{"id":74894,"date":"2020-02-19T18:43:00","date_gmt":"2020-02-20T01:43:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/cortezs-titus-jackson-signs-with-western-colorado-track\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T05:35:18","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T11:35:18","slug":"cortezs-titus-jackson-signs-with-western-colorado-track","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/cortezs-titus-jackson-signs-with-western-colorado-track\/","title":{"rendered":"Cortez\u2019s Titus Jackson signs with Western Colorado track"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Montezuma-Cortez
Montezuma-Cortez High School senior Titus Jackson sits with his parents, PA Jackson and Jeannie Schiess, after signing a letter of intent to join the Western Colorado University track and field team next season.<\/span>Ian MacLaren\/For The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

From the moment he could walk, Titus Jackson showcased a rare natural athleticism. By the time he hit high school, he appeared destined to be a prep star.<\/p>\n

Now, after a junior track season in which he finished second in the state 3A championships in the 300-meter hurdles (39.25) and third in the 110-meter hurdles (14.97), the Montezuma-Cortez High School senior has accepted an offer to join Western Colorado University\u2019s track and field program next fall.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has always been my dream to be a collegiate athlete,\u201d Jackson said, before signing his letter of intent at M-CHS on Feb. 18. \u201cI saw myself playing basketball, but track is where my heart is at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Jackson\u2019s development as a hurdler did not begin in earnest until last spring when he dedicated himself to the sport.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy cousin, Micah Hightower, got me into hurdles,\u201d Jackson said. \u201cFreshman year, I didn\u2019t compete a lot and sophomore year, I came out late and hurt my leg. Junior year, I really fell in love with the track environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Titus
Titus Jackson poses with Montezuma-Cortez High School head coach Bob Archibeque and other members of his school\u2019s coaching staff after signing a letter of Intent to compete in track and field at Western Colorado University.<\/span>Ian MacLaren\/For The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

With help from longtime M-CHS head track and field coach Bob Archibeque and the M-CHS coaching staff, Jackson became a leader on and off the track.<\/p>\n

After his junior season, colleges began calling, but a visit to Western Colorado helped him make a decision.<\/p>\n

\u201c(Western) reached out to me, and I got to go up there and take a campus visit and meet the team,\u201d he said. \u201cI actually got to stay in the dorms up there with the team. It was a lot of fun, and I felt very welcomed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Next fall, Jackson likely will come under the tutelage of the program\u2019s head coach, Lindsey Gramick, who was an eight-time NCAA Division II qualifier for the national championships and held Adams State University\u2019s record in the 400-meter hurdles.<\/p>\n

Since taking over as head coach at Western Colorado three years ago, Gramick\u2019s sprinters and hurdlers have set 11 school records and qualified for the NCAA Division II championships numerous times.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was impressed by the friendliness of the coaches, and I could see myself being very successful in (Western\u2019s) program,\u201d Jackson said.\u201cCompared to other schools that offered, I just saw Western offering me more of an opportunity for success.\u201d<\/p>\n

Until then, Jackson has unfinished business on the basketball court after qualifying for the Class 3A State Tournament last season.<\/p>\n

He averages 14.6 points and a team-high 6.6 rebounds per game for Montezuma-Cortez and has emerged as one of his team\u2019s vocal leaders.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now, my focus is mainly just on basketball,\u201d Jackson said. \u201cOnce basketball is over, then I\u2019ll focus on what I want to do in track. I am looking forward to trying to win state championships in both hurdles events, and I will come into the season ranked No. 1 in (Colorado\u2019s 3A Classification) in both events.\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019s made a believer out of his high school coach.<\/p>\n

\u201cTitus is the epitome of role model,\u201d Archibeque said. \u201cHe is a very hard worker, and he has been gifted. He has been a pure athlete from the word \u201cgo,\u201d kids like him, and he likes being around kids. He has an easy demeanor, and he\u2019ll fit in well at Western.\u201d<\/p>\n

Until he leaves M-CHS, Jackson will continue to be a leader. He offered young athletes a little advice.<\/p>\n

\u201cWork hard no matter what it is you\u2019re trying to work at,\u201d Jackson said. \u201cIf your path takes a different turn, then let it. Do whatever your heart tells you to do.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

hurdler may be ranked No. 1 in final prep season<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":74895,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[13,28,36,29,346,594],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-74894","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-frontpage-lead","tag-headlines","tag-montezuma-cortez-high-school","tag-newsletter","tag-sports","tag-track-and-field"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74894","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=74894"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74894\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":90339,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74894\/revisions\/90339"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/74895"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=74894"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=74894"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=74894"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=74894"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}