Timber Creek sprinter Ryan Jennings aims for even faster days ahead at Arkansas

If you thought Ryan Jennings was fast before, wait until she starts believing in herself consistently.

The Timber Creek senior sprinter is one of the fastest girls in the region and set New Jersey’s record in the 100-meter dash (11.33 seconds) in May.

But when Arkansas — last year’s NCAA outdoor track and field champion — called her in July, Jennings’ surprise was almost soundtracked by a scream into the phone.

Fortunately for the eardrums of all involved, she’s quick on her feet.

“That was just mind-blowing because I didn’t even reach out to Arkansas,” Jennings said in a phone interview. “They somehow found my number. I was so scared. I ran down the stairs, muted myself, and then screamed!”

Her stock and confidence have been on the rise ever since. Jennings committed to the Razorbacks last month over Kentucky and Alabama.

“Ever since they contacted me,” she said, “I have felt like, ‘Wow, I might be more than I think I am.’ I still feel like the little kid who’s trying to win. But they actually want me on their team so they can win more.”

After Jennings set the 100-meter record May 31 at Group 3 sectionals at Delsea, her father, Jamar, started a daily routine that included asking his daughter, “Who’s the greatest?”

Sometimes it came in a random text throughout the day or it was the way they ended each phone conversation. No matter what, there was only one acceptable answer.

“I have to text back, ‘I’m the greatest,’ because he wants to make sure that I’m always A1,” Jennings told The Inquirer in June. “That I’m always looking into the mirror, knowing it’s just me against me.”

On Saturday at the New Balance Early Bird Invite in Boston, Jennings won the 60- and 200-meter dashes running “unattached” against collegiate speedsters.

Her top times made her eligible to register for the open event, which she used to test herself against better competition.

She did something similar at her family’s annual Cousins Invitational last month in Nashville.

Jennings’ cousins are the grandsons and sons of former NFL receivers Freddie Scott and Freddie Scott Jr.

Ian Scott is a sophomore at Dartmouth. Immanuel Scott is a junior at Division II West Virginia Wesleyan. Izaiah Scott played at Centre College, a Division III school in Kentucky and graduated from Morgan State. Christian Scott is a senior wide receiver at Brentwood Academy (Tenn.) with recruiting interest from Hampton.

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Jennings beat them all in the family’s 100-meter dash during the Thanksgiving holiday break. The previous year she finished fourth.

“It felt like I earned the most athletic in the family title,” Jennings said. “And now I have solid proof. Best bragging points ever.”

Further corroboration might occur at Arkansas, where Jennings hopes state-of-the-art facilities, a championship-winning coaching staff, and Olympic-level teammates will help her become a professional some day.

When Jennings and her mother, Kelly Graham, visited in October, Jennings said the school’s sprawling campus sold itself.

“We got to campus and I was like, ‘Wow, this is really pretty,’” Jennings said. “As soon as my foot touched down on the pavement, I was like, ‘Oh, this is home.’”

It helped, she added, that athletes at Arkansas have their own dining hall, where food, smoothies, and other drinks are made to order and catered specifically to the athletes’ physical needs.

Jennings also says she’s grateful to her mother and her stepfather, Harry Graham, for helping her find confidence more often.

“Both of my parents and stepdad,” she said, “completely have my back. … They built me to realize [my worth]. Basically, they hold me up so that even if I fall, I can still catch myself by myself.”

Being within Arkansas’ orbit also already helped Jennings realize how hard she must work at the next level. She has her own strength coach, a separate coach for speed training, and then her track coaches.

That doesn’t include the academic work she maintains as an honor roll student.

“I am so proud of her,” her mother said. “She has been awesome with juggling school and track and staying on the honor roll since ninth grade. I mean, I can’t ask for a better student-athlete in a child. She’s a go-getter.”