My Words: All in. Always.

I’ve always been the type of person that when I find something that really interests me, I completely zone in on it. I’m all in.

Like the time I bought a one-gallon tank and started raising African cichlids, which is this variety of beautiful freshwater fish. Before long, I had more than a dozen tanks in our basement with all sorts of heaters and sensors. My breeding collection expanded to include Flower Horns and Oscars. My parents could have told me, “OK, six tanks are enough for the basement. You don’t need 20,” but they let me go all in instead.

Then there was the time I started my own lawn mowing business. I started out with a basic walk-behind, but within three months I upgraded five times, added a second commercial mower and bought an enclosed trailer to haul all my equipment. When I went from four business contracts to 30 and three commercial accounts with local banks, I hired two friends to work with me. I sold it all when my dad pointed out that high school football practice was approaching and I wouldn’t have time for both.

It might sound strange now, but early on I didn’t have the same level of desire when it came to running track. Growing up, I would always get frustrated because in elementary school I would always lose. My parents signed me up for AAU meets and I hated it because I couldn’t beat anybody from the age of 8 all the way up to my freshman year of high school. I tried the long jump. When that didn’t go well, I tried the javelin. When that didn’t go well, I tried the shot put. Growing up I did every event in track, not because I liked track, but because I hoped to be good in at least one event. For a long time, track was a painful sport for me.

Not anymore.

My bond with track has grown immensely over the years to the point that I now love it. I look forward to every day that I can spend with my coaches and teammates at Wisconsin. I enjoy thinking about track. I enjoy coming to practice. I enjoy finding ways to get better. I enjoy watching film. I enjoy talking to Coach Kareem Jackson about track even if it’s just about how we’re setting up drills for the day. It’s become something that’s really part of me. The journey excites me to the core.

A lot of that has to do with my family. My parents, Lawrence and Bernetta, ran for the Badgers back in the late 1970s and both won Big Ten Conference titles. My older sister, Labreya, ran track at UW-Milwaukee. Because of them, track is a big part of the household. But there was never a push for me to literally follow in their footsteps.

Sometimes I feel like it can get misconstrued as something my parents said that I had to do or “You have to be a Badger.” Yes, they created opportunities for me to compete in track, but they also encouraged me to play the violin and the piano, and get involved with soccer, basketball and football. I was always into so many different things that, fortunately, my parents were able to put me into to see what I enjoyed.

Track ultimately became a priority for me because I just didn’t want to give up on it. I did daily workouts even though I’d go to the next meet and get blown out.

My bond with track became stronger when I started to have some success. While at Waunakee High School, I placed in the top four in the 100 meters every year and won the state title as a junior. That carried over to my time at New Mexico, where I won the 60 meters in the Mountain West Conference indoor meet in 2020 while going through spring football practice as a running back with the Lobos.

Trying to be faster than my dad has been a goal of mine for the longest time. He played football and ran track for UW, but he did more than just compete in two sports. He excelled.

He was a first-team All-America defensive back for the Badgers in 1978 who was chosen by Cleveland in the second round of the 1979 NFL Draft. He later played for the Buffalo Bills, taking part in 96 games over nine seasons as a pro.

My dad also won six Big Ten titles in track, including four in 1976, which led to him being named team MVP for UW as a freshman.

I remember going with my family to see dad get inducted in the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012. It planted the seed that someday I wanted to be the dude my dad was. I want to be able to compete for national championships. Compete for Big Ten championships. Be a two-sport all-American. Be a Hall of Famer here.

Since transferring to Wisconsin, I’ve been blessed to set school records in the indoor 60 and the outdoor 100 and 200. Those were the events my dad dominated back in the day. But I’m still without a Big Ten title, something I will try and address before my time in Madison is through.

Football was the first sport I ever fell in love with and that’s because of my dad. Growing up, I loved going to Badger games with him and watching old VHS tapes of him playing in the NFL. I remember going to Camp Randall Stadium with him when I was young and visiting Mr. Alvarez and other UW student-athletes. 

One of my favorite things about competing and running track are the hugs I get from my dad and mom after a race. I can feel the love and the pride because they know how hard I work. They see the sacrifices. They have a role in it and that everything I’ve been able to do is because of the seeds they’ve sown in me.

My sister’s journey motivated me as well. I got to train with her. I got to see her break records, go to state and run in college. I tell her this all the time: The moment I saw her compete at state in high school, that was the moment for me when I wanted to go further in track.

I’ve always loved football. I’ve always loved basketball. But seeing my sister, who is six years older than me, compete at the state meet when I was around 11 or 12, it made me feel like, hey, if she can do it, so can I. She was the leader in the development of me as a person. My parents are the foundation. My sister helped me build the house.

What’s important to me? I truly love track and field. I truly love being a student-athlete here. I love the whole Badger experience. During Black History Month, I’m reminded how blessed I am to be around Black excellence on a daily basis and I’m always inspired by those who continue to pave the way for myself and future generations.

But when I lay my head down at night, the question I keep coming back to is “Was my encounter with that person impactful?” In other words, am I being the best teammate I can be? Am I being the best brother I can be, the best son I can be and the best boyfriend I can be? These are the thoughts that weigh heavy on my mind.

Given an opportunity to be a leader on this team presented a new challenge, one that left me searching for what and how to do it. I decided to lead with my heart. I’m not afraid to hug my teammates. When I lead with love, I can live with the results at the end of the day.

It’s difficult to pinpoint where that thought process came from. My parents very rarely had any encounter with me that wasn’t out of love, even if it was something that was hard for me to hear. Accepting the best of people and trying to love everybody is something that’s just been a part of me.

When I think of my strengths, it comes down to a few things. One, my love for my family makes everything come easy. Two, when I’m tired while I’m running, I think of another opportunity to get a hug from my dad and mom. Three, I draw strength from my love of family, my love of what I’m doing and the discipline to keep at it. Four, the opportunity to inspire and bring joy to those around me.

Everyone has dreams as kids. Everybody has opportunities. Sometimes along that path it gets cloudy, it gets tested. But the opportunity to keep chasing your dreams, keep protecting your dreams, is something that developed for me at an early age and became a common message.

I other words, I’m completely zoned in.

The journey has just begun.

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