MOORHEAD – In 1979, Minnesota State Moorhead assistant track coach Dave Bergstrom set the school men’s high jump record, clearing 7 feet, 1¾ inches. He’s ready to see that mark eclipsed.
“That thing is so old,” Bergstrom said with a laugh.
Bergstrom thinks one of his current pupils has the ability to top that long-standing standard. Dragons redshirt freshman Brian Huber cleared 6 feet, 10¼ inches this season, a mark good enough to qualify Huber for the NCAA Division II championships, which start Thursday in Allendale, Mich.
“I firmly believe that he’ll be a seven-foot high jumper,” Bergstrom said. “I believe it is well in his range to break the school record. If I get to coach the high jumper to break it, that would be really cool.”
Huber, from Staples, Minn., already set a school record in the men’s long jump earlier this outdoor season, soaring 25-0¾ at the Ron Masanz Classic. He’s ranked in the top five in that event heading in the the outdoor championships.
“I think he’s talented enough that the sky’s the limit,” Dragons head coach Darren Schneider said. “I don’t think he’s close to being at his best.”
The 6-foot-5 Huber was the Minnesota Class 1A state title in the long jump during his senior year at Staples-Motley. He’s the school record holder in both the long jump and high jump. Huber said he’s never measured his vertical leap, but he first dunked a basketball the summer before his freshman year in high school.
“It was easy to see the potential,” Bergstrom said.
Huber said breaking the school long jump record was a season highlight, especially since he set the new standard on his home track. His teammates gathered near the long jump pit and did a rhythmic clap to help pump up Huber for his attempts.
Huber could tell that record-setting jump had a different feel.
“As soon as I took off I could tell I was way higher in the air,” Huber said. “When I landed in the sand, I popped up right away. I knew it was big. I didn’t know it was that big. … I hadn’t felt like any of my jumps before so it was really a cool feeling.”
Schneider was impressed with the effort.
“People that were standing around there were just speechless,” Schneider said. “It was a gasp from the crowd.”
Later that day, Huber cleared a personal best 6-10¼ in the high jump at the Masanz. After setting the school long jump record, Huber considered not competing in the high jump that day.
“I think it was such a rush from having the good long jump,” Huber said with a smile. “I don’t know what was going through my head that I didn’t want to (high jump).”
Huber needed that big effort to make the Division II championships in the high jump ranked No. 20 in the event entering the competition.
“The raw talent is really high,” Bergstrom said. “He has the ability to raise his performance to the competition (level). I’m really excited to see him jump against these jumpers at nationals.”
