Many of Jermey Morrison’s high school hobbies sprouted from his love of doing flips.
Gymnastics fulfilled what began as a childhood adrenaline rush from the trampoline in his backyard. Morrison was able to fly through the air like old times, throwing caution to the wind in a way not everyone can.
Lubbock High boys track coach Hank Semler couldn’t help but notice.
The two would chat about gymnastics when Morrison was a student in Semler’s world history class, which led to the coach making a pitch to the sophomore: Come pole vault.
“Not being afraid of being up in the air 15 feet and your head is the first thing that could hit the ground,” Semler said, “that takes a special kind of crazy.”
Naturally, Morrison’s affinity for thrills made for an easy sell. High jump was never far from the pole vault pit, so he picked up that event too.
Two years later, Morrison is going to the state meet.
The LHS senior finished second in the high jump at the Region I-5A meet April 19 to extend his season to Texas’ top competition. Morrison had a solid showing in pole vault, as well, tying the school record at 14 feet, 6 inches to place fifth.
It was the type of performance Semler believed was possible with Morrison’s experience in gymnastics.
“The flexibility needed, the back arch needed, the high leg-kick needed in high jump,” Semler said. “The skillset between gymnastics and those two events in track are almost identical.”
Jermey Morrison’s quick progression in high jump
Morrison cleared 6-4 in the high jump at regionals and finished runner-up on misses. He came in at 5-10 and didn’t fail an attempt until 6-6. Morrison figured he’d have to be near-perfect to make it to Austin, and it worked out.
“It definitely was running through my mind the whole time,” Morrison said. “Like, ‘Don’t mess up. Don’t mess up.’ I had some close calls, but the bar stayed on — had some bar love.”
Morrison had to sweat it out after his third miss. Wichita Falls Memorial’s Roman Lunsford had a final try, with a state berth in the balance.
“I hated those last 20 seconds I had to wait for the last kid to jump,” Morrison said, “because if he cleared I wasn’t gonna go to state. So I’m just there crossing my fingers. I hope everyone does good, but not better than me. Once he hit that bar and I solidified my spot in state, it was a crazy feeling.
“Just felt unreal because I really never saw myself making it that far. I kind of did track for fun in the beginning, so it’s just crazy to make it this far and just see how far I’ve come.”
How far? Morrison said in the beginning he was lucky to clear the opening height. Westerners coach Collin Flemons, whom Semler called a “high jump guru,” marveled in Morrison’s progress, too.
“It’s just nice seeing that we put in all this extra work, extra dedication to it, for it to finally pay off,” Flemons said. “To go in and punch a ticket into state, to be able to compete one more time when a lot of people’s season’s over, it’s a blessing.”
Morrison’s regional mark has him tied for the seventh seed entering Friday’s Class 5A meet. His personal-best of 6-6 would be fifth. Morrison said his aim is for a competitive showing.
“There’s levels to it, so now we’re in the big boy league,” Morrison said. “Really gotta lock in, at least go out and compete is the goal. Just jump the best I can is really what I’m going in thinking.”
Morrison said he plans on studying nursing at a nearby school unless a college track program comes calling. Whether his athletics career continues, he has already left his mark on the Westerners program.
“It definitely gives hope for the future,” Flemons said. “Then they see ‘Oh, if he does it then it makes me want to do it.'”
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Lubbock High’s Jermey Morrison went from gymnastics to state track
