Infinite Tucker thought long and hard about it, searching his heart and talking it over with people he trusts. The Blue Devil great originally planned to play football at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, but he changed his mind over the summer and has enrolled at national track and field powerhouse Texas A&M.
Tucker and Huntington track and field head coach Ron Wilson visited Texas A&M in August. The pair were very impressed with what they saw and heard. Tucker considered the pitches made by various other suitors and discussed the available options with his family and Wilson and then made up his mind; he wants to be an Aggie.
Texas A&M has won four NCAA Division I men’s outdoor track and field team championships since 2009. One of the premier college track programs in the United States, the Aggies sent several athletes to the recent Olympic Games.
Infinite Tucker on the Texas A&M campus.
“I really didn’t have time to think about what I really wanted to do when I made my decision to go to UMass,” Tucker said. “Even though I love football, I really felt I rushed my decision. While I was at UMass I had a lot of time to think about what I truly wanted to do and that was track. Every day prior to the Olympics I was thinking about track. I did so well in my last two years of high school I wanted to bring my talent of running track somewhere where I could excel not only as a track athlete, but as a student athlete. I achieved a goal that no other [Huntington] sports team has done and that is win a national title with an amazing group of kids; my brothers. I want to test my limits and try to become an Olympian.”
Tucker won individual event and relay county, state and national championships with Huntington during both the indoor and outdoor seasons. He owns a long list of school records and is a scoring threat in a variety of running and field events. He was recruited by many of the top college programs in the country.
Founded in 1876, there are more than 59,000 students enrolled on the university’s College Station campus and 65,000 studying at all of Texas A&M’s sites. Tucker plans to pursue a degree in construction science.
Texas A&M is in the midst of constructing a $40 million track and field stadium. The 52,000 square foot complex, includes a nine-lane sprint and hurdle straightaway down the middle of an Olympic standard nine-lane running oval along with a dual field event area. Longer throwing events will utilize the grass infield of the current training facility. “The facility, along with the adjacent new softball stadium, is expected to be completed prior to the start of the 2018 outdoor season,” according to the university.
Texas A&M is hosting the NCAA Division I indoor track and field championships in both 2017 and 2018, giving Tucker “home field advantage” should he qualify for the nationals.
