By Catherine Laroche
“The best thing about Wes Seacat is he’s amazingly handsome,” said junior cross country runner, Thad Schroeder. He thinks highly of University of Louisville senior Wes Seacat as a person and an athlete.
“He’s had an amazing career here at Louisville,” Schroeder said. “I’m very proud of how far he’s come. He’s just a testament to the Coach Mann program, about how success can come if you put in the time and work.”
The U of L cross country program should find Seacat’s high school soccer coach and thank him; if it weren’t for him there is a possibility that Seacat wouldn’t have stepped foot on a track.
Seacat grew up playing soccer and basketball. When soccer season ended for Seacat during his freshman year of high school, his career in cross country and track and field began.
His soccer coach spoke to the cross country coach who expressed how desperate he was for help that season. After a lot of encouragement, Seacat gave in and began his successful journey as a runner.
“I quit soccer after my freshman year and it was the best decision,” Seacat said. “Running is not that much fun, but being around all the guys on the team [is fun]. We’ve become a really close-knit group. Just being around all the guys year-in and year-out is a blast.”
Such words as “great” and “successful” could be seen as understatements in describing Seacat’s pre-college experience in cross country and track. Some of Seacat’s accomplishments include a two-time all-state runner in the 1600 meter, sectional titles in the 800 meter, 1600 meter and 3200 meter and a regional title in the 1600 meter. He also is a three-time sectional and regional cross country champion.
“He’s got the whole package,” U of L cross country head coach Ron Mann said. “He’s an engineering major, a great leader for the team and he’s a great runner.”
After seeing Seacat’s abilities, it didn’t take long for U of L to persuade him to spend his college career in the red and black.
“I looked at a few other schools, but I knew that I wanted to stay relatively close [to home],” Seacat said. “With the program the way it was, I knew it was getting better. And U of L had engineering which was a big thing on my list of where I wanted to go. I was really comfortable with the coaches and knew some of the runners already so it seemed like a really good fit.”
Seacat has no regrets about his decision to attend U of L. He says that the best thing about running cross country and track for the Cards is traveling. He enjoys going to the big meets and competing against other top programs.
Seacat also enjoys the coaching staff because they keep him on his toes and make cross country and track fun. He says that they are very entertaining. The best thing he’s learned from his coaches is to not think.
“I’m very analytical, being an engineer,” Seacat said. “They told me that last year I had a rough time during racing because I’d be in a spot and panic. So, this year they told me to stop thinking. It’s worked a lot better.”
The coaching staff is definitely doing their part and it shows in Seacat’s performances within the past three years.
As a freshman, he was the top runner in the fall of 2003 for the Cardinals. He placed third in the C-USA Championships, which was the equivalent of the highest finish by a Cardinal since 1975. He was also named C-USA’s Athlete of the Week after winning the Commodore Classic, making him the first Cardinal to ever earn the honor. He also was named as C-USA’s Freshman of the Year.
“The thing that I’m most impressed with Wes is he’s so coachable,” Mann said. “He’s always asking questions and wanting more knowledge. He’s really a kid who seeks to be the best he can be. He’s not afraid to ask a question or say ‘I don’t know.’ And he’s not too egotistical.”
During his sophomore and junior seasons, he competed in all of the Cardinal races finishing in second at the Commodore Classic in 2004 and sixth at the Woodford Trials and the Indiana State Invite last year.
During his senior season, Seacat hopes to end his college career just like any other athlete. Aside from the team goals, individually Seacat wants to be all-conference and all-region and then see what he can do at Nationals.
“I expect him to really bring this team together,” Mann said. “There’s enough talent on this team to make it to the national level. And the thing that will accomplish that is to provide the bonding of the team and that’s where it’s got to be the team’s goal. And Wes has done a good job of implanting that in them and keeping them focused.”
Although Seacat will graduate in the spring, it’s a possibility that he could still be seen around campus. He says that he will be at Louisville for five more years with aspirations to work in the engineering field and collegiate coaching.
