Recruiting class making mark

The success of most college athletics programs depends on the success of the recruiting process, and the IU men's track and field team has had several good recruiting classes over the past few years.\nLast year was no different.\nTwo of those recruits, John and Sean Jefferson, plan to help put IU on the national level not only in track and field, but also cross country. \nThe twins went to school at Atlantic Community High School in Florida. Their college search began outside of Florida because they were looking for a change. They said they also wanted to compete at the same school.\n"We weren't going to split," John Jefferson said. "It makes school and everything easier."\nThe Jeffersons first visited IU for a Nike indoor meet during their junior year of high school. While here, they met some of the guys and Distance Coach Robert Chapman. They liked what they saw, and coach Chapman started recruiting. \n"Coach Chapman worked very hard on getting them here," Coach Marshall Goss said. "They are super young men."\nThere were several things that interested the twins about IU. They liked the campus and the guys on the team. The fact that the team was so young and their ability to make an impact helped, too. Fellow freshman distance runner Stephen Haas was also interested in attending IU, so the three decided to come here together. That decision helped lead to one of the best recruiting classes in the nation. \nJohn is almost a lock for the NCAA indoor championships this season with a mile time of 4:02. With this weekend being the last opportunity to qualify for nationals, it would take some amazing times to keep him from going.\nSean will not get the opportunity to run in nationals. He started the first few meets, but a stress fracture in his foot prevented him from running the rest of the season. He has began practicing again and should be full strength for the outdoor track season.\nBeyond this season, the freshmen said they have big plans for IU. Not only do they want to compete at a high level, but they want the team to compete there as well.\n"We want to progress every year," Sean said. "Hopefully by our junior and senior years, the cross country and track teams will contend for the national title."\nThe twins want to compete for individual national titles, too. These attempts will most likely be made in the 1500-meter run, the mile and the 5 kilometer run.\nCompeting for a national title is not the last individual goal they have, either. The Jeffersons both have aspirations for running beyond college.\n"In two years, I would like to go to the trials for the summer Olympics and see how that goes," John said. "Maybe after our college careers, a company like Nike and Adidas will give us a deal"