Sam Worley building on big effort at Texas Relays

By Mary Albl for DyeStat  

Sam Worley knows he might never reach all of the goals he’s set for himself. But the ambitious, and seemingly far-fetched list, is what keeps the New Braunfels Canyon TX senior motivated. 

“I kind of just try and shoot for high goals that even if I don’t achieve them, just knowing that I’m going for them still puts you in good position,” Worley said. 

One of those impressive targets is breaking 4 minutes in the mile, a feat only nine high school male athletes have accomplished. Worley hasn’t achieved it yet, but on April 1, he came within a couple of strides of joining that prestigious group.  

Competing in his home state in a field with collegiate and professional athletes, Worley clocked an impressive 4 minutes, 0.61 seconds to win the Jerry Thompson Invitational Mile at the 90th Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays.  

“That was a pretty unbelievable performance,” said Sheila West, Worley’s coach. “Just watching it, he looked so relaxed and I thought, ‘OK, this is working out exactly like we wanted it to.’ We had talked about where to kind of kick as long as the splits were going through like what we expected them to, and it worked out perfectly.” 

More than a week later, it’s still hard for Worley to describe what he accomplished. He said there were no expectations, rather just stay close to the front of the pack and make some kind of big move.  

“It took so many wild turns in that race,” Worley said. “In the beginning, I was kind of in the back and telling myself to just hold on. My mind actually went blank for about a 1,000 meters and then I was able to just find something in that last 400 to just kick it in.” 

Worley’s effort is the 11th-fastest of all-time on the high school boys list and the national outdoor leader so far in 2017.  

West said the performance didn’t come as a surprise. Worley’s recent workouts have indicated he could definitely challenge the 4-minute barrier, it was just a matter of finding a competitive field for him. This spring, Worley has also clocked 1:50.43 in the 800. 

“Texas Relays definitely holds a special place in my heart, it meant so much,” Worley said. 

Worley, a future Longhorn, ran against former high school teammate Alex Rogers, who finished runner-up in 4:01.65. He also ran against Texas graduate and 2012 Olympic medalist Leo Manzano, who placed third in 4:02.02.  

“I coached Alex as well. This is first time they’ve been in a race together since high school, and it was just really exciting,” West said. “Just to see Sam, a little high schooler, out there running with the best of them and handling his own, was just very fulfilling. To see it come together on a stage where he’s going next year is really, really exciting.” 

Worley, who finished runner-up Dec. 3 at Nike Cross Nationals in Oregon and ninth the following week at the Foot Locker National Championships in San Diego, hasn’t garnered many track headlines this spring. But that all changed with his Texas Relays’ performance, which included a victory over Foot Locker champion Reed Brown of Southlake Carroll, who finished fourth in 4:03.23. 

The tall, broad-shouldered blonde doesn’t mind flying under the radar though. West said her star distance runner’s best traits are his humble personality and pure love for the sport. 

“He knows his sport,” West said. “He knows what kids are doing. He wants to beat their times.” 

For Worley, it’s all about showing up on race day and competing.  

“What I love about the sport is who steps onto the line and who wants it the most and who is willing to eat the most pain and emerge victorious,” Worley said. “The rest of the talk and hype really doesn’t bother me.” 

Next for Worley is the championship season in Texas. He’ll compete in districts, area and region in preparation for the May 11-13 state meet. 

After state, his schedule is tentative. Worley said the plan is to definitely run a few national-level races and enter another full mile with a shot to go sub-four.   

West said Worley ran Texas Relays to win, but she knows a faster time is still well within him down the line. 

“When I first began running, I really didn't know how much success I would get,” Worley explained. “It just seems like every year the bar is raised for things I can do and people I can compete with. It’s so rewarding and so surreal, and it’s honestly what I love about the sport, is if you put in the work, you can get better.”