Chris Webber wasn’t sure.
When Columbus Christian Academy reached out to Webber, who graduated from the school in 2018, to gauge his interest in coaching the Rams’ cross country team, he was hesitant at first.
Webber, 19, who won 13 state titles in track and cross country at CCA, wanted to help his alma mater, he said, but he didn’t know if it would work out. A student at Mississippi College in Clinton, Webber knew once the summer was over, he couldn’t put in as much face time as he might have wanted, being limited to attending meets and not practices.
But he took the job anyway.
“Coaching is what I want to do for the rest of my life, and I’m really, really passionate about running,” Webber said, “so I figured I might as well go ahead and get some early practice in.”
He got more than that when the Rams won the Class AA state title on Oct. 28 in Clinton at Mississippi College’s own Choctaw Trails course, a convenient 5-minute drive for Webber.
“It was a great first year,” he said.
With just two seniors, no juniors and one sophomore on the roster, the Rams relied on a host of freshmen to capture their fourth state title in the past five years. But ninth graders CJ Seroux, Jonah Harrison and Luke Phillips answered the call, finishing back to back to back at sixth, seventh and eighth place in the state meet.
“I was really proud of all the freshmen,” senior Ethan Sevier said. “They were all determined, and look at what their determination, will, drive got them: a state title.”
Sevier led the team with a second-place finish, and fellow senior Matthew Phillips was fifth, just over 30 seconds ahead of Seroux.
“I think we were determined to win it since this was it forever, and I think we laid a good foundation for years to come for the younger guys,” Phillips said.
Not only did the Rams’ seniors go out with one final title, but they did it in style: Their team score, comprising the places of the top five runners, was 28 points. Second-place Providence Classical Academy, whose top runner finished fourth, had 70.
“I thought we were going to win, but I didn’t think we were going to win by the margin that we did,” Webber said. “We peaked really, really well.”
The quite literal runaway reminded Sevier of his freshman year, when CCA runners finished 1-2-3-4 in the state championship meet.
“That was our very best run this school’s ever put down,” Sevier said. “And this was easily a close second to that.”
For practices, Webber typically sent one of his seniors or a trusted parent instructions via text. He had Sevier and Phillips run a mile before each practice, and he instructs the team on what stretches to do before running. That kind of style, Sevier said, helps a lot.
“It just kind of gave you that extra independence and a little more self-drive and self-determination, which in a sport like cross country, an individual sport, is really, really important,” he said.
With Webber not there to enforce rules, Sevier said, “there’s a little temptation to cut corners.”
“But we pushed through,” he said. “Looking back now, it was the best we could be.”
The Rams used what their coach taught them to build themselves up slowly over the season, not putting in their best times in early-season meets but always looking toward the future.
“Any meet before state is just kind of like quizzes we take before the big test, which is state,” Webber said. “They learned a lot of lessons and used them at state. It was cool to see.”
When that test came, the Rams aced it. All but one runner set a new personal record in the 5K race.
“It’s just something about running at state,” Sevier said. “It’s just that state meet. Everyone shaves time off their PR.”
Even after he and Phillips graduate, he said, the Rams will remain dangerous.
“Watch out: these freshmen, they’re gonna step up and lead this team and hopefully get another state title next year,” Sevier said.
Webber expects to be back to lead them. Fittingly, the long-distance coach will work with the distance team, including Sevier and Phillips, during track season this spring. And after that?
“I guess I’ll just keep it rolling from there,” Webber said.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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