When the sun is barely up, the Herrin High School boys’ cross country team is already running. At 5:30 in the morning, before most students have even thought about breakfast, these athletes are logging miles together, driven by a shared goal: to prove that their dedication can carry them to the state meet once again.

Senior Mason King, junior Nolan Frost, and sophomore Miles Ellet are three of the Tigers leading the charge, alongside head coach James Elliott. Their story is not just about racing three miles at a time, but about a culture built on perseverance, teamwork, and sacrifice.

Mason is the only member of the group who ran cross country in junior high. Nolan and Miles came to the sport later—Nolan after years of baseball, Miles after first joining track for conditioning. Both discovered something in cross-country they hadn’t found elsewhere. “I knew how dominant of a team it was, and I wanted to be part of that,” Miles explained. Nolan agreed, saying what began as extra training soon became a passion once he realized how successful the program could be.

The high school races are three miles over grass, hills, and uneven courses. But the athletes quickly found that the challenge was part of the reward. “It hurts and you’re always sore,” Nolan admitted. “But once you cross that finish line, you see those times, and you think about all the work you put in, it feels very rewarding.”

Coach Elliott, a longtime special education teacher and coach, believes cross country creates a bond unlike any other sport. “The training is much harder than the race,” he said. “It’s a brotherhood and a sisterhood. They learn to push their body and their mind to the limit. When they cheer for each other, it’s because they know exactly what their teammates are going through.” The boys agree, often describing their daily grind as “trauma bonding”—laughing as they say it, but recognizing the truth in those words.

That bond is tested and strengthened through relentless training. By mid-season, the team had already logged more than 600 miles and is expected to exceed 1,000 before the year ends. Practices happen three mornings a week before school, with additional workouts after classes and even on weekends. The dedication is clear: even if someone oversleeps, they make up the miles on their own. “That’s how committed they are,” Elliott said.

The program has grown into a consistent contender. Last season, Herrin advanced to the state meet in 2A for the first time in a decade. It was a milestone that showed how far the team has come despite being one of the smaller schools in its classification. With an enrollment of 628, Herrin is on the low end of 2A, often facing schools twice its size. “We run against schools that can field two varsity teams,” Elliott said. “But our strength is that we have a pack of runners close together in ability. That makes us dangerous.”

The schedule reflects both strategy and ambition. The team competes in 10 regular-season meets, plus the regional, sectional, and state races. At times, varsity runners will train instead of racing, especially on smaller courses where injury risk is high. “Sometimes a hard workout is more valuable than another race,” Mason explained. At the biggest meets, though, Herrin shows its full strength, often finishing in a tight group—what Elliott proudly calls “a wolf pack.”

The goals this year are clear. As a team, the Tigers are aiming for a top-10 to top-15 finish at state. Individually, the runners set ambitious targets. Mason hopes to break 15 minutes, ideally dipping into the 14s. “The ultimate goal is to do it at state,” he said. Nolan, who ran in the 15:30s last year as a sophomore, wants to be in the 15:10 to 15:20 range. Miles has similar hopes, pushing for steady improvement as part of the team’s pack.

Beyond the times and placements, Elliott stresses the life lessons cross country instills. “It teaches discipline. It shows you that you can do hard things,” he said. Many of his former runners have gone on to careers in teaching, engineering, and the military. “They will outwork anybody,” he added proudly.

For Mason, the sport has shaped his future. He plans to run in college while studying business. Nolan and Miles, still underclassmen, are focused on building the program further, inspired by the team’s growth and potential.

With state once again in their sights, the Tigers are running strong—proof that hard work, dedication, and unity can carry a small but mighty team to big places.