The Commit is back with another PA senior that has committed to running in college! Nick Feffer of State College was nice enough to chat and give us some insight on his college commitment. Enjoy!
Garrett: Let’s begin by talking about your most recent indoor season. At states, you decided to forgo the open 800 to stay fresh for the 4x800. Why is it that State College puts such a strong emphasis on the success of their relays?
Nick Feffer: I think it has a lot to do with the culture of our team.
Ever since I was a freshman, I saw the older guys doing what was best for the
rest of the group. Cather took on an enormous quad to help us win Districts
four years ago. Milligan skipped on individuals at indoor states so that our
DMR would have a competitive shot. I felt that I was just doing what was
expected of me by skipping the open 8. I wanted to give my teammates my best
effort in the DMR and helping them medal was more important than trying to snag
an individual place.
Also another more personal part of my decision was that I
just didn’t think I could run as fast as I would be happy with from the “slow”
heats. I might’ve been able to pull out a 1:55 or something and grab 7th or 8th
but again, I decided it would be better to save energy for the mile leg of the
DMR.
G: State College is considered one of the best
programs in the state for developing 800 meter runners. Why is that the case
and do you feel like there is any pressure on you to uphold that legacy?
NF: It’s just kinda been that way for as long as I can remember.
My coach, Steve Shisler, has a special place in his heart for 4x800s; he’s on
the PSU squad that holds the Penn Relays record. So that could be a factor.
Otherwise, I think it’s because we are a low-mileage, high intensity program
and that kind of training works well for 800s. In terms of upholding the
legacy, I see it more as pride in a way rather than pressure. Knowing that some
incredible 800 runners have come before me, I trust in my training and the
results come in the races.
G: You’ll be entering this outdoor season as
one of the top returners in the 800. Do you feel like there is any pressure on
you to perform at a high level? What are your goals for your final season of
high school competition?
NF: Yeah this is where the pressure comes in. I was ecstatic
last year when I realized I was the top junior in the 800 at states (not by
much), and I told myself then that I wanted to win the thing as a senior. I do
feel like I have somewhat of a target on my back due to how close the race was
last year, and with the Affolders coming in and Hoey looking more and more like
an 800 guy rather than a miler, I know it’ll be a tough race. Looking forward
to it being a fast one though. Timewise, I think I have a 1:51 somewhere in the
tank, I just have to find it on the right day.
G: Let’s transition away from high school and
discuss your future plans. Where will you continue your academic and athletic
career? Have you declared a major yet?
NF: I’m excited to be studying and running at Dartmouth College
up in New Hampshire. I’ll be majoring in biomedical engineering, with a focus
towards medical school post-graduation.
G: What other universities were you looking
at? What made Dartmouth stand out?
NF: I was looking at basically all of the other Ivy League
colleges and Penn State as well, due to location. I took a bunch of official
and unofficial visits which were a blast (shoutout @Ryan Thrush), but I felt
that Dartmouth had the best fit for me. I really liked the guys on the team and
the trails around campus are great for training.
G: Have you had any discussions with the
Dartmouth coaching staff about your future training? How will your training
there differ from high school?
NF: From what I remember on my visits and conversations with
Coach Harwick and Coach Phelps, the training won’t be too much different from
my training at State High. A couple workouts a week, tempos and intervals,
lifting occasionally. I’ll probably have to up my mileage a little bit though.
G: There are many PA alumni that are either
currently running (or are committed to run) in the Ivy League. What are your
thoughts about racing many familiar faces at the collegiate level?
NF: It’s a little daunting to be honest haha! It’s cool to see
alumni running well and winning Heps and things like that. It’s a little scary
knowing that I’ll be racing some PA legends but I mean there are always going
to be fast kids in races, so the way I see it is I’ll just have more friends to
talk to at meets.
G: Your 800 PR will make you one of the top
half-milers on Dartmouth’s team. What kind of contributions are you looking to
make in your first few seasons of competition?
NF: I was kind of happy when I realized that. One of the reasons
I shied away from some other Ivy schools was their incredible depth in the
mid-distance (@Columbia). I guess I don’t want to have to start from the
bottom, so to speak. I’m really excited to have a part to play on the team from
day one and I’d like to run at Heps in my freshman year. I’m not sure how
reasonable that is, but it would definitely be cool.
G: What advice do you have for runners (or
anyone for that matter) as they start their own college search?
NF: A few things...
1. Start early. The recruiting process is pretty long and grueling and the more time you have the better.
2. Reach out. This is the most important part. I didn’t get “recruited” by Dartmouth per se; I sent the coaches an email saying, “Hi I’m Nick, these are my times, can we talk?” and got the ball rolling from there. If you’re not fast enough to run for the school, the coach will probably tell you, but 1) you haven’t lost anything 2) you put yourself on the coach’s radar as someone who really wants to go to their school and that will sit well with them when you do hit their qualifying standards.
3. Recruitment standards on websites are waaay fast. Don’t be afraid to send an email if you haven’t hit them just yet.
4. If anyone has questions about Ivy League/Dartmouth recruiting or Dartmouth in general, feel free to shoot me a Twitter dm. I’ll be happy to help.
G: What is something you wished we asked you,
but didn’t? What would your answer be?
NF:
Q: “Why are you so short?”
A: ...
G: You’ve got some pretty fire tweets. How can
people follow you on Twitter?
NF: I really appreciate that,
although I don’t think anyone on my team will admit it. The handle is
@feffrey98. Thanks!
G: Any shout outs?
NF: Shout out to HC. You’ll make it someday bud.
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