Ryan Heath '14 Recruiting Profile

Dear Track and Field Coaches,

I am one hell of a sprinter. I am currently a sophomore at UMass Amherst applying out as a transfer applicant to enter a new university as a junior this fall of 2016. My freshman year here at UMass, I was a D1A Wide Receiver, and one of the fastest guys on the team. I have since course-corrected away from football however.

I am an all-or-nothing guy, and after I realized football was not my true passion, I knew I had to make a change. Therefore my new ambition is to be a track and field sprinter, primarily in the 100m and 200m events. My already impressive speed can be vastly increased, for when I posted my official 40yd dash time of 4.42 and my 20yd shuttle time of 4.28 (the #1 high school time in the country that year), I had terrible flexibility with strides that were too short as a result, and I was too bulky up top with a hefty bench press. I have since transitioned, however, into becoming a lower-body athlete instead, and the Olympics is my ultimate goal as a sprinter.

I am utterly confident I can do so.

Trainers have consistently told me I have tremendous potential to get much faster just as soon as I unlock my flexibility, which I have now mastered. Further, I have done extensive and tireless research on every little thing I can do to maximize my sprinting potential and craft myself into the most freakish specimen of linear speed out there. I've watched video after video of the world's greatest sprinters, compiled countless articles on nutrition and numerous training programs, and listened to many interviews of top sprinting coaches and athletes, etc.

I love to fly. It's that simple. I am also a powerful, positive influence as a leader on every team I have joined, as I lead by example, and have unwavering optimism. I always strive to enter each practice, training session, and competition, with my ego in check, willing to do whatever it takes to win fair and square under the guidance of my coaches. My dedication and frequent words of inspiration toward my teammates has made me someone my team can look up to and depend on, no matter how much or how little adversity we face as a team and as individuals.

In addition, I was even President of the largest residential complex on UMass Amherst's vast campus this entire school year of 2015-2016, managing a large executive board and overseeing all operations. On top of that, at the same time, throughout this entire school year I also served on UMass Amherst's Innovations and Entrepreneurship Executive Board. I will not be engaging in those activities at the university to which I transfer (Harvard is the only university to which I am applying) however, for I will dedicate more time to my studies and of course, track and field.

With Olympic aspirations in the works, I am supremely confident I can break the 100m and 200m records anywhere I go. I love to sprint, and I love to win, but even more than that, I love to help lead a team of brothers, a team of men, to victory, crushing the competition!

I have greatly matured since entering college, and have grown far more intelligent, disciplined, and am more than reinvigorated to take all facets of my life to a whole new level of success, and to help those around me do the same on my way there. I have flown under the radar a bit due to not knowing how to put all the pieces together physically and mentally in my past. I assure you, however, the pieces are together now, and I am grinding every day to add more to the puzzle. Whether or not I am accepted as a transfer applicant, I will press on toward the Olympics nonetheless.  

I imagine I feel just as Tom Brady did when he, with laser focus, stared directly into his head coach's eyes, and told him that drafting him was the best decision their organization has ever made...

Below are some football Honors and stats from my high school years:

INVITE-ONLY HONORS:

*US Army All-American National Combine- January 3-5, 2012, San Antonio, Texas- Alamodome (Best 500 college football Jr./ Sr. prospects)- The best performers play in the US Army National Bowl

-Schuman's NUC New England Combine- freshman, sophomore, junior summers

-Schuman's NUC Ultimate 100 Eastern U.S. NUC Combine-  N.J. -  freshman, sophomore, junior summers- Runner-up for MVP

(only top 15 in each position qualify for the U-100 East from New England---The East includes NY, PA, 5 NE States, NJ, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia)

*(NUC stands for National Underclassmen Combine)

-NUC Ultimate 100 National Finals-@ Univ. of Oklahoma, Fresh & Soph, Summers.

-NUC Ultimate 100 National Finals-@ Charleston, S.C. Junior Summer--(Only the top 15 in each position from each of 5 Nat'l Divisions qualify for the Nationals)---The Five Divisions are The East, Mid-West, SE, SW & NW-all 50 states

-NUC All-World Game,  Junior Yr. on Christmas Day.

-FBU (Football University) Camp @ Westwood, MA H.S.

-B.C. (Boston College) Camp- Soph & Jr. Summers.

-Coach Invites for 1 day showcases: Harvard, Yale, Brown, Dartmouth, Princeton, Penn, Williams, Amherst, Wesleyan, Middlebury, Occidental, and a number of other camps---Sr. Summer

Sincerely,

Ryan MacArthur Heath

UMass Amherst class of 2018.