Senior Cameron Council steps up to the line. It’s the 2017 3A State Championship at North Carolina A&T’s Irwin Bell Track. The gun is fired, and off he goes, hungry for victory. The 6-foot-4, 185-lb. Council runs with long strides, edging to the front of the pack, not looking back for one moment. Eyes on the prize, he crosses the line in just 21.74 seconds, winning the 200- meter boys’ state championship.
Just months after that race, Council was being recruited by multiple Division I colleges for their track and field programs, and, after turning down multiple football offers, Council will trade in the green and gold of Northwood for the orange and white of Tennessee.
“My recruiting was unusual,” Council said. “I had a lot of recruiters come in for football, and I had a lot of high-profile track offers…. [Choosing track over football] was a decision that had to be made, and I made it.”
Council has been one of the most distinguished athletes at Northwood in his four years. Students often define Council’s athleticism by one attribute: “his speed.”
His times speak for themselves: a 4.4 second 40-yard dash (according to SB Nation, the average 40-yard dash for cornerbacks in the NFL is 4.55 seconds), a 10.72 second 100- meter, a 21.74 second 200-meter and a 48.39 second 400- meter. These were times that attracted Division I schools.
Throughout his time at Northwood, Council has accumulated two state championships and multiple conference championships, as well as being named an all-American athlete three times.
Junior Joshua Scott, Council’s teammate in both track and football, thinks that Council has the talent to make it big.
“He’s going all the way,” Scott said. “He’s going to the Olympics.”
The high expectations people put on Council are not something that he focuses on.
“I really just want to improve,” Council said. “If I could get to a point where I run professionally like my dad has, that would be amazing, but I’ve reached a lot of my own goals…. I just want to run faster and keep improving.”
Council’s family has had a big influence on his track career:
“My mom and dad were both sprinters,” Council said. “They went to Auburn on full scholarships, so I’ve been running track since I was born and it has been part of who I am from the start.”
Council uses his parents as inspiration when he runs track, especially his mother, who passed away when he was young.
“I think of her all the time when I want to do better,” Council said.
Even though Council has committed to Tennessee and is moving on to a new chapter of his track and field career, Council says he will remember the coaches and peers at Northwood that helped him.
“In the last four years, I have met some of the most amazing people and have had some of the greatest experiences I could ask for,” Council said in a Twitter post.
– By Sam Vanolinda
