April 28, 2011
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By John Denton
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFathletics.com) - Jackie Coward was one of the most successful high school track & field performers in the history of the sport, winning 12 state championships and twice being named All-American during her illustrious prep career.
So naturally Coward thought that success would translate to college at UCF. And when it didn't happen for her initially, the weight of those expectations landed on her shoulders like a ton of bricks.
``It was different because in high school I was on top so long that that became what I knew. It wasn't that I was conceited or cocky, but I wasn't beaten for two years,'' said Coward, now a junior at UCF. ``Then, I get to college and I had been on top so long and had beaten college runners before, I thought it would be another piece of cake. But I had to realize that college is another ball game. Everybody is fast and they don't give you any respect.
``Almost every weekend of my freshman year I was getting beaten, and I didn't know how to handle that,'' Coward continued. ``God took me through the humbling process and taught me that I wasn't going to be perfect every time. It made me better.''
Did it ever make Coward better? She is one of the nation's premier hurdlers and on a UCF team that moved up to 17th nationally the most recent U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association poll. The Knights are two weeks out from trying to defend their Conference USA Outdoor championship. And they are trying to become the first team in school history to win the Indoor C-USA title and the Outdoor C-USA title in the same year.
``Our times are coming down and everybody is healthy, so I'm not going to complain,'' said UCF coach Caryl Smith Gilbert, whose team will compete in the historic Penn Relays this weekend in Philadelphia. ``I'm still talking to them about making history here. We're focusing on (the dual championships) because we want to be more on the offensive instead of the defensive. Our goal is to keep trying to make history.''
That was the selling point to Coward when Smith Gilbert was recruiting her out of Knoxville, Tenn. As a highly decorated high school hurdler and sprinter, Coward had her choice of college offers, but chose UCF because of the opportunity to build the program from scratch. She easily could have fit in as an elite runner at another school, but liked the challenge of leaving a legacy at UCF. She feels as though she's part of a revolution now at UCF what with the way success is coursing through the entire athletics department.
``You look at all of the other schools and they are already established and we're doing new stuff all the time here at UCF. They're running fast and have big names, but we feel like we're building a program here,'' Coward said. ``We were out here when nobody was here and just coming out by faith and God has made us stronger. It's just so good to see all of the sports at UCF - football, basketball, baseball, soccer and track - doing well and we're all making history.''
Coward is leaving her name all over the UCF history books, but it didn't come without some struggles and some adversity early in her career. Smith Gilbert said that her hurdler was initially floored that she no longer the dominant athlete in the 100-meter and 400-meter events. But she eventually rose back to the top by making plenty of adjustments both on the track and off it.
``She struggled with (expectations) a lot. She had to learn how to learn again,'' Smith Gilbert said. ``She had to change a lot and change her mindset, change her attitude and change her technique from high school. I'm seeing her now mature as an adult. Once their self-esteem improves, so does the running. Believing in themselves and trusting is what we've been working on. Jackie's still got a long way to go, but she can really, really run. She not at her maximum yet.''
That's scary considering that Coward recently set new school records in the 100-meter (12.96) and 400-meter (57.78) hurdles events, helping her to nab the C-USA Female Outdoor Track & Field Athlete of the Week award. Her time of 12.96 seconds in the 100-meter hurdles is the fastest wind-legal time in that event in the nation this season, making her a strong favorite to win a NCAA championship later this spring.
``I'm still being humbled. Like at (Indoor) Nationals (earlier this season), I wanted to win so bad, but I didn't. But instead of taking that as a negative thing, I realized that by finishing third, I wasn't even in the mix last year,'' she said.
Coward said she's come to grips with the fact that track is an ever-evolving sport and she'll have to continue to get better to keep pace with the other hurdlers. The tough transition from high school to college taught her that she has to pay more attention to detail than ever, and that there's still plenty of potential for greatness for her.
``After to you get to a certain level it doesn't come down to what you have to work on; it's more small stuff and mechanical stuff. At an early age I knew a lot of stuff because I had the best coaches. Now, it's more mechanical stuff and how you move your arm, where you put your trail leg or your posture. I'm learning more every day,'' she said. ``I will never feel like I have arrived. But I know the older I get and the more I learn this sport, I see what the great names are running and I think I can do that too.
``I don't know what God has planned for me. But I know that I'm capable of doing stuff that I've never dreamed of, but I have to keep working hard every day and putting in the hours,'' she continued. ``I have to get better in the classroom. I have my goals, and I want to go and win the Olympics. But it's just up to whatever plan God has for me.''
==== John Denton's Knights Insider appears on UCFathletics.com several times a week. E-mail John at jdenton@athletics.ucf.edu.