BYU commit Jackson Spencer of Herriman, Utah, was surprised by two-time Olympic bronze medalist Grant Fisher with the 2025–26 Gatorade National Boys Cross Country Player of the Year award.

The award is considered the top honor in high school sports. The Gatorade Player of the Year celebrates the nation's best high school athletes for their excellence in sport, academics, and community.

Spencer was chosen after a fall season in which he won the Nike Cross Nationals and Brooks XC Championships titles.

Paul Hof-Mahoney caught up with Jackson Spencer and Grant Fisher to discuss the award and plans for the upcoming indoor season. The following interview has been edited lightly for clarity.

Paul Hof-Mahoney: Jackson, You've won everything there is to win this year, and this is the capstone on that. How does this feel today?

Jackson Spencer: It feels awesome. I'm really glad to get this award — it means a lot.

Hof-Mahoney: Set the scene for me. What did this morning look like?

Spencer: We showed up for our morning run. It's blizzarding outside right now, so it was kind of an adventure. We came back, and then a teammate and I had to go fill out some forms for New Balance Nationals. We were told there were more forms in the football room, and when we walked in, there was everyone — Grant with the trophy and the whole group. They surprised me. It was pretty crazy.

Hof-Mahoney: Grant, you're a two-time winner of this award yourself. How special is it to continue to be a part of what this award means and to share it with the next generation of American distance runners?

Grant Fisher: It's really fun. I've been lucky enough to help present the award three years in a row now. You just meet really, really good kids who have bright futures in a lot of different things. If you look at the trophy, you can see everyone's name in every sport going back to when the award started and it's such a springboard and a great predictor of future success — both in sport and just as a person.

You have to be well-rounded to win this award. It's always fun to meet the rising stars of the next generation. It's hard to understand how hard it is to win: one person gets to win it in this huge sport. I don't know who else would have won it this year besides Jackson. I don't think the panel had much of a decision to make. He's very deserving and it's fun to be part of it.

Hof-Mahoney: Jackson, Grant mentioned that all the former winners' names are on the trophy, and there are a lot of BYU commits and standouts on there. I believe this is the sixth time the award has gone to a future BYU runner, with Danny Simmons winning two of those. It's four in a row now: Danny twice, Charlie Vause last year, and now you. What does it mean to carry on that legacy?

Spencer: It's really cool that so much talent is heading up to BYU. It's really neat to carry that on. Hopefully, another BYU commit can make it and win next year. We'll see.

Hof-Mahoney: Grant, you mentioned the season Jackson had — undefeated, two-time national champion, and then a top-20 finish at World Cross Country Championships. How impressed were you with what Jackson was able to do every time he took to the course this fall?

Fisher: It's incredibly impressive to be that consistent throughout a whole season. High school distance running is way more competitive and deep than when I did it. Back in my day, no one really attempted to win both national championships. There'd be a handful who tried, but it was very uncommon. To win those back-to-back and then continue the season into a World Championship is a different level than what was around when I was in high school. You win one meet, you win another, and then there's a target on your back and a lot of pressure going into these meets.

To perform at your best across a variety of conditions, states, locations, and competition levels is really, really hard — especially when you're young. It's one thing when you're a professional, but to do that at 17 or 18 years old is very, very hard. Anyone who watched this year knows that Jackson was the best cross-country runner out there.

Hof-Mahoney: Jackson, Grant mentioned the pressure that comes with it. When we talked before NXN, you said you kind of invite that pressure and the target on your back. Going into NXN already a national champion, and then heading to Brooks and World XC, where everyone sees you as the top American high schooler in the field — How did you keep dealing with that pressure as the postseason and the accolades kept coming?

Spencer: It was super fun. I genuinely like having pressure. The way to keep it from getting to you in practice is to just stay consistent with what you were doing before you started having success. I've kept doing everything the same and just upped the training a bit. I also don't take social media at face value. I basically don't even think about it. It's a distraction, so I stay off it. That's pretty much how I've handled it.

Hof-Mahoney: Now that your cross-country season has ended, we're about a month and a half removed from World XC, what has training looked like as you build into the track season?

Spencer: It's been good so far. I felt really good the week leading up to World XC and then I got my wisdom teeth out the Friday right after. It actually worked out perfectly. It fit right into my break. I've pretty much recovered from that now and I'm getting back into it. I'm actually racing tomorrow at Simplot, which will be fun. I'm just going to run it as a specific effort to see where my fitness is. It's a prelim, so it's mainly a gauge.

Hof-Mahoney: What event are you racing up in Idaho?

Spencer: The 3200m. It's really just a fitness check. I'll go off of that and see where I can get in the 5000m at New Balance.

Hof-Mahoney: Grant, as Jackson moves into his last high school track season and looks ahead to what awaits him in the NCAA, what's your biggest advice for him?

Fisher: Don't look too far down the road. Enjoy the moments you have right now. This is his senior year. He'll never have these moments again. He's lucky enough to be part of a really strong team and not everyone has that. From what I've seen, they have great camaraderie and are great friends, and I'm sure they'll continue that. But the memories you make in high school — those last forever. Some of those friendships will be for life. When it's time to be in college, focus on college.

For now, focus on maximizing your high school career, having fun, letting the pressure come without letting it overwhelm you, and just enjoy those moments — because they're limited. Whatever comes, comes. I think the future will be great no matter what.

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