NXR South Champ Ryan Schoppe Eager To Test Himself Against Best

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Ryan Schoppe has been running a long time to get an opportunity like this.

The senior from La Porte, Texas won the Nike Cross South title on Saturday to earn his spot on the starting line of next week’s Nike Cross Nationals at Glendoveer Golf Course in Portland.

His performance at Bear Branch Park, 15:06.3, was the third-fastest ever on the course, behind Craig Lutz and Reed Connor. (Lutz was third at NXN in 2010; Connor won the 2008 race).

Earlier, at the Texas state meet, Schoppe ran a jaw-dropping time of 14:14 for 5K at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock.

“It feels amazing,” Schoppe said. “I’ve been working since freshman year to get to this point. It feels good that the hard works is paying off. Not many words can describe how I’m feeling right now.”

The feeling is magnified because his 2018 season ended with disappointment. Two days after placing second in the UIL 6A state final, Schoppe was on the track doing a speed workout when he felt a sharp pain in his knee.    

Schoppe tried to test the sore knee at NXR South, but he had to drop out of the race.

“He was in great shape last year. We’re still not real sure what went wrong,” La Porte coach Zach Johnson said. “This year, we’ve focused more on trying to peak him for December.”

While many of the top runners from Texas opt to try and make both national championship races, Schoppe is content to focus solely on NXN and avoid back to back weeks of traveling. He will not be at Saturday’s Foot Locker South.

“My main goal was qualifying for Nike Cross Nationals, in part because it’s only an hour drive to the regional,” Schoppe said. “I wanted to race (the top guys) last year, but unfortunately I got injured. I’m super excited about it and it’ll be a really fun race.”

One of Schopppe’s first big racing experiences outside of Texas came last June when he won the Adidas Boys Dream Mile in Boston, on a road course, in 4:09.15.

In August, he was part of the Nike Elite Camp and he got to a chance to meet the nation’s top prep distance runners for the first time.

“I enjoyed running with those guys at Nike Elite Camp,” Schoppe said.

At NXN, he faces the prospect of a reunion with most, if not all, of the Elite campers, including Cole Sprout of Valor Christian CO, Nico Young of Newbury Park CA and E.J. Holland of Ashland OR.

“I think he’s so excited,” Johnson said. “The opportunity to travel and race those guys never really presents itself for us. We either can’t afford it, or the timing doesn’t work out.”

Johnson met Schoppe when he was in grade school and has monitored his progress ever since.

“He comes from a great family, and it also feel like my family in many ways,” Johnson said. “That’s where it starts for him, for sure. But from the start, he was always naturally good at (running).”

Growing up as a runner in La Porte has its challenges. Summers next to the Gulf of Mexico are hot and muggy and Schoppe has learned to adapt.

“We train in the mornings,” Johnson said. “In the summer it’s almost always about 90 degrees. There are not a lot of hills. And the only grass is at Sylvan Beach, which is a park next to the water. It’s always windy there.”

Last week, though, Schoppe, a TCU recruit, ran in freezing weather in La Porte, pounding out a 6-mile tempo run in conditions that might more closely approximate what he’ll experience in Portland.

“He’s self-motivated,” Johnson said. “That’s who he is.”

Schoppe said early in the season he couldn’t help but wonder where he belonged in the hierarchy of elite high school running.

“In the beginning of the season, when Nico ran 13:39 (at the Woodbridge Invitational), and Cole and Leo (Daschbach) race at Desert Twilight, it made me wonder what I can do in those races,” he said.

Next week, Schoppe will get his big chance to find out.