Graduate hurdler and jumper Ramsey Hunt is looking for more success in his final year with the Panthers.  

In spring of 2023, Hunt recorded a long jump of 26’1.50″ at the OVC Outdoor Championship, winning him the silver medal at the event and breaking an EIU record that had stood since 1974. 

Seeing the previous record sitting in the book for 50 years, Hunt said he felt confident in breaking it. 

“It had been kind of what I had been working toward for a few years, so it felt more like my plans coming to fruition than it was a freak thing,” Hunt said. 

Last season, Hunt joined Eastern’s long jump record book for the indoor season with a jump of 25’0.75″ to rank fourth in program history. He was named to the All-Ohio Valley Conference first team in the long jump and was a second team All-American. 

This season, Hunt was named Co-OVC male athlete of the week after winning first place in the John Craft Invite on Jan. 25 in the long jump with a distance of 7.60 meters. Hunt also won the long jump in the Fighting Illini Challenge in Champaign with a distance of 7.51 meters. 

Before coming to Eastern, Hunt attended Shiloh High School in a village in Hume. Hunt’s familiarity with Eastern’s campus came through. 

“More than anything, it’s close to home,” Hunt said. “I grew up 20 minutes from here. It’s pretty convenient just to end up here, and for track, I’ve been here for state every year, and it’s just a good fit.” 

Eastern’s sprints and hurdles coach Riley Baker was once one of Hunt’s teammates. Together, Hunt and Baker won conference championships. 

Baker credits Hunt for helping him with the transition from being an athlete to being a coach.  

He said knowing Hunt and him used to put on the same jersey and compete together at the same meets made the transition odd at first.  

“When I exchanged the jersey for the polo, it was definitely a little bit weird at first, just kind of being in that professional role and now being responsible for part of his training and getting him to the level he wants to compete at,” Baker said. 

As a graduate student, Hunt said he believes he is past his prime. He said his expectations for this season are to make it through. 

But Eastern’s director of track and field and cross-country James Gildon disagrees. 

“I think the best is still yet to come,” Gildon said. “He’s jumped really far in the past, but I still think he has a few more in him.” 

Gildon has been impressed by what he has seen from Hunt so far this season. 

“He has a goal this year of winning the OVC and qualifying for the NCAA indoor national championships, so that’s kind of in front of us, and he has taken some really good swings at it this far,” Gildon said. “He’s been very close to breaking the indoor school record in the long jump.” 

Gildon not only has confidence in Hunt, but he also said that Hunt has “been a real blessing for our program.”  

Hunt goes into practice and works on his craft everyday, he said, moving him toward his goal: being the best he can be. Hunt said he spends months training before a season begins. 

Gildon also had the honor of watching Hunt make the First Team All-OVC team last year, and he said it was amazing to see Hunt’s hard work pay off in the long run. Gildon believes that Hunt’s leadership will help the younger athletes throughout the season. 

“With experience comes knowledge and wisdom,” Gildon said. “Having somebody who has done it before and done it before at a high level is just a real treasure. You know we can have a senior with that type of experience still be here, and that’s beneficial to everybody.” 

Drew Farrell can be reached at 581-2812 or at atfarrell@eiu.edu.