Interview: Northwestern\'s Stuart McDaniel


Biography
Full Name: Stuart Lane McDaniel
Date of Birth: Aug. 26, 1988
Brothers/Sisters: One older sister, Sarah (student at Clemson)
Hobbies: Skateboarding, guitar, tailgating at Clemson
Personal Bests: 3200 – 9:56 5k – 15:31
Academic Interest: Chemical or Bioengineering, possibly Patent Law

scrunners: When did you start to run?
mcdaniel: I started to run winter of eighth grade, then I ran track that spring.

scrunners: Do you remember your first race? Explain.
mcdaniel: Yes. It was the 1600 when I was in the eighth grade. I ran for Sullivan Middle School, and I don't remember who we were racing against, but I placed first with a time of 5:30 (I thought that was great until I raced Jonathan McGinnis (current teammate) and he ran 5 minutes).

scrunners: Does or did other family members run? If so, where and when?
mcdaniel: My dad ran track in high school, but he was a sprinter (ironic because I have horrible foot speed). He still runs with the dog at night and will do a 5k roadrace occassionally.

scrunners: Over your years on Northwestern\'s team, what have you seen change and grow in the sports of cross country and track and field?
My ninth grade year I barely made varsity. Our team then was not as good of friends as we are now, and we did not even qualify out of our region (granted the top four teams in the state were in our region then, and we were ranked fifth). The next year, we all became really good friends and began working together. This was the first year we won state and I believe the way we got along helped us accomplish our goals.

scrunners: How would you rate your season thus far?
mcdaniel: Overall, I'm satisfied with how I have done so far. I believe every runner wishes they had trained more earlier so his time will be faster now, but I can't complain too much.

scrunners: With the state meet coming up Saturday, what kind of preparation takes place this week for you and the Northwestern team?
mcdaniel: Midway through the week, both of the varsity teams go out to eat together with the coaches and parents, then on Friday we all get together again to have dinner and watch a movie at one of our coach's houses.

scrunners: Does Northwestern have a team tradition prior to the state meet?
mcdaniel: Mostly we just go out to dinner together and have a good time before state. We also say the Lord's Prayer on the field in front of the starting line, but we do that with every race. We have made some traditions that happen after the state meet, though.

scrunners: What are you and Northwestern looking to achieve this coming weekend?
mcdaniel: I think our main goal is just to run the best we can as a team. Whatever happens beyond that is not within our control.

scrunners: How does the Northwestern team make up these goals?
mcdaniel: While every team hopes to win, we know that running our best can be more important. As long as we walk away from a race knowing we left everything on the course, there can hardly be anything left to regret.

scrunners: At the county meet in October, Fort Mill\'s Mark Blackmon gave you a close race. How did this race unfold for you? When did you first hear about Blackmon and what do you think a runner like him is bringing to the sport in South Carolina?
mcdaniel: Blackmon took the lead about 100-yards into the race and I hung right behind him just about the whole race. Every time I tried to make a move to go around him, he would speed up just as much. We had about 150-yards to go when I realized that this was the last time I would ever race on my home course, and I didn't want to walk away from the race regretting anything. It was then I passed him for the first time in the race and kicked to the finish. Needless to say, I was very impressed a seventh grader could run as well as he did. I first heard about him my ninth grade year, when Angelina and Tiayonna Blackman ran for Northwestern. We all talked about how fast he was to be that young. I was under the assumption he would be in the seventh grade after I had graduated and I wouldn't race him, though. Coaches Classic was when I learned he was running for Fort Mill, and I had no idea what he could run until I looked at the results and saw him not too far behind me. South Carolina has some great athletes, but it is not very often we have a runner that drops jaws on a national level. I think if Blackmon keeps on training and running as well as he is now, he has the potential to be one of the nation's best runners. I hope he does well in the years to come, on a personal level and because I believe it will bring a lot of positive attention to South Carolina.

scrunners: What kind of training did you undergo over the summer?
mcdaniel: I usually do my best when I train with higher mileage, so over the summer I try to peak up around 80-85 miles a week. To do this, I usually run twice a day to get as much as 18 miles in on a single day. I did some 13-mile barefoot runs on the beach this summer along with running for four weeks in River Hills, which was named appropriately (I was a counselor at the nearby Camp Thunderbird). I also incorporate long distance tempo runs in my schedule. Even during the season, I run a 10-mile tempo with a group of marathoners, the Rock Hill Striders, every Sunday morning.

scrunners: Did you attend a running camp, if so which one?
mcdaniel: No. I might have if I had any extra time this summer, but I was gone most of the summer as it was.

scrunners: What meet has been the most challenging this year? Explain.
mcdaniel: In terms of most painful, I would say our county meet where Mark Blackmon and I were racing neck to neck the whole race. We did not taper much at all for the race and Blackmon ran very well. I might have let him go, but I did not want my last race on my home course to be a second place finish. I had to dig deep both physically and mentally to race the way I did.

scrunners: Have you ever been injured? Explain.
mcdaniel: I have actually been very fortunate in respect to injuries. I've had minor shin splints and two sore hip flexors once, but nothing that has ever kept me out of practice for more than half a week.

