Going into his final year with the Highland track and field team, senior Jack Weaver has already made his future plans involving that sport.
Weaver signed to attend the University of Akron, where he will major in mechanical engineering and also run for the Zips.
“Akron was instantly my top academic choice and I didn’t have the intention of running track there,” he said, noting that being able to continue running was a very nice bonus to continuing his education. “I was looking at plenty of other schools and when I stepped on Akron’s campus, I knew that’s where I wanted to be.”
It wasn’t that long ago that the Scot senior decided that he wanted to take his sprinting talents to college. After the 2019 state meet, in which he competed in three events, including a sixth-place finish as part of the 400-meter relay, he realized he wanted to compete for more than just his senior year.
“Last year, after the state meet, I said this is something I really was falling in love with,” he said. “I wanted to be part of something in college and track was the sport I love. It’s something to keep me occupied and enjoy the college experience.”
He added that it helped to be pushed by another state-caliber sprinter on his team in Brock Veley, who also was on that state-placing 400-meter relay and also placed in the 100, saying that his experiences running with Veley are good preparation for what he’ll be seeing in practices and meets at the next level.
“That is amazing to have that little bit of experience before everyone’s like that,” he said.
While Weaver has primarily competed in the shorter sprints so far in high school, he said he expects to be stretched out a bit when he competes in college.
“They have really good 100-meter kids, so the focus is on me being a 200 and 400 kid,” he said, adding that he thinks his time at Akron will enable to continue improving as a runner. “My goal is to be the best I can possibly be and I feel Akron is the place for that. I’m really excited to be pushed by every single person.”
Weaver also spent his time at Highland on the school’s football team, where he was a first-team all-KMAC and Central District player last year and also earned special mention All-Ohio recognition.
With the track team, his best memory so far with the Scots is being on that state-placing 400-meter relay; however, he is looking to add some more great races to his portfolio this year.
“Placing highly in the 100 and 200; that are my goals for this year,” he said.
