University of Georgia Athletics
Quick Chat: Brandee Presley
February 10, 2022 | Track & Field, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Imagine the nightly race dinner table that you and your siblings had. Now imagine that race only you're one of nine children, many of whom will one day be student-athletes at top collegiate programs. Welcome to Georgia sprinter Brandee Presley's world.
A junior from Tulsa, Okla., Presley began her collegiate career at Ole Miss before transferring to Georgia in 2021. She's one of nine siblings, and the family is loaded with athletic talent. One brother, Brennan, is a wide receiver at Oklahoma State, and another, Braylin, also a receiver, just signed with the Cowboys. She also has an older sister, Britney, that ran track at Oklahoma State.
During a recent Quick Chat, Presley talked about her competitive family, wanting to get away for college, her love of cooking, and much more. Here's some of what she had to say:
Frierson: How did you get started in track and when did you realize that it was something you could do at a really high level?
Presley: I actually started running when I was about 4 years old, and it wasn't just me, it was my whole family. My parents wanted to put us into something to keep us active; in the beginning, I was young and I didn't think anything of it. I had fun at practice with all of my friends and siblings; we were just out there running around, but then as I got older I realized that I'd gotten good at it.
I tried other sports like basketball, but I realized that I wasn't good — they just wanted me because I was so fast. I was like, why don't I just put all of my time into track and see where that takes me. As time went on, I fell in love with it more and more and more.
Frierson: Let's talk about your family. You're one of nine children, which is a lot, and it appears that most if not all of them are really good athletes. What is like growing up in that big of a family and that athletically talented a family?
Presley: It can get really competitive, to be honest, but we all love that because it pushes us in a way that we feel like no one can. No one knows us better than each other, so growing up, when you have your younger brother or your older brother or older sister or your younger sister saying, "Hey, I'm faster than you." You're just like, "Oh, no, you're not." Then you go outside and race.
That competitive spirit, that competitive fire, it still keeps us going to this day. Even though I may be here, we still have that competitive edge. It keeps us on our toes, but we still like to have fun with it. We know that as we get older we start to separate and we don't have that much time together, so when we do come back together we always get competitive with each other. It's not just track, though, and seeing who's the fastest, we'll do basketball pickup games and things like that.
It brings my family closer together and I know it keeps me humble to know that this is where I came from and this is who I'm doing it for,
Frierson: You've got a bunch of siblings at Oklahoma State, so how did you get away?
Presley: Growing up, I did want to go to OSU but it was only because everybody in my family went to OSU. As I got older, it was still in the back of my mind but it wasn't No. 1 anymore. I was the one that got away — I always wanted to spread my wings and go outside of my home state and experience different things. I wanted to see what it was like to be on my own, live on my own, do my own thing.
I wanted to fail on my own so that I could learn to succeed on my own.
Frierson: When you have time to get away from school and track, what do you do to relax?
Presley: One of the hobbies that I have is, I like to cook, so I like to experiment with things in the kitchen and see what I can whip up and make to make me feel good. That's one of the things that brings out my creativity.
I also, if there's something on my mind, I try to write. Not like poems or anything but I just try to write out what I'm feeling. Other than that, I'll call my family. It takes my mind off of school and takes my mind off of track. Sometimes you need that freeness of the outside world, so that the next day I can get right to it again.
Frierson: Say you were inviting a couple of teammates over for dinner, what would you cook for them?
Presley: I actually did this. I made this type of pasta — I'm not going to say what's in it because I don't to give it away. It's cajun pasta and it's not necessarily the things you would see in cajun pasta, I put my own little twist on it. I had to figure out some things at first and it took a while to develop (the recipe), but when I did finally develop it, it turned out really good.
I actually made it for them and they loved it. They wanted me to make it again but I was like, that's a lot of people to make it for [laughs]. That is probably one of my go-to dishes that I make for people, and they instantly love it. They ask me what's in it and I'm like, "I really can't tell you because I don't want you to make it and steal my idea."
Frierson: Do you have any pre-race routines or rituals that you do before every race?
Presley: I always pray, but I don't really have anything that I do before races. I just pray and then I always tell myself that it's only one race. Whatever you do in that race, whether it be good or bad, you learn from it and you move on.
I try to clear my head before every single race because it's never good to think before you race. I try clear my head, relax my body, and think about what I came here for, think about what I'm running for, and it just makes me go harder. When I get up on that line, everything goes blank, everything goes silent, and then I just go.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Staff Writer
Imagine the nightly race dinner table that you and your siblings had. Now imagine that race only you're one of nine children, many of whom will one day be student-athletes at top collegiate programs. Welcome to Georgia sprinter Brandee Presley's world.
A junior from Tulsa, Okla., Presley began her collegiate career at Ole Miss before transferring to Georgia in 2021. She's one of nine siblings, and the family is loaded with athletic talent. One brother, Brennan, is a wide receiver at Oklahoma State, and another, Braylin, also a receiver, just signed with the Cowboys. She also has an older sister, Britney, that ran track at Oklahoma State.
During a recent Quick Chat, Presley talked about her competitive family, wanting to get away for college, her love of cooking, and much more. Here's some of what she had to say:
Frierson: How did you get started in track and when did you realize that it was something you could do at a really high level?
Presley: I actually started running when I was about 4 years old, and it wasn't just me, it was my whole family. My parents wanted to put us into something to keep us active; in the beginning, I was young and I didn't think anything of it. I had fun at practice with all of my friends and siblings; we were just out there running around, but then as I got older I realized that I'd gotten good at it.
I tried other sports like basketball, but I realized that I wasn't good — they just wanted me because I was so fast. I was like, why don't I just put all of my time into track and see where that takes me. As time went on, I fell in love with it more and more and more.
Frierson: Let's talk about your family. You're one of nine children, which is a lot, and it appears that most if not all of them are really good athletes. What is like growing up in that big of a family and that athletically talented a family?
Presley: It can get really competitive, to be honest, but we all love that because it pushes us in a way that we feel like no one can. No one knows us better than each other, so growing up, when you have your younger brother or your older brother or older sister or your younger sister saying, "Hey, I'm faster than you." You're just like, "Oh, no, you're not." Then you go outside and race.
That competitive spirit, that competitive fire, it still keeps us going to this day. Even though I may be here, we still have that competitive edge. It keeps us on our toes, but we still like to have fun with it. We know that as we get older we start to separate and we don't have that much time together, so when we do come back together we always get competitive with each other. It's not just track, though, and seeing who's the fastest, we'll do basketball pickup games and things like that.
It brings my family closer together and I know it keeps me humble to know that this is where I came from and this is who I'm doing it for,
Frierson: You've got a bunch of siblings at Oklahoma State, so how did you get away?
Presley: Growing up, I did want to go to OSU but it was only because everybody in my family went to OSU. As I got older, it was still in the back of my mind but it wasn't No. 1 anymore. I was the one that got away — I always wanted to spread my wings and go outside of my home state and experience different things. I wanted to see what it was like to be on my own, live on my own, do my own thing.
I wanted to fail on my own so that I could learn to succeed on my own.
Frierson: When you have time to get away from school and track, what do you do to relax?
Presley: One of the hobbies that I have is, I like to cook, so I like to experiment with things in the kitchen and see what I can whip up and make to make me feel good. That's one of the things that brings out my creativity.
I also, if there's something on my mind, I try to write. Not like poems or anything but I just try to write out what I'm feeling. Other than that, I'll call my family. It takes my mind off of school and takes my mind off of track. Sometimes you need that freeness of the outside world, so that the next day I can get right to it again.
Frierson: Say you were inviting a couple of teammates over for dinner, what would you cook for them?
Presley: I actually did this. I made this type of pasta — I'm not going to say what's in it because I don't to give it away. It's cajun pasta and it's not necessarily the things you would see in cajun pasta, I put my own little twist on it. I had to figure out some things at first and it took a while to develop (the recipe), but when I did finally develop it, it turned out really good.
I actually made it for them and they loved it. They wanted me to make it again but I was like, that's a lot of people to make it for [laughs]. That is probably one of my go-to dishes that I make for people, and they instantly love it. They ask me what's in it and I'm like, "I really can't tell you because I don't want you to make it and steal my idea."
Frierson: Do you have any pre-race routines or rituals that you do before every race?
Presley: I always pray, but I don't really have anything that I do before races. I just pray and then I always tell myself that it's only one race. Whatever you do in that race, whether it be good or bad, you learn from it and you move on.
I try to clear my head before every single race because it's never good to think before you race. I try clear my head, relax my body, and think about what I came here for, think about what I'm running for, and it just makes me go harder. When I get up on that line, everything goes blank, everything goes silent, and then I just go.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
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