JONESBORO, Ark. (7/17/13) – Arkansas State continues its “Throwback Thursday” segment on its athletics Web Site, AStateRedWolves.com, with former track and field standout Thomas Hill as the fifth former student-athlete to be profiled. “Throwback Thursday” highlights former A-State student-athletes and their current endeavors. The segment provides readers with biographical information on the former student-athlete and features a question-and-answer session, including questions about their time at Arkansas State and their current career.
Hill is one of the best track and field athletes to ever compete at Arkansas State. He competed at the Summer Olympics in Munich in 1972 and won a bronze medal in the 110-meter hurdles event. Hill came to ASU as a high jumper, but quickly found his calling running the high hurdles and after just two years he tied the world record of 13.2 in the 120-yard high hurdles event at the Untied States Track and Field Federation meet in Wichita, Kan. Hill ran a series of races in that meet where clocked times of 13.3, 13.2 and 13.1, but the final time did not count toward a world record because it was wind aided. After competing in the Olympics, Hill went on to serve in the United States Army at West Point where he continued to compete. He returned to A-State for a brief period as an assistant track and field coach, but found his true calling in life working as a counselor in higher education. Hill holds a PHD from the University of Florida in Counselor Education and is now the Senior Vice President for Student Affairs at Iowa State University.
Q & A Session with Thomas Hill
Why did you choose to attend Arkansas State?
I was not one of the marquee athletes at my high school and we had some other guys on the track team that were really recruited pretty heavily by other schools. We were really a high school that produced a lot of good talent and I was down the list you might say.
Coach John Rose came to our school to recruit one of the other guys, but he ended going somewhere else and my high school convinced Coach Rose to take a look at me.
What stood out about A-State and the University?
It was kind of funny. I flew to Memphis from New Orleans on a recruiting trip and it was the first airplane ride that I had ever taken, so that really sticks out for me. The people were extremely friendly and very accommodating and it was an atmosphere that I felt I could grow and become a better person in.
What are your most memorable moments from the track program?
I was able to accomplish a lot, but I think one of the most remarkable things was the progress I was able to make from the time I arrived. When I first got to campus I ran a 15.4 in the hurdles and by the end of my second season I was down to a 13.2, which is really quite the feat to do in track and field.
What do you look back on the most as an athlete?
It was at the United States Track and Field Federation Meet in Wichita, Kan., and the world record in the 120-meter outdoor hurdles was 13.2. I ran a series where I finished 13.3, 13.2 and then 13.1. They said the 13.1 mark was wind aided so it did not count for a world record, but I still remember that meet very fondly. I also won the NCAA indoor high hurdles that same season, so it was a pretty big year for me.
You never won an NCAA outdoor event, is that something you wish you could have accomplished?
I won the indoor hurdles championship four times and even the 100-meter run in indoor one year, but I was never able to capture the outdoor championship. I led the race one year, but I got my foot tangled up and still managed to finished second, but I wish I could have won an outdoor event at some point.
What was it like to compete in the 1972 Munich Olympic Summer Games?
That was one of those peak experiences as an athlete. It was one of those moments that was almost surreal. If you think about it, four years earlier I watched the Olympic games in Twin Towers at ASU. I was a sophomore and I watched the Olympic games and four years later I never thought I would be on that stage doing my thing. As I look back on it, it was really one of those great experiences because I got an opportunity to travel the world, visit countries I had only read about, compete against world-class athletes and meet different athletes from all over the word.
Had you ever ran hurdles before coming to ASU?
In high school, in order to round out the relay team, the coach asked me to run them. He just needed a body, and I never trained for it or anything. The idea was to just have someone to complete the race and that was the extent of my experience.
How did you start running hurdles?
In the recruiting process, Coach Rose had decided early on he was going to convert me into a hurdler. Because my focus was to get a college education, I was willing to do anything to get the scholarship. I would have thrown the shot if I had to as long as I got the scholarship.
Did your time in the classroom at ASU help prepare you for your career after athletics?
It was what the doctor ordered. I was able to get in a nurturing environment, and it allowed me to go at my own pace. I had the benefit of maturing at my own pace, which was what I needed. During my time at ASU, I got drafted into the military but instead of going right away, Coach Rose encouraged me to go into the advanced ROTC, which helped my leadership skills and it was a good experience.
How did you get involved in higher education?
A lot of what has happened in my life has been by chance and a right place at the right time situation. When I graduated, I had a commission as a second lieutenant and I was able to run for the Army. After the Olympics, I was stationed at West Point and that started my career in higher education. I've been in higher education ever since graduation. I went on to get a master's degree in counseling and found my niche working with student-athletes as far as careers, and that really started my career in student affairs.
What was it like to watch your son play on a championship basketball team at Duke?
When you can see your son have that kind of success as an athlete and a student, there is no greater feeling. He is one of those young men who competed at one of the most successful programs in the country, and he graduated in four years. That was a very good feeling to watch him accomplish the goals he had set for himself.
Did your two sons ever play basketball against one another?
Lamont was two years younger than Thomas and attended the University of Texas. We almost had an opportunity to see them play in the NCAA Tournament. Texas got beat the game beat before they would have played Duke, but that would have been an interesting experience if it would have happened.
