MURPHYSBORO (WSIL) -- Murphysboro's Dezmond Clark is an All state athlete in two sports. Triple Jump and Football.
"I want to be the best at everything I do and everytime I go out I just try to perform at the highest level that I can," Clark said.
"Dez is probably the strongest kid, pound for pound in our school," Murphysboro football and track coach Gary Carter said.
Logan Sullivan. is an all state track athlete as well, the 400 meters is his go to event.
"When the gun goes off it's kind of like a switch," Sullivan said. "All the nervousness goes away and it's just running."
"Logan's a hard worker, he's a bright kid that has a great work ethic and does what he has to in the weight room he does what he has to on the track," Carter said.
There may not be a track season, but Sullivan is going to get his chance to break the school record in the 400 meters. He'll get his chance through a virtual race. He says it'll be tough because he's an athlete that needs competition around to bring out his best.
"Definitely a challege to just a visualize beating a time, you've got to focus on top speed because your mind plays tricks on you when you are sprinting for that long of a distance," Sullivan said. "You think you are going slower than you are so you just have to focus."
"I really wasn't running my best until I got to sectionals in state and got to guys that were better than I was so it definitely helped. I cut two seconds off my time in two weeks just going from conference to sectionals to state and running by yourself there is no adrenaline there, there's nothing, no one to run against so its definitely a challenge."
What's amazing about Dez' story, he just started doing the triple jump last season.
"Funny story, we were in class one day and I took roll and he was making fun of the kids that were doing the triple jump and he said I can do better," Carter said. "I said no you can't, let's see you do it, and he couldn't and had no idea how to do it. So I showed him, me I'm not a triple jumper but I showed him the steps and I said by the way you're doing it tonight. And so I moved him into that and I think he jumped 40 feet the first time he jumped so we knew we had something."
"As I see people jumping, ok they get this number, they get this number and I look at myself, I have to get this number and if I dont get this number I am going to be disappointed in myself so I have to get this number or else so I just go out and try to jump as far as I can," Clark said.
Both Dez and Logan have had success on the football field, so when spring came along, they brought that gridiron toughness and desire to win to the track.
"Football helps track, it helps your explosiveness and same thing track helps football," Sullivan said.
"As I'm running I try to see things as I don't want to be tackled, I don't want to go down, I don't want anyone to stop me from achieving what I want to achieve and I want to put points on the board because as a running back, as a kick returner, it's my job to take everything to the house so when I get the ball my first goal is to get through everyone and be faster than everyone and not go down," Clark said.
