What does a pork chop have to do with VCU sprinter James Frierson’s preformance at last weekend’s Fred Hardy Invitational at the University of Richmond?
The sophomore sprinter ran the 100-meter dash in 11.06 seconds, just about half a second slower than the outdoor personal record he set as a freshman last year.
Going by the logic of a wise man, VCU track coach Julian Spooner, Frierson said it had everything to do with the disappointing preformance.
That logic, Frierson explained, says the two are one in the same.
“Your muscles are just like a pork chop,” Frierson said, quoting Spooner, “except you don’t eat it.”
How would you rather have your pork chop, Frierson asked, pulled straight from the refrigerator, frozen and rock solid. Or would you prefer that it be heated nice and warm so that everything was loose and ready for you to enjoy.
Two weekend’s ago at the Ram Invitational, Frierson, who has been nursing an injured hamstring for more than a month now, had a chance to tenderize his muscles much like the pork chop in the second example, thoroughly applying heat to his leg before edging out teammate Jackie Deshazo in the 100 by running a 10.60 (Frierson’s personal best in the event outdoors is 10.57 seconds).
Last week at Richmond, he only had a chance to half heat the leg and essentially took the track running on a frozen pork chop that had only partially thawed. His muscles were tight, and he ended up finishing third behind Virginia’s Reuben Jones and Pittsburgh’s Chris Anderson.
Frierson said he hasn’t clocked in at more than 11 seconds in the 100 since his competing in high school at Highland Springs, and he has no intentions to relive those days.
“That’s the first and last time that will ever happen,” Frierson said of last weekend’s results.
He won’t run the 100 this weekend when the Rams travel to Christopher Newport Saturday for the Captains Classic. Instead he’ll enter the 400 for the first time since the Colonial Athletic Association championship last spring.
His goal: to qualify for NCAA Regionals, which would mean circling the track in 47 seconds.
Keep in mind this would be just his third meet since the hammy injury.
“I’ve got big dreams with a hurt leg,” he said.