(Photos by Chris Burgoon)
Ryan Burgoon has been a part of some great cross country teams at Barrington High School. He finished 23rd at the state meet as a junior and followed that up with a 12th place showing his senior season. Burgoon boasts personal bests of 9:27.90 (3200m), 14:40.00 (three miles), and 16:09.00 (5000m). Recently, he decided where he will spend the next four years and run on the collegiate level.
What was the recruiting process like for you?
The recruiting process was a lot of fun, but it did require quite a bit of time talking on the phone and sending emails. The official visits were a great way to get to know the schools, as well as the teams.
What schools were you considering?
I looked at the University of Illinois, Loyola (Chicago), Marquette, Notre dame, and Cornell.
In the end you decided to stay in state and pick the University of Illinois. What factored into your decision?
I chose Illinois because its business school is fantastic, it's close by, and they have a great program. I liked the recruiting class. Most of all, I felt the most comfortable and fit in the best during my official visit there.
You mentioned the recruiting class. They have done a great job with keeping Illinois runners at home. How important was that to you to run with guys you are familiar with?
The recruiting class helped me substantially in making my decision to run at U of I. It consists of five other Illinois XC/track runners that I know of, and I know and raced all of them at some point during my high school career. They all seem like real cool guys, and the best part is we all are at about the same ability level, so it will make training very interesting since we can push each other.
With the addition of this year's signing class as well as the past few, it seems Coach Stewart and the rest of the squad have their eyes set on a conference title. Is that a similar goal you see, local talent achieving lofty goals?
When I was visiting, Stewart and the rest of the team were really excited about the possibility of winning the conference championship next year since U of I has a strong returning group of guys. There is no doubt that the state of Illinois produces some of the best distance runners in the country, so it would be a shame if U of I didn't tap into the enormous pool of talent. I think it makes U of I cross country that much more special of a team since it is comprised mostly of its own state's athletes.
What are you looking forward to most about wearing the navy blue and orange?
I'm looking forward to competing against some of the best schools/runners in the nation, as well as traveling all over the country.
It's your last high school season at Barrington High School. What will you remember most about your time there and running for Coach Ty Gorman?
Coach Gorman has been a fantastic coach and I cannot thank him and the rest of the coaching staff enough for their infinite wisdom and motivation to be the best athlete I can be. I'm going to remember the tremendous growth and Barrington XC's rise to elite status in the state of Illinois during my time at BHS. But I will mostly remember the great group of people that collectively accomplished such successes throughout the past four years.