Perham's Keeghan Hurley has officially signed with Southern Utah University located in Cedar City, UT. MN Milesplit had a chance to catch up with Keeghan on signing day to learn more about his choice, goals for the future and advice to younger runners.
What schools did you consider for your post-high school plans?
The schools that I was looking at were,University of Oregon, University of Minnesota , Butler, Montana State, Nebraska, and of course Southern Utah University.
What ultimately let you to commit to the Southern Utah?
Southern Utah was the only school that was interested in my dreams and goals, and has a plan to get me there. Coach Houle and his staff connected with me immediately. All the other schools were critical of the amount of work I do and of what I wanted to achieve. Coach Houle thrived on my thoughts and my ideas on how to get to the next level and beyond. He has coached such great ones as Cam Levins and shared with me on how he strives to individualize the workouts for the benefit of his athletes. The guys made me feel really apart of the team the minute I stepped foot on campus. They are a bunch of potential world class athletes which is an environment I want to be around. They dream big just like I do and together we are going to do it. To top it off its a beautiful campus at altitude with a great track schedule.
Have you identified a major or area of study?
I have narrowed down my area of study between two things. Business Management or Nutrition. Not to take away from Southern Utah's great education but I am going to college for athletics. Athletics is number 1 and school is 1a. I am a national honor society member and have a 3.6 gpa. I do well in school but my priorities are my sport.
What is your favorite HS memory as it relates to track?
My favorite High School memory was this year's cross country season. It was special in so many different ways. Winning the state title by 14 seconds and to be the first father-son duo to win state titles in Minnesota. It was just so special to me and my family. To make the memory even better my team defended our national title and our state title. That season has really motivated me for this years track season. I am very excited to see what I can do and to also go for Perham's first team track title in school history.
What are your goals for our collegiate career?
My goals for my collegiate career is to be a national champion and lead my team to a national title.
What advice would you pass on to an athlete trying to make their college decision?
My advice for anyone who is going through the recruiting process is to find out what is most important to you and write it down. When colleges start calling trust your gut on if it's the right fit for you or not. Don't force fit, and make the college fit because you want it to. Make sure it's the right place where you can accomplish the goals you have set for yourself.
Running is a sport that is all about progression. It's a shame these days seeing kids who run fast times in high school only to struggle to get to those times in college. I think that a lot of high school coaches are robbing these kids of their futures by getting the most out of them in high school. There are very few Edward Cheserek but there are more Cam Levins who progress through the years and eventually make it to the Olympics and become some of the worlds elite runners. Unfortunately, for those types like Cam and me, we had to compete against those over performing times for the attention of those schools we were interested in. I even had a school wave a chart at me numerous times, telling me what my value was for scholarships relative to my high school times with no regard for my training limitations and where I came from much less considering my upside potential and my desire to work. Southern Utah looks for athletes with huge upside potential. I came from Northern Minnesota where training is difficult and meets and competition are scarce. They liked that, given the times I posted and the conditions I train in. That is why I must say to athletes to stay true to their gut feeling. They must believe in themselves and find the right fit for their college choice and their progression as a runner.
Personal Bests
800 Meter Run
2:02.61
1,600 Meter Run
4:23.56
3,200 Meter Run
9:21.37
5,000 Meter Run
15:28.90
More Coverage
Keeghan's Athlete Profile
Perham H.S. Team Page
Class of 2014 Signings List