Blake Jaekels, a junior at St. Joseph High School, runs track to cross-train for the football season, where he starts as quarterback for the Knights. His goals for the upcoming season are to throw more than 2,000 yards and to rush 1,000 yards.
“I’m trying to work on my speed,” he told the Sun. “It’s good to stay in shape for football.”
In staying in shape during the “off-season,” he’s proven himself a versatile addition to the track team at St. Joe’s. He can put a shot 42 feet; jump 19 feet, 2 inches in the long jump; do the 110-meter hurdles in 17.02 seconds; and high jump 5 feet, 10 inches. His coaches are grooming him to compete as a decathlete.
St. Joseph doesn’t have a spotless record—also known as a killer track team—and Jaekels’ isn’t breaking school records or putting up flashy, outsize wins in his events. He’s distinguished instead by his range and his discipline, quietly putting in the work to make the boy’s team stronger in four different events.
Jaekels’ favorite track event is the 110 hurdles. “You’re always trying to work hard for them,” he said. The high jump is the hardest: He considers it “pretty technical, not as natural.”
Al Garcia, the track coach at St. Joseph, said that Jaekels could be “pretty much anything he wants to be” and praised his all-around athleticism.
“He’s a good all-around athlete,” Garcia said. “He’s really concentrated in the weight room and he’s put on some weight, put on some muscle. He’s stronger than he’s ever been, and he’s really showing that he can be a tremendous decathlete.”
Jaekels, he said, is a blossoming leader who “kids look up to” and a “hardworking person” who’s gotten faster and stronger through his discipline. Plus, Garcia said, he’s a boon to the St. Joseph track team, which draws from a much smaller pool of potential athletes than the area public schools with which it competes.
“When we have one guy who can do four events and win at those events, it’s pretty good,” he said.
This article appears in Apr 23-30, 2015.