Aiken High's Habersham signs with Denmark Tech track and field

JaQuan Habersham was a late arrival to Aiken High's track and field program, a group he joined just because he was looking for something to do after football season came to an end.

As it turns out, he's got a future in the sport. He's heading to Denmark Technical College to join Panthers' track and field program, where he'll look to continue to build on what he's learned in year one.

"It feels good, being the first out of my family going to college," he said. "I'm very excited for my upcoming college career, and I'm happy that everybody showed up like they said they would."

Aiken High coach Kayla Hostetler expressed the type of wishful regret coaches often do when an athlete joins their program late. Denmark Tech coach Javon Gilliard expressed disbelief that Habersham only had a year of track and field under his belt.

"I don't like to sit around. After football got over with, I was, like, I need something else to do, so let me do track," explained Habersham, who also boxes at the Hankinson Boxing Gym. "It being my last year, I was, like let me go ahead and do this for senior night and other awards. Football is a team sport. Track, it's a team sport, but it's also based off you and your performance and everything." 

Habersham did his due diligence in researching Denmark Tech before making his decision, and in doing so he found that he liked the Panthers' track and field program. He considers himself to be an all-around team member - and he hasn't had enough time to truly specialize in one discipline - so he's willing to run, throw, or anything else Gilliard asks him to do.

That follows how Hostetler described Habersham, a self-starter who will do things like "borrow" the thrower's book so that he can study it on his own time away from practice. That paid off in the form of a Region 4-AAAA championship in the shot put, and he also finished fourth in the 200-meter dash.

Habersham is interested in studying to become an athletic trainer. If not, he's also interested in commercial truck driving and cybersecurity. He's looking forward to the career opportunities that this next step will open up for him, and he's also looking forward to expanding his circle of friends and family. Needless to say, he's coming from a big one at Aiken High. 

"They've prepared me. They've boosted me up a lot. They're really my confidence builder," he said. "I'm an introvert. I stay in the house. With them, it's, like, you've got to come outside. With my coach, it doesn't matter what she's got going on, she's going to get you into college, she's going to get you where you need to be in life. That's the family I want."