A step ahead
Star sprinter surprised by Dolphins’ Fitzpatrick
American Heritage sprinter gets national award.
PLANTATION — All-County Athlete of the Year. Florida Mr. Track. And now, Anthony Schwartz has been named the National Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year by Gatorade.
The American Heritage star sprinter, who doubles as a wide receiver for the football team, was surprised by the Miami Dolphins’ first-round draft pick, safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, with the honor at the school on Thursday afternoon.
The premise of the surprise was that Patriots coach Patrick Surtain, a former AllPro Miami Dolphins cornerback, was to receive a coaching award and Schwartz was on hand for that.
“I was just speechless because I walked in thinking it was for Coach Pat,” said Schwartz, who is signed to play football and run track at Auburn. “Then Minkah pulled the trophy out and it said my name. I was just speechless, excited, jumping up and down.
“Just an honor knowing all my hard work has paid off now, especially going from district, to counties, state honors and national honors now.”
There was a little bit of irony in Fitzpatrick, an Alabama alum, presenting the Auburn-bound Schwartz the award with the two on opposite ends of the Iron Bowl rivalry.
“No hard feelings,” Fitzpatrick said laughing. “Both schools are great schools, so it’s a great opportunity for him and his
family.
“He’s a great young man, a great athlete, so I know he’s going to carry on what he does at the next level.
Added Schwartz: “I just have to tell him ‘War Eagle.’ ”
He had a photo shoot with Gatorade Thursday morning, but he was put under the impression it was for a football feature with a national media outlet to maintain the surprise.
Schwartz set Florida state meet records in the 100 (10.07) and 200 (20.41) in May to cap his stellar career running for American Heritage. He also was the anchor on the Patriots’ statebest 4x100 relay.
He redeemed himself with his performance at state from his junior year, where a hamstring tweak didn’t allow him to win his events. That was after winning state gold in four events (the aforementioned three plus the 4x400 relay) at the state meet as a sophomore.
After the high school season, Schwartz ran his fastest wind-legal 100 of 10.09 at the Great Southwest Classic in Albuquerque earlier in June. The time ranks fourth all-time for a prep athlete. His wind-legal 20.47 in the 200 during the regular season was second in the nation this year. Schwartz owns the No. 4, No. 6, No. 8, No. 9 and No. 13 100-meter times in the history of American high school track.
On the football field, he was a key component to the Patriots’ back-to-back Class 5A state-championshipwinning teams. He was an Under Armour All-America selection and played in the postseason exhibition in Orlando, where he first announced his commitment to Auburn.
He is set to arrive on campus on July 18. Before that, he runs in the IAAF World U20 Championships in Finland.
dfurones@sunsentinel.com or @DavidFurones_