scrunners: How did you stay motivated during this time?
mcdaniel: The only time I had to take time off was because I had two sore hip flexors, and it was at the beginning of my junior year in cross country. I was trying very hard to beat my teammate J.C. Koziel at the time, and I knew if I slacked off at all he might get the upper hand on me. I swam about every day to stay in shape and hoped it would pay off.

scrunners: Did you cross train while injured?
mcdaniel: I swam most of the days I did not run and biked once. I did not have many days off, though.

scrunners: What keeps you motivated to get out the door on a daily basis for life and athletics?
mcdaniel: To be honest, I have no idea. I would say it is the desire to run faster, but when I had to wake up at 5:30 in the morning as a counselor at camp to run, I wasn't thinking "I have to get up and run to get better," I was just thinking "I have to get up and run… again."

scrunners: What would you consider your most challenging race? How did you fare in this event? Explain.
mcdaniel: I think the most challenging race I have had was the state championships my junior year. I had been having minor problems with cramps all season, but at state I had a bad one in my stomach for the last two miles of the race. Fort Mill was our close competition that year too, so I was still racing as hard as I could. It was frustrating because after I finished my legs felt like they had something left but my cramp held them back, but we still ran great as a team and that is all that really mattered.

scrunners: Who is your biggest individual rival and team rival? How did this develop?
mcdaniel: Team rival, definitely Fort Mill. The school is within 15-miles of Northwestern, so that close proximity has made them our close rivals since I was a freshman. I think the fact they have always been good competition fueled our rivalry, too. Individual rival, on our team it was J.C. Koziel last year, but he graduated. This year I would say Jonathan McGinnis. We both were on the same neighborhood swim team back in elementary school, so we have been competing with each other in some way for years. When I first started running, though, I told him I would beat him one day and he bet me I never would, so it was my goal for a while to be able to compete with him one day. Outside of my own team, I would say my rival is David Huckaby from Fort Mill. Huckaby and I both run with the Rock Hill Striders on most Sunday\'s, so we eventually developed a friendly rivalry. We'll work together in races, for instance, we were side-by-side at Coaches Classic for much of the race; but we are still from different teams and will race to win at the finish.

scrunners: Do you feel this rival has helped yourself and your team become more competitive?
mcdaniel: Definitely. I believe I, along with anyone else on my team, is much more inclined to run harder when we are trying to beat our rivals than some random team we meet at an out of state invitational. Our state meets have become such a big deal because our main competition is our rivals, so we are all interested in running as hard as we can.

scrunners: What do you look for in a coach and what do you expect a coach to look for in you?
mcdaniel: I expect a coach that will put as much effort into coaching as his athletes do in running, and I believe the coaching staff at Northwestern does that. Coach Hudgins, Watkins, Tice, and Holeman all work together to help us be the best we can, and they expect us to put the effort we need to into our workouts to achieve this goal.

scrunners: Are you looking to compete in college athletics? Why?
mcdaniel: I am not sure if competing in college is something I am going to do or not. I definitely want to try it out for at least one season to see if I enjoy it, but whether or not I'll stick with it depends on how successful I am at it.

scrunners: Do you think you will ever coach the sports? If so, why and what level?
mcdaniel: I will probably end up coaching a church league basketball team at some point in my life, but I am not as sure about being a cross country coach. One of our coaches, Rev. Jim Watkins, is a volunteer coach who is in the Ga. Tech hall of fame for his running abilities. I can see myself volunteering to help out a local high school like he did, but this would probably depend on whether or not I run in college and after that. I want to help other athletes to achieve their full potential, but I do not know how good of a coach I would be.

scrunners: Do you or Northwestern have a pre-race tradition before a meet? Explain.
mcdaniel: After warming up, stretching, and doing a few strides in front of the starting line, we always huddle up, have a few motivational words, and say the Lord's Prayer. I know we have been doing this since I was a freshman, and I suspect it goes back years before that.

scrunners: Are you competing in any meets after the state championship?
mcdaniel: I plan to do Foot Locker (hoping it won't interfere with the Clemson-USC game) and any nearby road races. I also plan to run a half-marathon over the winter, but I haven't made any definite plans as to which I'll run. I really enjoy road races, though. It's nice to have new competition.

scrunners: How much time do you take off between cross country and track and field?
mcdaniel: I usually take off about a week and a half to make sure my legs don't burn out.

scrunners: How does your training vary from one season to the other?
mcdaniel: I try to keep my mileage up between both cross county and track seasons, but usually my winter training is a little shorter but faster than my summer training.

scrunners: Have you ever met a professional athlete? Explain.
mcdaniel: As far as runners go: once. At Great American my junior year, Bernard Lagat showed up to sign autographs and promote some Nike merchandise they were selling. I have a picture of our varsity team standing around him, along with his autograph.

scrunners: What did you learn from this individual?
mcdaniel: To be honest, he did not share too many words of encouragement. In general, though, I would have to say that any professional athlete would tell you that hard work pays off.

scrunners: If there is one thing in the world you could do, what would it be and why?
mcdaniel: More than winning some huge race or setting insanely fast records, I just wish I could stay healthy as long as possible. I have seen great runners get older and suffer one injury that ends their entire careers, and I can see how frustrating it is. I just hope I can continue to train and improve for as long as possible, so I can enjoy running the majority of my life.