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What is there left to prove for Jelani Watkins? For the past four years, he has continued to prove that he is one of the fastest high school boys in Texas as well as nationally.
He is already off to a fast start to the year with the results of his two indoor meets. Watkins is tied for the No. 1 ranking in the nation in the 60m with his 6.73 performance this past weekend in Arkansas and he's ranked No. 2 in the 200m with his 21.19.
Those performances are slightly off from his personal best indoor marks of 6.67 and 20.94 from last year's Texas Tech Under Armour High School Classic.
The two-sport star is just months away from having to prove himself at the next level. He is committed to Louisiana State University (LSU) to play football and run track.
Before that time arrives, Watkins still has the spring to demonstrate to the track world what he truly has. As a senior, there will be no spring ball for him to share his time to train and compete in.
There are a couple of more changes that will come for Watkins this track and field season. He will be doing it in a different uniform and for a different school, team, and coach.
Jelani Watkins competes at the 2024 LSU High School Classic
Over the summer, Watkins transferred from Klein Forest where he ran and played football for his first three years of high school to Humble Atascocita High School.
Last year, he helped lead the Golden Eagles to the UIL 6A team state championships. Running under the tutelage of Coach Remon Smith, the MileSplit National Coach of the Year in 2023, Watkins won his second UIL 6A 200m state championship. He also anchored the 4x100 relay and 4x400 relay teams to state championships as well.
At Atascocita, Watkins has an opportunity to win another team state title. He will join a team that had a junior class with some of the top 400m and 800m individuals last year as well as three state ranked relays who are mostly all returning. With the addition of an elite sprinter like Watkins who can run on all three relay teams and who could potentially win 100m and 200m titles this year, Atascocita may run it back with even more punch than we originally thought.
The Atascocita coaching staff could be a major factor in the chances as well as Watkins' continued development.
Ironically, Atascocita track and field has another key new member to the program; this one is on the coaching staff. Elton Ervin is in his first year as the new head coach of the boys track team. There could be some familiarity in coaching style/philosophy.
Coach Ervin was coached in high school by Andrew Blanks at Westbury High School. Blanks is one of only two high school coaches in history to have coached two eventual Team USA Olympians at the same school.
The Blanks coaching tree just so happens to include Klein Forest's Coach Smith who also ran at Westbury for Blanks. Another nationally accomplished coach to learn under Blanks is Shelton Ervin from Humble Summer Creek. Shelton Ervin is the 2021 USTFCCCA National Boys Coach of the Year and has led Summer Creek to three UIL boys state track and field titles.
Elton Ervin comes over from Summer Creek where he coached hurdles.
With the addition of Watkins and Ervin, the 2024 track and field season could be very interesting. Watkins is already showing he is ready to go.
