By James Massara
NORTH ROBINSON – For Colonel Crawford senior Chad Johnson, running long distances never has been a problem, and after a recent commitment to continue his running career at the collegiate level, it appears travelling longer distances does not bother him either.
Johnson recently committed to continue his cross country and track career at the Division 1 level at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, 639 miles away from North Robinson. Being that his other top candidates were Eastern Kentucky University and the University of Tulsa, travelling wasn’t a factor in the decision.
“What really drew me to Iowa State was they have a five-year-old coaching staff who really are a plus and know what they’re doing,” Johnson said. “Coach Martin Smith knows how to turn out some national caliber athletes on the national scale.”
The Cyclones won the 2017 Men’s Cross Country Big 12 Championships and Midwest Regional Championships and flexed its program strength when the women completed the sweep of both races. The men topped the University of Texas by one point to claim the conference title.
Even though the four-time state qualifier and two-time state champion just committed to a top-tier program, Johnson said he doesn’t feel much pressure coming in.
“I don’t really feel any pressure,” Johnson said. “I just can’t wait to get there and start receiving collegiate training. I got some great coaching in high school, but there are just things like facilities that obviously a D1 college has that high schools don’t.”
Johnson added he isn’t opposed to red shirting his freshman year, but he won’t know if that will be the case until he’s on campus and begins to work out with the team.
“Coach will decide that once I get there,” Johnson said. “If I’m not going to compete until nationals, then I’m eligible for a red shirt and then can compete in the youth world championships.”
If Johnson would red shirt for cross country, he said he could still compete in track as a freshman as the two sports eligibility statuses are not combined.
Johnson said now that he’s realized his dream of committing to run at the national collegiate level, he can now enjoy that the recruiting process is over.
“Having gone to a small school, I knew I really had to work to stand out,” Johnson said. “I had to give so much time to it and I’m grateful to everyone who supported me.”
Johnson’s next step is to decide what he will study at Iowa State, but is confident he will have that figured out by the time he gets to campus.
For now, Johnson continues his training as he prepares for the Foot Locker Cross Country Midwest Regional in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Nov. 25. A top-10 finish would qualify him for the national finals in San Diego, California on Dec. 9.