on a XC/Track D1 college team. I'm about to finish my first semester and want to know what my chances are to try to walk on as a sophomore. Is that weird or uncommon? My times in high school were 16:54 5k, 9:59 3200, 4:37 1600, and 2:00 800. I know my odds are against my but assuming I could get faster would I have a shot on walking on to a respected D1 team? I didn't train at all over the summer due to a broken arm and did not expect to start running again. I have been running and lifting weights intensely and am in relatively good shape but without being in high school I won't have any races to prove that I am improving. Do I have enough time to catch up on my own?

I don't know where you go to school, but lots of DI programs will accept anyone who's serious about training to train w the team. You won't be in any races but you'll get to train and be part of the team and if you get better then you'll be able to run for the team. I will say that with a 2:00 800 there is hope for you in terms of better times. That is unless of course, 800m is your best distance. If you ran all of those times off of 40-50 miles a week, I think that it's reasonable to think that you can run 15:30-15:00 in a couple of years with a lot of hard work. Just run as much as you can without getting hurt and try and get in some local races or just run unattached at meets. Really if you just keep base building and doing tempos and strides you should get considerably better if you're able to increase your mileage. Good luck and don't give up or get discouraged. Crazier things have happened.

It really depends on your college. Not every program is the same. A large, major school probably won't. A midmajor D1 program might give you a solid chance.

Nope.

Not sure if it increases my chances but I didn't get adequate coaching until my senior year and was injured for 2 weeks in the middle of track so I think I can run faster.

Nope. Coaches don't care.

But... I was in your scenario too. I didn't have good coaching until senior year of high school. I was very lucky to walk on to a low tier d1 school with a 2:04 and 4:50.

My friend, you're gonna need some "freak luck".

Those times are so soft. You wouldn't even make a D3 roster.

Talk to Michael VanVoorhis from Wisconsin. Not many tougher places to make the team and his high school marks were better than yours but not by much. He worked hard his freshman year running on the club team and then real hard on his own over the summer while maintaining very good standing in chemical engineering.

OH HEY MR. VANVOORHIS HOW ARE YOU TODAY?

I did and I never broke 10:12 or 4:43 in HS. Granted, I probably would have been better off running d3, but I got good through getting my ass kicked for three years. Overall it was a very humbling experience and you really cant have the mindset you're going to be some star or something. Basically you will be along for the ride. Terrified of being cut each season, and struggling for the coaches attention. It's not for everyone, but it will give you good perspective.

You totally could. I walked on to my D1 track team (actually, I even went to preseason my freshman year since they had abysmal recruiting and needed runners at the last minute) with laughable high school PR's of 17:02 5k, 4:35 mile, 2:05 800 (though I never ran an 800 fresh, always as a double) and a 10:03 2 mile. The team was pretty weak when I joined. My highest team finish on a full roster XC team was second, and I placed fourth on the team at conference my junior year, so I scored frequently. I faded out of the top 7 by my senior year as our team got more scholarships and brought in faster dudes. Also, my coach withheld me from pre-season my sophomore year and made me try out with the walk-ons again. I just had to break 9:20 in a 3k, which I did.

Someone above said they probably would have done better at a D3 school. I probably would have done better at a D3 school too, but there are definitely D1 schools you could run for. See if the coach holds tryouts.

These had to have been some of the worst D1 teams ever.

This is such a dumb thread. He is way too slow to run D1

Did you break both your arms?

And update?