Jess Woodard Beyond the Circle

t goes without saying that Jess Woodard excels at throwing the shot put.

Since arriving on campus in 2013, Woodard has been a Big 12 indoor scorer three times, an outdoor scorer twice and an NCAA first-team All-American twice.

On her first collegiate throw in the 2015 indoor season after redshirting her true freshman year, Woodard recorded a 49-5 to rank 10th among the OU's all-time bests. In 2016, she qualified for the indoor championship with a throw of 55-7. With her personal-best 55-11 at NCAA, she finished as a first-team All-American.

This season she has again improved her marks in the event with throws of 56-0, 56-6.50 and 57-4.25. The 57-4.25 puts her third overall in Oklahoma school history. And that's just what she has done in indoor competition.

She finished second at the 2017 Big 12 Indoor Track and Field Championship after finishing third the previous two years. Her goal is to improve even more and hit 18.00 meters or 59-0.75.

She also competes in the weight throw in the indoor season. She is a three-time Big 12 indoor scorer - impressive résumé and accolades.

Someone who has witnessed her progression from then to now firsthand, from both near and far, has been Oklahoma throws coach Colin Boevers. “When I was a volunteer here (in 2013-14), she was a true freshman, so I got to watch her then. Seeing her now, she's a completely different athlete. I followed her through the years but, now that I work with her full-time, I can see she's made great strides in terms of technique, strength and overall athleticism. She's developed really well as an athlete and I think that's starting to show this indoor season.”

For volunteer assistant coach Allison Boevers, the change this year has been noticeable as well. “I think she saw her potential early on in the fall in training and also at the beginning of the indoor season. She really decided that she wanted to make something special out of this season and her career.”

Part of that success comes from an internal drive that Woodard possesses and a cerebral comprehension of her sport. According to throws coach Boevers, “As an athlete, she's very competitive. Physically, she is probably one of the greatest specimens I've ever coached and maybe ever will coach. She's very talented. She understands this sport very well. That goes hand-in-hand with how she competes. She understands competition and how to win. If I were to pick someone to go to battle with, I think she would be one of the first people I'd pick.” Adds volunteer assistant coach Boevers, “As an athlete, she's pretty special. She doesn't accept second best. I think she has a gear that she hides and uses when she competes. I think that any good competitor is able to realize adrenaline and turn it up when it's important.”

For Woodard, “I think staying humble has allowed me to be successful. There's always someone that is going to be better than me. There's always someone that's working harder than me. I think just the thought of that keeps me going everyday. I do want to be great. The shot put is so technical. It's difficult to be good at it. If it was easy, everybody would do it and I don't want to be involved in something that everyone can do.”

However, Woodard admits that she lost that competitive spirit and edge this year when she experienced some difficult meets and results. She lost a little of the passion that she had when she was 8-years-old and doing softball throws at the start of it all.

“One of my goals more recently, because I've had a couple of rough meets, is to find the fun in it again and why I started in the first place. I do love this sport and I want to get back to where I started.”

That recent revelation came in the Big 12 indoor championship. “The Big 12 meet was probably one of the more humbling meets that I've had in a long time. It made me realize that maybe I was thinking too much about the numbers and outcome. If I have fun and execute what I've been doing in practice, I know that I have talent and I just have to put it to use.”

All of this talk about her athletic accomplishments is rightfully deserved. For the Marlton, N.J., native and those around her, it is important to recognize that Woodard is more than just an exceptional athlete. She is also an exceptional human being.

While she came to the University of Oklahoma not knowing much about it, she has made it her mission to leave a legacy beyond the record books. “I do want to be one of those people who, when my name comes up, is remembered for being a great athlete and great person. Track will definitely come to an end one day and that's not all I want to be remembered for. I guess when I'm done and everything is said and done, I want people to remember the person I was rather than my accomplishments.”

Even if she didn't know much about the place she has called home for the last four years, what stood out to her was an understanding and connection that it felt like home. “I felt like I had a sense of family coming here. Being so far away from home, that was really important to me.”

Family is clearly at the core of who Woodard is and what she values. Her teammates and coaches witnessed the support system that converged at the Armory Track Invitational in New York City to watch her compete in early February. As an integral part of the team and Sooner family, she has been relied upon to create the culture and the camaraderie. She has become a leader for the throws group and the entire team.

“Jess is as good as they come,” praised throws coach Boevers. “She cares a lot about her teammates. She has a really big heart. She's a very easy person to talk to.” Volunteer assistant coach Boevers appreciates that while, “she is the leader, she also finds it extremely important to help everybody feel valued and that means being a good friend and having humility. I think that is something that is really appreciated.”

Away from the ring, she is a typical college student-athlete, who enjoys music and rarely has time for anything more than practice, class, studying and sleeping. She is a sports management major who intends to attend graduate school to obtain a MBA once she graduates this summer. She ultimately wants to use her knowledge and perspective as a student-athlete to work in sports administration at the collegiate level or perhaps at the professional level.

Woodard proves that you can have it all. You can be a great student, you can be a great athlete and you can be a great person and leader. “She is constantly trying to make herself better, whether it's at practice or in the classroom or in her personal life,” says Allison Boevers. “I think that's something that's pretty rare.”

She already owns the third-best mark in school history. Come this summer she'll have her undergraduate degree and, given her determination and strong will, graduate school will be in her future. She has the respect of her coaches and teammates. She is in the top 5 nationally in the shot put this year, solidifying her place among the best as if there was really any question or doubt.

While qualifying for nationals was the recognition for her elite mastery of her craft this season, it is just the first step of this season's ultimate goal.

As coach Boevers said, the goal isn't just to qualify. Woodard wants more. While she calls it an honor and a blessing, there is still more to write in this chapter. There is still that 18-meter mark left to conquer and, after an eighth-place finish in last year's competition, a leaderboard to climb. Woodard has one more opportunity to achieve that and put a cap on her junior indoor season this Friday, when she competes in the indoor championship in College Station, Texas.

Having competed on this stage before , Woodard understands that it comes down to execution, getting back to the right mental frame of mind and the talent that got her this far. “Nationals is obviously the best of the best. Still, it's just another meet and I have to go in and try my best as much as I do at every other meet. I would say the one thing I've taken away is not to be afraid because I'm here for a reason. Everything happens for a reason and I just have to give it my best shot.”

“ We talked earlier in the week about how everyone in the country has a target on their back,” explains coach Boevers. “That's something that Jess understands and gets excited about. It was a bit of a setback not winning at Big 12. I think Jess would say the same thing, but it was an off week. Everybody has them. What we've done is just focus on nationals and our goal is to go beat people. That's our only goal. We're not focusing so much on fixing little things here and there - we are focusing on competing. I think she's really excited to get there and compete with the best.

“It's a great field this year,” Boevers continues. “She's competing against the collegiate record holder (Raven Saunders). I think 15 of the 16 women have thrown over 17 meters. It's a stacked field and I think Jess is going to thrive in that."

"I think the best is yet to come,” Allison Boevers adds with confidence. “Jess understands that. I think she is going into this weekend, holding herself to a very high standard. She wants to have the best meet of her indoor season when she goes to nationals. I think that is very possible. It's going to be an exciting weekend.”

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Jess Woodard

Jess Woodard

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