Eskew digs deep, finds way to win state title
JESSIEVILLE — Jessieville sophomore Kaleb Eskew knows all about what being an elite runner takes.
After watching his older brother Noah win the Class 3A state title four straight years in high school and helping lead the Lions to a runner-up finish in the Class 3A State Cross Country Meet in 2017, the 2021 state champion watched his brother compete in college at Oklahoma Baptist the past four years.
Never one of the top runners for the Lions, Eskew had his eyes set on a state title this year, but he was considering quitting running.
That all changed on Nov. 5 as he cut a full minute off his previous personal best and won the Class 3A state title.
“At the beginning, before we even got to Oaklawn, I told myself, ‘I just need to stay with the front pack. I need to stay with Noah (Zetts) and Lawson (Wideman) in order for me to do anything, just in case’ — cause I always think about the what ifs — just in case one of them fall off,” he said. “Because, I mean, they do have a good reputation for doing something at a very important meet. So I just wanted to be there, and then I just kept going, and it just didn’t feel like I was running that fast until that end. Until I saw my time, I just didn’t know that I was running that fast.”
For his outstanding performance at the Class 3A State Cross Country Meet, Eskew is The Sentinel-record’s All-garland County Cross Country Runner of the Year.
The Lions were limited by numbers this season, with just nine competing in the state meet and five in the top 30 at the event, so Eskew knew that he had to keep running this season in order to give the team a chance at a good finish at the state meet. When asked about his motivation this season, he did not mince words.
“This year, it was definitely the team, … being there for the team because I knew there’s not another guy at Jessieville that would take my place and be as fast as I am,” he said. “So like, all year, I was this third person. I was a very key member of the team, so I had to be here for the team in order for us to accomplish anything.”
Eskew said that during the race, he stayed with the front group, making sure to keep himself in contention for a good finish to help the team. Near the end of the race, he started to pull ahead of the group, fearing that a solid ‘kick,’ or last burst of energy from the top runners, could be enough to knock the Lions out of contention for the top two spots.
“Me and Lawson were running side by side until the last 600 meters, and I didn’t know what Episcopal’s boys were — because they were right behind us,” he recalled. “So I didn’t know what they were going to do, what kind of kick they had, because I’m never up at the front pack. I’ve never ran against those two boys. So I just went, and I was like, ‘I just hope I can keep going.’ And I never knew if they had a kick, but, I mean, at the end, they were like (100) meters behind me. But I mean, they were pretty far, so I just didn’t know.”
Jessieville cross country coach Kodi Speers said that as he neared the end of the race, she saw that Eskew was not exhausted.
“The closer it got to the end — I know he’s not one that takes off as fast,” she said. “He’s not one of those front runners. That’s just not the type of race that he runs. So the closer we got to the end, I mean, he was still gaining on kids and still passing people. You could kind of tell there towards the end that he still had a little bit left, and I was just real excited for him.”
After crossing the finish line, Eskew did what most runners do after they finish a race — caught his breath and looked at his time. Then he had to catch his breath again.
“It was very surreal,” he said. “It’s very surreal. I could not believe it. I just, I knew we were, I thought we were running so much slower than we were. And it’s just — I don’t know. I felt very comfortable that day. It was very odd, but it was, it’s mindblowing.”
Following the race, Eskew spoke to his brother on the phone. The Oklahoma Baptist senior was preparing to run in the NCAA Division II Central Regional the next day in Joplin, Missouri, and congratulated his brother.
“He’s definitely a good (mentor) because he’s been through it,” Eskew said. “He’s a great mentor. He knows what I’m going through. He’s been through it. He knows all the pains and what he had to go through. I’m going through it, too. So I mean, it’s really, it’s really good to have him as a brother to know what to do.”
While it might be tempting to compare to an older sibling, Eskew said that he avoids doing that.
“I don’t think it’s a bad thing that I have him as a brother — that he was this good,” he said. “But I don’t really compare myself to him. So I think that’s why I’m doing so good. It’s because I’m not comparing myself to him. He was just my brother that did great things.”
Eskew admits that it was his brother that got him started running around the age of 10.
“It was definitely my brother,” he said. “I saw the accomplishments he made, and I saw what he did. And what he — I just wanted to be like him at the start. And so I … just went and ran. I think my first race was the half mile — the Go mile. It was the kids half mile, and I won it, which was super. And that’s just what — it just started going from there and started running my first 5Ks, and it just kept going.”
Since he plans to keep running, Eskew now has a new goal — find some quality runners to join the cross country team to replace top seniors Lawson Wideman, Isaac Gass and Noah Zetts. While he knows the task is huge, he believes it is possible, although his senior teammates are not so sure.
“During track, I’m going to try to find — we need at least three more people,” he said. “I’m trying to find another team, which I feel like other people were thinking it’s going to be impossible, like Noah and Lawson. They feel like it’s going to be impossible for me to find two to three more guys to run and be successful as this team was. But I’m hoping at track I find those two to three people that can run three miles, and we can be successful again. So I mean, that’s kind of my motivation is to find those two to three other people and get them to come out this summer and try to find another state-winning team.”
Speers said that Eskew is in a special position in being able to talk to other athletes about joining the cross country team because he will be coming back next year and will be one of the top runners.
“He’s already talking to me about, ‘Hey, we’ve got to get more guys,’” she said. “He’s going to be that — it means more to the kids when they’re hearing it from other kids trying to get them to come out for cross country than just hearing it from me. So he can kind of be that guy that’s helping build our program back up because we did have several seniors this year. I think we had five seniors in the boys program this year. So he can kind of be that guy that going out and talking to other kids and helping us build our program back up as well as being that leader, ‘Hey, I’ve been there. I know what it takes.’ You’ve got to push yourself and be that encouragement as well.”
Running is not the only thing that Eskew enjoys. He has started learning how to play tennis.
“This past year, I’ve found tennis, which it’s super weird,” he said with a laugh. “I mean, I’m super uncoordinated. I can’t — I haven’t done much in tennis. I’m not very, I’m not very good at it, but I mean, it’s another hobby that I’ve just picked up, and it’s really fun, and I like it.
“I mean, I’m not the greatest at it, but I think it’s good for me not to be the greatest person in the sport. I could just be another person playing a sport, which is — I think it’s been really … comforting to me to just do another sport. Just to get away from running for just a little bit, even though tennis season is right during cross country season. So it doesn’t really help out that much, but it’s just been really nice.”
Speers said that Eskew is the kind of athlete that is always there pushing himself.
“Kaleb is one of those guys that — he’s always there,” she said. “He’d be coming from tennis practice to cross country practice in the evenings. He was at our summer workouts. He never was winning our workouts in the summertime. I put him competing with other kids, and he kind of kept creeping up there a little bit. And I knew that he had a goal, before the state cross country meet, that he wanted to win it. And I knew that Lawson and Noah’s times had been better than his throughout the season, but that was his goal and he just kind of made up his mind and talked to his brother, Noah, and got some advice. And went out and he just had a great race and ended up winning it, helping us out a lot.”
He also enjoys drawing and just being outdoors.
“I am very artistic. … I’ve drawn my dog several times,” he said. “But yeah, I love hiking. I just like being outside. I’m not very addicted to my phone or anything, but just like going outside and just being out there.”
Kaleb is the son of Tami and Cory Eskew.