"From Track to Football: Week 1" - Measuring How Track Translates to Football

Well it's been over a month since my last post. You know how life can be. But I've started up again and I hope to keep it that way.

The college football season has finally started! That means two emotions are taking over track and field enthusiasts. 1) Excitement that cross country season has started. 2) Resentment against football for distracting from cross country. Don't worry track heads...I haven't forgotten about cross country. Unfortunately though, this post isn't about cross country. What I'll be doing the rest of the fall sports season is keeping an eye on some of these dual sport athletes that play football and also run track in the spring and summer.

You might have seen the link on the site that leads to a PDF of the Best Outdoor Collegiate Football Players of 2015. To illustrate how valuable a tool track and field can be to a college football program, let't take a look at some of these athletes that are in the PAC-12 and see what they're up to:

ADOREE' JACKSON - So - USC

*Track & Field - 100 & 200 meters, Long Jump
*Football - Wide Receiver/Defensive Back

Adoree' Jackson is an up and coming star receiver/corner/returner for the University of Southern California. Last football season, Jackson started 10 games at cornerback while racking up 49 tackles. He also caught 10 passes for 138 yards and three touchdowns for the Trojans. This year, he is expected to step into the role of the next great USC receiver, following in the footsteps of Marquise Lee and Nelson Agholor.

He experienced a minor setback last week against Arkansas State when a strained abdominal muscle forced him to miss almost the entire second half of the game. However, Head Coach Steve Sarkisian has stated that he expects Jackson to be ready for Idaho this week.

Jackson made additional noise throughout the PAC-12 on the track this past outdoor season, placing 7th in the 100 meters. He is expected to be the odds on favorite to win the title of Fastest Man in the PAC-12 this coming outdoor season. He also placed 5th in the long jump at the NCAA Championships and is expected to contend for that top spot next season as well.

TONY BROOKS-JAMES - Fr (RS) - Oregon

*Track & Field - 100 & 200 meters
*Football - Running Back

Tony Brooks-James is making a strong case for himself to become one of the feature running backs of a high-powered Oregon offense. Last week against Eastern Washington, Brooks-James totaled 63 yards on just 6 carries and two touchdowns, one of which was an impressive 15 yard touchdown run. It was obvious that the speed that he's nurtured and developed on the track is serving him well on the football field.

Brooks-James clocked an impressive 10.50 100 meter time earlier this year at the Oregon Twilight meet and is expected to compete with USC's Adoree' Jackson for the PAC-12 100 meter title.

This week's game against Michigan State is the first top-10 match up of the season and it's expected that Brooks-James will play a vital role for the Ducks in the run game. He's been described as "almost unfairly quick and elusive," meaning that the Ducks can't afford to NOT have him on the field as much as possible. His speed alone is something that any defensive coordinator will have to account for, meaning that Oregon will be able to exploit match ups all across the field.

KHALFANI MUHAMMAD - Jr - California

*Track & Field - 100 & 200 meters
*Football - Running Back

Muhammad had perhaps the best performance of this group last week. The junior running back totaled 92 rushing yards on only 8 carries, including long runs of 22 and 42 yards in a blowout against Grambling State. For the past two years at Cal, Muhammad has been focussing more on track than football, but has decided to direct his attention more to the gridiron this year. He's credited his immediate success on the football field to the fact that he has developed himself on the track.

While competing in both the 100 and 200 meters, Muhammad also anchored the Bears' 4x100 meter relay team that won the Stanford Invitational. He still plans to run track while at Cal but perhaps just in the outdoor season.

It's obvious that just in the PAC-12 alone, track athletes are making a huge impact on the football field, and it's not a coincidence that they are offensive weapons. If you think about it, what has University of Utah football been missing for the last several years? Offensive fire power. Where do you get offensive fire power? From fast athletes. Where do you get fast athletes? The track. Once again, Utah seems to be severely limiting themselves by not having a men's track team.

That's it for now. I'm sure there are many more out there, so if you think there are more dual sport athletes out there that deserve a shoutout, just let me know.

Share on Google Plus

About Unknown

"I'm a graduate of the University of Utah and self proclaimed 'biggest track fan in the state of Utah.' Since Utah is an Olympic proud state, it seems odd that Utah doesn't fully support the marquee sport of the Olympics. Let's do something about it!"