Jordan Woodson '17 Recruiting Profile

    As a freshman in high school, I first began to realize it was time to give some initial thought into what I envisioned as the career I would most enjoy.  I was initially extremely interested in becoming a Screen Writer but after receiving advice on the realistic chances of securing a career in this field, I was forced to reconsider.  As I considered other careers that were still in the general vicinity of creative writing while also allowing me to make a living, again through the advice of others, Journalism as a major first entered my mind in my sophomore year as a major that would allow me to have a viable career that I could enjoy.  After taking my first Broadcasting class as a sophomore and liking it very much, I chose to take Broadcasting II this year, my junior year.  In the last few months, I found, through researching colleges on the internet, that many have majors in Mass Communication/ Journalism with a focus on Broadcasting, and I was then decided on my college major.  

    It felt as though a weight had been lifted from my shoulders to have decided on what I wanted as a major in college.  One part of college that I was never undecided about was the hope to participate in collegiate athletics.  However, I had a difficult decision to make in that area as well.  Since junior high (which, to clarify, is 7th grade in the town in which I live), I have been a dual sport athlete, though until I was a freshman, only one of my sports was offered in school:  Cross Country (XC).  Outside of school, I have been swimming since the age of 9 on a year-round competitive swim team through USA Swimming.  Beginning in 7th grade, I was on my junior high XC team, and in my freshman year, the 2 junior highs in our town had 3 intrasquad meets throughout the XC season (Cabot Jr High North vs. Cabot Jr High South), and I placed 1st in all 3 of those meets.  To finish up my freshman year, I placed 3rd overall in our Conference meet.  I was also very excited to have received the "Proud Panther" award from my school, not even aware it existed or that I had been nominated by one of my XC coaches.  The "Proud Panther" is an award given to 1 boy and 1 girl from each of the 2 junior highs in our district, and it is awarded for excellence in academics and athletics.  I later found out that, although several hundreds of student athletes are nominated each year, I was the 1st XC athlete to actually be selected to win the award in over 10 years.  

    It was in my freshman year that I became a dual scholastic athlete, competing on both my school's XC team, and the high school swim team.  I have continued to compete on both teams in subsequent years, including this year.  In addition, I am involved in both of my sports outside of my school.  I continue to swim year round on the competitive swim team through USA swimming mentioned earlier as well as competing on my own in 5Ks, 10Ks, 1/2 marathons, and full marathons throughout central Arkansas, and I am a member of our local running club, the Cabot Country Cruisers, which allowed me to join and compete in the RRCA (Road Runners Club of America) of Arkansas.  In addition, I compete in triathlons.  The tough decision I had to make was whether I wanted to pursue swimming or XC in college.  At the beginning of this, my junior year's, high school XC season, after only 1 member of our high school XC team having been a senior last year and graduated, I was, from our 1st meet of the season, the fastest XC runner on our team.  I saw how much more quickly I was improving in XC compared to swimming, and I was forced to admit that XC had emerged as my primary sport and the sport I desired to pursue in college.  Our XC season ended on November 7th, with our state XC meet, and, with the exception of 1 meet when I was ill and running a fever and finished 3rd for our team, I continued to lead our high school XC team as the 1st finisher on our team in every meet, including state.   

       Like any other athlete, I have both strengths and weaknesses as both a person and a runner.  I am listing my strengths based, not on my opinion, but on what I have been told by my coaches.  First, I have been told by my XC coaches and swim coaches that I have one of the strongest work ethics in training that they have ever seen, and in particular, the strongest worth ethic on my current team.  My 1st year ever to run XC in junior high, I was in the middle of the pack, definitely not what anyone would consider a fast runner.  It was through determination, dedication, discipline, and desire that I improved to the level of runner I am today.  In particular to in what event in which I excel the most as a runner, I am 100% a distance runner, and strangely, the farther I run, the faster I get.  I am a very quiet person, not a natural leader by mouth, but I have been told that I always lead by example.  I do not stop when I've completed the very least which is one of the main reasons I began competing in runs outside of school and in triathlons.  Academically, I turned my performance around beginning in 7th grade.  Up until that year, I put very little into school, and my grades were just average.  In all 3 years of junior high (7th-9th), I maintained a 4.0 while taking pre-AP classes.  In high school, which, in our district, begins as a sophomore, it was difficult to adjust to the more rigorous classes, and I received my first "B" since middle school, but I have continued to maintain all "A"s and "B"s.  

    Admitting my weaknesses on a recruiting website seems contradictory to the purpose, but the whole truth is necessary for anyone to make an informed decision, and coaches need to be aware of what to expect out of their athletes, good and bad.  As stated earlier, I am strictly a distance runner.  Most of my high school team mates I beat meet after meet in 5Ks, I could not touch in a sprint.  Coincidentally, I am the exact same way in swimming; I swim distance and mid-distance, but 12 year-olds could beat me in a 50 yd event.  And, finally, I think many coaches would consider my quiet nature a weakness.

    I would like to sum this "Personal Statement" up with one final sentence that has been proven in the past, and I believe will continue to be a fact should I be fortunate to be recruited to a collegiate XC program:  I may not enter either a running or swimming program as one of the top performers, but through the hard work I have and will continue to put into my sport, I will most likely show the most improvement and become one of the top performers if given the chance.