Army steeplechaser Nathan Davis driven to succeed, reaches NCAA meet

Nathan Davis had a grandfather and parents who all served in the U.S. Army so he was inclined to pursue an opportunity to attend West Point. He had the grades at upstate Columbia High School and thought he had the running times to compete for Army.

>He wasn’t actively recruited, though, and reached out to coach Michael Smith to give him a look. Davis had a good cross country season but he was sick often during the winter indoor track season and bad timing had Smith making his initial view at what was a disappointing state championship meet.

>Undaunted, Davis continued to make his push. He made an unofficial visit to West Point, shadowing a cadet for a day, and made a detour to Smith’s office.

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>“He looked at me and said, ‘You’re not good enough yet,’’’ Davis recalled, a hard realization for a 17-year-old prospect.

>“I had seen him run and I wasn’t convinced that he was ready for this level of competition,’’ Smith said.

>“I did feel like I was essentially humiliated,’’ Davis said. “It definitely wasn’t a good feeling because my parents are so supportive – they’re the reason why I am doing anything in my life.

>“Personally, I never heard that before, you know, so as a young kid … when you hear that for the first time, you’re like, ‘Dang, I’ve got to fix something.’’’

>Smith was honest with Davis and gave him some identifiable time marks to meet. “I had one goal in mind – just hit that standard for a coach.’’

>Fortunately, Davis used the incident as a motivator, reached Smith’s goals within a week or two, the coach said, and got his West Point appointment for the Class of 2026.

>“He’s been a star ever since,’’ Smith said of his elite 3,000-meter steeplechaser.

>Davis has already qualified for his first U.S. track and field nationals set for July and is a strong candidate for the Army’s World Class Athlete Program, a path that could lead to a bid for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

>Highly accomplished since his freshman year, last week Davis, 21, became a two-time NCAA track championship qualifier, finishing in the top 12 at the East Regional qualifier in Kentucky. Davis finished ninth in a competitive race, finishing in 8 minutes, 34.35 seconds — just two seconds off his career best from April.

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>“It’s always a good relief to have that qualification for this meet,’’ Davis said. “It’ll be fun to be back. I’m just looking forward to it.’’

>A year ago, Davis ran 8:38 to place sixth in the East Regional and a then-personal best 8:37 at the NCAA meet to place 14th.

>“I’ve got the (NCAA) experience now, so I’m just looking to capitalize on it,’’ Davis said. Smith believes his runner has an opportunity to advance out of Wednesday’s semifinal round and into Friday’s final, especially if his heat gets off to a quick pace. Smith believes Davis could be Army’s first point scorer at NCAAs since 2001.

>“He’s not just Army-Navy (meet) good, or Patriot League good … now he’s NCAA good, and in this day and age it’s very different from what it was 10 years ago,’’ Smith said.

>Army varsity athletes are very different from their college counterparts, pushed to excel in athletics, academics and the military. Frankly, Davis believes that approach fits ideally for his personality and drove him to higher goals. “The Academy certainly helped sharpen his tools,’’ his coach said.

>“He’s cut from a different cloth,’’ Smith said. “He is, in some ways, self-made. He is so driven and so rigid in his belief in himself that it carries over into his competition. He’s very determined and that spirit of his is unbreakable so he can handle a lot of adversity and still come out the other side shining … that has happened on so many occasions.’’

>Davis has a busy summer ahead of him. He recently graduated from West Point with a degree in chemical engineering. “It was a huge relief just to graduate from the place, but at the same time it’s bittersweet (because) it’s given me everything,’’ Davis said. He has six months of training ahead of him at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri. His commanding officer would make a recommendation for the WCAP path, something Davis would appreciate for a lifestyle conducive for him and his girlfriend, and put him on a path for the Olympics.

>“I definitely feel like I’m still physically maturing,’’ said the 5-foot-11 Davis, who actually grew seven inches in the months leading to his junior year of high school. “I don’t think my body has reached its peak.’’

>kmcmillan@th-record.com

>X / Twitter: @KenMcMillanTHR

NCAA Div. I track and field championships(at Hayward Field, Eugene, Oregon)

>Mid-Hudson ties

>Wednesday: Army’s Nate Davis in Men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase semifinals, 8:38 p.m. ET

>Thursday: Goshen grad and Vermont’s Emma Wapshare in the Women’s javelin final, 9:15 p.m. ET

>Friday: Should Davis advance, the 3K steeplechase final is 8:24 p.m. ET

>Overall schedule

>Wednesday: On track – 8:05-11:36 p.m. ET; Field – Hammer at 5:30 p.m. ET; rest from 8:35-10:10 p.m. ET; Combined events – Men’s decathlon starts at 4 p.m. ET, concludes at 10:43 p.m. ET (ESPN from 8-11 p.m. ET; ESPN2 from 10:56 p.m.-midnight ET; ESPN Plus will carry field and combined events)

>Thursday: On track – 8:21-11:36 p.m. ET; Field – Hammer at 5:30 p.m. ET; rest from 8:35-10:10 p.m. ET; Combined events – Men’s decathlon starts at 1:45 p.m. ET, concludes at 10:43 p.m. ET (ESPN2 from 8 p.m.-midnight ET; ESPN Plus will carry field and combined events)

>Friday: On track – 8:02-10:21 p.m. ET; Field – 5:15-8:10 p.m. ET; Combined events – Women’s heptathlon starts at 2:45 p.m. ET, concludes at 9:43 p.m. ET (ESPN2 from 8-11 p.m. ET; ESPN Plus will carry field and combined events)

>Saturday: On track – 8:02-10:21 p.m. ET; Field – 2:30-8:10 p.m. ET; Combined events – Women’s heptathlon starts at 5:30 p.m. ET, concludes at 9:43 p.m. ET (ESPN2 from 8-11 p.m. ET; ESPN Plus will carry trophy presentation, field and combined events)

>This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Army steeplechaser Nathan Davis driven to succeed, reaches NCAA meet