How hurdler Rasean Jones took his competitive fire from the football field to the track at the 2025 Oregon Relays
Rasean Jones wins the boys’ 110m hurdles at the 2025 Oregon Relays. Photo by RunnerSpace.
by Owen Murray
“Two? Three? Four? Five?”
Rasean Jones couldn’t remember how many hurdles he hit. By the time the hurdler from Baker High School crossed the finish line, his left knee was scraped and scratched.
It didn’t matter.
Jones, who returned to Hayward Field to run under the lights for the 2025 Oregon Relays in April, wasn’t sure by the time he got in front of the broadcast camera to talk to the host. All he could do was guess at which hurdles bloodied his leg.
What he did know was that he had two top three finishes in his two hurdles races, including a win in the 110-meter hurdles. He’d learn soon that his two times were both the best in Oregon this year. He’s known how to play this game— be confident, and run your race.
But this isn’t his only sport. Jones is a wide receiver, too, with his eyes on the college gridiron. He’s a three-star prospect, per 247Sports, and has official offers from five schools, including Boise State University and Oregon State University. He’s used to the contact — just not on the rubber.
“It’s a lot different,” he said. “(In track), nobody’s touching you. Nobody’s in your space. It’s just you versus you, and trying to do your best.”
On the final straightaway at Hayward Field on April 5, it was Jones versus the record books. The junior ran 14.34 in the 110 meter hurdles to set a new 2025 Oregon #1 time. Behind him, three athletes ran personal-record races. None were closer than 0.16 seconds.
He’s used to being in front. It was nice that they were close.
“It’s definitely a lot more competitive,” he said. “I don't really get a whole lot of competition in Eastern Oregon, so it’s cool to be out here and run with the best of the best.”
He’d come back to the track less than half an hour later to rack it back up. He got back in the blocks and was in the field for the 300 meter hurdles.
That race didn’t go exactly how he wanted — despite running an Oregon #1 38.52, he had runners in front of him. 38.52 seconds grabbed third place, behind Keith Rogers Jr. (Todd Beamer High School) and Miller Warme (Kamiak High School).
He didn’t even check the final results on the video board before coming to the media mixed zone. It’s all about the mentality, he said.
“In football, you’ve gotta get yourself almost psyched out,” he said. “You just have to be way more energetic. (In) track, it’s more that you’ve got to be confident. You’ve got to know what you need to do, run your race, and trust the training.”
Now he’s got one more year to lock his spikes into the track. He’ll keep his studs in the turf, too. Both are special.
There’s something about Hayward Field, though. He knows it, and he had the time to look.
The fastest high school hurdler in Oregon even had time to glance up during his race at the lights and the people. He knew the feeling.