University of Georgia Athletics
Markham Ready To Lead His Team To Higher Goals
October 08, 2014 | Swimming & Diving
By Anne Noland
Three minutes and 44 seconds. Every day of the year, every morning of 5:30 practice, every lifting session, every meal, every final thought before bed devoted to three minutes and 44 seconds.
This is Jared Markham's definition of normal. In March, Markham, a current senior on the men's swim team, finished 13th in the 400 individual medley at the 2014 NCAA Championships with a time of 3:44.21. He met his goal - score points for Georgia and help his team to its second-best NCAA finish in school history.
But that was last season. On Friday, Georgia will host Alabama to open the 2014-15 campaign, and last year's accomplishments will only serve as motivation for more.
"We definitely have a goal of pushing ourselves to be at the top of the SEC and to keep dropping our ranks as far as the NCAAs," Markham, a Centennial, Colorado native, says. "Those are the two big goals, but we also want to continue to make sure that the culture and the mindset of the team is where it needs to be throughout the season."
Markham's imprint on the team, though clear on the results page of every meet, is largest on the team's culture. He has placed goals for himself - he wants to finish in the top eight at NCAAs this year - but Markham will unashamedly say that his focus is primarily on how he can lead his teammates to success, both in and out of the pool.
"I think one of the best things that I do for the team is really motivating people day-in and day-out at practice, making sure everybody has a positive mindset," he says, admitting that his best motivation often comes in the form of laughter. "Right from the beginning, I had a pretty good vision of where I wanted to help take the team. I take a lot of pride in everything that we've accomplished, the culture of our team and how it's improved and changed over the last four years."
Markham spends extra time encouraging the younger student-athletes that are not accustomed to the demands of college athletics. Swimming is a unique sport in that athletes spend hours every day preparing for a race that could last as little at 20 seconds. Any swimmer will also tell you that the offseason does not exist.
Markham describes his sport as "a grind," one that can easily wear you down. Yet he has shown a unique ability to not only meet the demands but also exceed the expectations placed upon him. It's common for swimmers' times to stay stagnant towards the end of their college careers. But that's not the case with Markham.
"I'm still continuing to improve. My times are getting faster every meet, even though people say that's hard to do once you get older," he says.
He attributes his continued success and improvement to many things - his coaches, his teammates and his training - though he says it's his love for the sport that spurs him on. But those around him say what really makes Markham stand out is his love for other people.
"For as long as I have known him, he has been kind and generous to those around him," Jordan Mattern, a fellow senior and teammate of Markham's since high school, says. "Not only is he this way with his friends and teammates but also with those who are strangers to him. He is a leader both in and out of the pool, and he inspires his teammates to give the best that they can because he gives his best every day."
Markham has lofty goals for himself this season and in the future. He wants to post the best times of his swimming career in the next six months. Six months after that, he hopes to be putting his sports management degree to work in the NFL. But currently he is a senior at the University of Georgia. He is a student first and an athlete second. And he will spend every day of this season cheering on his teammates.
"Jared Markham has a great love for people, the outdoors and the University of Georgia," coach Harvey Humphries says. "If you couple this with his consistency in the pool and the classroom it makes him a natural leader. He is great for team chemistry and plays a very important role in what this year's team needs to do to reach our goals."
Anne Noland is a senior from Marietta, Ga., who is majoring in public relations. She is in her fourth year as a student assistant with the UGA Sports Communications office.
"Coming Attractions" is a weekly feature published on georgiadogs.com spotlighting a UGA student-athlete who will be competing in a key home event during the upcoming weekend. Previous stories include:
August 28 - David Andrews (football vs. Clemson)
September 4 - Carly Hamilton (cross country in Bulldog Invitational)
September 11 - Tirah Leau (volleyball in Benson Hospitality Invitational)
September 18 - Mariel Gutierrez (soccer vs. Vanderbilt) September 25 - Toby Johnson (football vs. Tennessee)
October 2 - Emma Sonnett (soccer vs. Tennessee)
