Jefferson makes impact in his last year

Five years ago this month, Sean Jefferson, along with twin brother John, decided to run for the Hoosier cross country team. At the time, they had solid personal bests and elite credentials in both cross country and track. Sean was a multiple-time Florida state champion in the 3,200-meter and set the state record for the event. Despite this success, Sean's cross country abilities were less clear.\nSince his arrival at IU, Sean Jefferson has set an IU freshman record in the 5,000-meters with a time of 13 minutes, 58 seconds, earned three All-American awards and won an NCAA mile title. In addition, Jefferson made his presence known at the NCAA's highest level with a convincing mile victory at the 2004 Indoor Track and Field Championships, finishing in 4:00.2. \nThe following cross country season, Jefferson scored another All-American award, this time finishing 34th. During the 2005 indoor season, Jefferson added to IU and NCAA track history by winning Notre Dame's Meyo Invitational Mile in a school-record time of 3:56. John follwed closely, finishing in 3:57. The pair became the first twins in NCAA history to run under 4:00 in the mile in the same race. The feat inspired the entire track team.\n"In the last lap, we thought we could break four," John said. "Sean was up ahead hammering, and I just kept trying to chase him. We've been running together forever, so it was great to break four minutes together."\nSenior All-American Stephen Haas said he thinks the title has helped the reputation of IU's program.\n"A national title will bring any team to national prominence," Haas said. "But I think Sean does more than that for us. He sets a very high standard that everyone on the team can take notice and learn from. He is very driven."\nAt the 2005 Pre-NCAA meet -- his season debut -- Sean finished 16th, especially impressive considering his abbreviated training schedule after finishing track competition in Europe in late July. Typically athletes will take a full summer to prepare for cross country -- Sean only had eight weeks. \n"I came to IU because I wanted to help develop this program into one of the best teams in the country," Sean said. "I wanted to make a difference here and help this team get back to the national spotlight. And I feel like we've done very well as a team since I have been here, but there is still more to accomplish, and that's what this year is for."\nJust more than three weeks remain in Jefferson's collegiate cross country career. This past weekend, he was the only runner to break up No. 2 Wisconsin's top eight runners, finishing fifth. \n"I want to finish in the top 15 at the NCAA Championships," Sean said. "I will do whatever I can to help the team finish as high as possible and accomplish our goals. This cross season is about finding out how good I can be"