Saine nearly pulls off three wins
Ohio State football commitment runs out of gas in 200 meters
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Tim May
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
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</td></tr> <tr><td class="credit" width="200"> KYLE ROBERTSON DISPATCH </td></tr> <tr><td class="cutline" width="200">Brandon Saine of Piqua set a Division I state meet record by running the 100 in 10.5 seconds. </td></tr> </tbody></table> </td></tr> </tbody></table>
Brandon Saine knew before anyone else yesterday that three was not to be.
A junior sprinter from Piqua, he had set a Division I state track meet record with 10.5 seconds in the 100 meters about 80 minutes earlier, and he had breezed to victory in the 400 with a respectable 46.88.
But about 15 minutes after that, as he rolled up into the set position for the start of the 200, trying to become the first Division I boy to pull off the sprinters’ trifecta since Chris Nelloms in 1988, something wasn’t right.
"I knew while I was in the blocks it wasn’t going to be a good race. I went into the set, I came up, my arms were shaking, my legs felt dead," Saine said. "I just knew then I wasn’t going to be able to finish."
He faded to seventh, well behind winner Chris Hayes of Cleveland Shaw.
"Tired, nervous, everything — it just wasn’t a good race," Saine said.
There was the attention on him, too. Not only was he the man to beat, but a few weeks ago he committed to sign a letter of intent to play football for Ohio State in 2007. He could feel the extra support that came from the crowd in Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
"That makes me feel good," Saine said.
The Buckeyes recruited him for his football ability, but Saine has shown signs this year he might be moving toward world-class ability in track, Piqua track coach Ron Pearson said.
"I was around when Chris Nelloms was running, and Chris was that caliber of runner," Pearson said of the former Dayton Dunbar and Ohio State star. "Brandon is doing the same things, but Brandon is bigger and stronger.
"I really believe with his work ethic and Godgiven ability he could be successful over there (Ohio Stadium) and the next level that would bring, or he’s going to be successful over here in track and run in some Olympic Games someday."
Saine has said he would like to win an Olympic gold medal and a Heisman Trophy.
"That would be really cool to do," he said.
But in this age of specialization, is it possible?
"I don’t know," Saine said. "I’ve surprised myself before."
He improved dramatically in track this year, even after winning the 100 and 400 in the state meet a year ago. Last month, he set the state record with a 10.38 in the 100.
But Justin Gatlin and Asafa Powell share the world record in the 100 at 9.77 seconds. Could Saine ever approach that?
"I surprised myself with the 10.3, so I don’t know, I guess I could surprise myself even more with what I can do later," Saine said.
Yesterday, he just wanted the trifecta, something he’d done in the regionals. And in the state preliminaries Friday he was fastest in all three events, earning the No. 4 lane for all three finals, and he used it to his advantage in the 100 and 400.
In the 200, though, Hayes said he knew coming off the curve the race might be his because Saine wasn’t there.
"I think that 400 kind of took a toll on him," Hayes said.
But he said Saine still left his mark.
"I think it was real impressive for him to break the meet record in the 100 and to come back and run a 4.6 in the 400 and win that," Hayes said. "He’s a phenomenal athlete, as you can see."
