BRUNSWICK HIGH SCHOOL senior Seth White will take his talents to Massabesic High School in Waterboro on Saturday, where he’ll compete in the 100-meter dash, 200 dash, long jump and 4 x 100 relay. The Class A State Track and Field Championships are set to begin at 10 a.m.
Seth White has everything it takes to be a great running back — the speed, the build, the drive. He can run 100 meters in a little over 11 seconds. The only problem is the football. He can’t keep hold of it and frankly, it slows him down.
White likes to run free.
The Brunswick High School senior has been running since kindergarten. It started with distance, running on cross-country teams and pacing himself mile after mile. But quickly, White came to terms with his need for speed.
It began on the football field under Dragons’ coach Dan Cooper. Running back was a natural fit for White, because to be part of the typically explosive Brunswick backfield, you’ve got to be fast. You’ve also got to hang on to the ball, though, and that didn’t come so easy.
Maybe we should stick to track.
“The transition was easy for me, because it was just running to more running,” White said. “That was pretty simple. Just lots of running.”
That’s what White does best. Brunswick track and field coach Dave DeLois first had him jumping over hurdles, a reasonable event given his pure athletic ability. He was what DeLois called an “ace hurdler,” but it still didn’t quite suit him. White needed something shorter, something faster. The 100-meter dash was more like it.
“It was over faster, so I liked that better,” White smiled.
There was never any doubt about White’s ability. DeLois spotted him a mile away and knew he’d someday be the face of Brunswick track.
“He was good for us last year,” DeLois said. “The year before he was kind of new at it, but you could tell right off.”
Now that his ability was best being suited, the only thing left to do was to put the time in. White admitted that his freshman year, he didn’t show up to practice much and take things seriously. He casually jumped hurdles and went mostly on talent. It wasn’t until his dad urged him to try Plyometrics, an advanced series of jump workouts, that White took his training to the next level.
“Junior year is when it started,” White said. “I started doing sprints, stretching more, working out. Then it just really hit me.”
Thanks in part to the intense regime of the football team,, he’s been vigorously training ever since.
“He’s one of our hardest workers,” DeLois said. “He’s been a captain here, indoor, outdoor. He does everything. He’s just one of those exceptional kids. He can jump, he can run, he does everything.
“He’s gotten bigger and stronger and he’s in the weight room. He does all the work.”
That’s now very clear.
Meeting goals
This past Saturday at the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Track and Field Championships in Bath, White defended his 100-dash title with a time of 11.23. He also claimed first place in the boys long jump by launching over 20 feet.
“I definitely wanted to win KVACs in the 100 again,” White said. “I was hoping for like a 21-foot jump, but it just didn’t happen that day. I didn’t expect anything out of the 200, because that’s just not my race.”
When you put it that way, a fourth-place finish doesn’t sound so bad.
“We expected that from him,” DeLois said. “We were looking at the points and he was going to be the main character, no question. He’s a great attitude.”
As the anchor of the 4 x 100 relay team, White got the Dragons on top of the podium again. The 100 dash is the headlining event, but this is the best of both worlds.
“I get a lot more of a rush in the relay,” White said. “When I see four people sprinting at you, that’s one of the best feelings I’ve ever felt.”
He’ll get to feel it one more time in black and orange on Saturday at the State Class A Championships at Massabesic High School in Waterboro, where the competition will be heightened. White is aiming for 21 feet in the high jump and hopes to get even closer to 11.2 in the 100 dash, but is well aware of the spike.
For example in the 100, one of the qualifying times was 10.97.
“I’m just hoping to place top five,” White said. “Sprinting, jump better, see what happens with the 4 x 1.”
“He’s 11.23 and he could be fifth,” DeLois said. “Sixth, who knows. It’ll depend on the day and what the weather’s like, everything. All that stuff plays into it.”
Regardless of how Saturday turns out, White, who lost a bet that placed him on the Brunswick swimming team as a diver in his sophomore year, has enjoyed the ride. He’ll attend the University of Maine in Orono in the fall, where he’ll study marine biology.
His time at Brunswick has prepared him for Division I track and much more.
“Sports like this definitely keep me getting decent grades in school,” White said. “It’s so much fun. It’s one of the best parts of high school, probably the best. I love it.”
If the past few years are any indicator, he’ll be quite coachable.
“As far as I’m concerned, it’s been pretty easy,” DeLois said. “He’s done a lot on his own. All we’re doing is tweaking him.”
The State Class A Championships begin at 10 a.m.
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