When MJ Erb decided to redshirt last year, he knew he’d have to work hard in practice to stay in shape. That work has already begun to pay off less than a month into the season.

In his second race at Syracuse, the Dartmouth Invitational on Sept. 14, Erb was the first Orange runner to cross the finish line. The redshirt freshman finished third overall with a time of 23:59.56.

“(Head coach Chris Fox) wanted us to get used to the system so that we’d be better for the next few years,” Erb said. “It’s definitely helped me a lot because last year, I didn’t have any pressures on me so I was just able to kind of adapt and get used to the training and what would be expected of me for the next few years.”

Just two races into this season, Erb has already proven that he’ll be a contributor for one of the nation’s best teams – and his coaches have taken notice.

Assistant coach Adam Smith said Erb’s hard work redshirting last year and during the summer has started to pay off.

“MJ’s one of our most fit guys right now,” Smith said. “He’s running with a lot of confidence right now. It wasn’t surprising to see him up there.”

At the beginning of his running career, though, Erb wasn’t even sure he would like the sport at all.

“I did track one year just to see what it was like, and then my high school coach approached me when I was in middle school and convinced me to give cross country a try,” Erb said.

That decision not only led Erb to join his high school cross country team, but also started him on his path to Syracuse.

When Erb was in high school, he became friends with former SU runner Kyle Heath. The two ran together at Victor High School in Farmington, N.Y. Erb said Heath told him Syracuse was a good place to go.

“(Heath) definitely helped convince me because he ran so well under Fox,” Erb said. “He showed me how much he trusted Fox.”

As soon as Erb got to Syracuse, he trusted Fox and decided to redshirt. It also gave Erb an opportunity to take a year off and not only get better, but also learn from older runners who had redshirted their freshman year.

“They definitely have showed me what I’m supposed to be doing and how it’s supposed to be done,” Erb said. “Those guys are always looking out for me.”

Said assistant coach Smith: “I would certainly hope that he continues his success and we see him being a big part of this squad. We see MJ as one of our top guys.”

Published on September 23, 2013 at 11:21 pm

Contact David: dlauterb@syr.edu