Mount Union basketball player Elijah Cobb finding All-American success in high jump
ALLIANCE, Ohio (BVM) — Elijah Cobb’s main sport has always been basketball. However, in high school, he tried out track and field — specifically the high jump — and became a state placer.
After joining the Mount Union basketball team and taking a couple years off from jumping, Cobb is back at it again and once again is making waves, this time at the collegiate level.
Cobb’s initial love of basketball has always been around. When he was in the fourth or fifth grade, the two-sport athlete had a defining moment in his passion for the game.
“I woke up, my dad gave me a basketball jersey and some basketball shoes and said, ‘get up, you have a basketball game to go to,’” Cobb said. “From that day on, I’ve just been in the driveway with the hoop everyday. Ever since I was little, I’ve been watching my favorite basketball player, Kobe Bryant, and I still do. Watching is how I learned.”
While growing up, Cobb also had a liking for football, a sport he continued with until his junior year of high school. However, by that point, the Mansfield St. Peter’s grad put his sole focus on the hardwood, as his talent continued to grow.
Throughout his youth, Cobb played AAU basketball with several clubs, including All-Ohio Red, Ohio Rebels and Hidden Gems. The point guard quickly developed elite jumping ability, a high basketball IQ and strong quickness.
“This is where I have to thank my parents, because I am so grateful they put in the time, the money and the effort into letting me experience AAU,” Cobb said. “Any kid or young adult still playing AAU will tell you how important and really how fun the experiences are that you can get from AAU. It definitely drove my love for the game of basketball.”
By the time high school rolled around, it wasn’t always easy for Cobb, as he played his first year-and-a-half at St. Peter’s on the junior varsity team. By the time he made it to varsity, Cobb would fall just short of state three different seasons.
However, Cobb’s senior season put his talent on full display. Averaging 18 points, over six rebounds and five assists per game, the point guard also became a 1,000-point scorer in just two-and-a-half varsity seasons.
“My high school career overall was very good,” Cobb said. “I only played varsity for two-and-a-half years and scored 1,000 in that time which is something a lot of people can not do and will not do. My experience was definitely one to remember.”
As well as the humble athlete was performing on the basketball court, a love for a new sport began to grow. In Cobb’s junior year, he was persuaded by his friends to try out track and field. Specifically, the St. Peter’s grad found a love for the high jump.
“My junior year, I finally tried it out,” Cobb said. “I’ll be honest with you, I did not take junior year seriously at all. Once I realized at the end of my junior year that this is something I could really be good at if I tried, it got serious for me senior year.”
Cobb would make it all the way to state as a senior, placing eighth in the OHSAA Division III boys high jump competition. In doing so, he became the first boys track and field athlete at St. Peter’s to medal at state.
Seeing the instant success he had, Cobb was intrigued by the thought of competing in the high jump in college.
“I realized I really can be this type of person if I want to, and that’s what really made me want to try it in college,” Cobb said.
However, with basketball still at the forefront and what he was being recruited for, Cobb decided to put a similar plan in place to his high school years.
“I got recruited to play basketball, so I told myself the first two years, I’d do basketball,” the 21-year-old added. “And then junior and senior year, depending on how I adapt to college and figure out time management, I’ll see if I can fit in track.”
Although Cobb was not the most heavily-recruited player, he still was being eyed by one of the top Division III programs in his home state and the entire country: Mount Union. As soon as he began talks with the Purple Raiders, Cobb was sold.
“I didn’t have many offers or many people trying to recruit me,” Cobb explained. “I visited a couple schools, but once I visited Mount Union, the feel and the vibe that I had from the coaches and walking in the gym, I got chills. I just took that and ran with it.”
As a business management major who strives to own several businesses across multiple industries someday, Cobb was also sold on the academic offerings of Mount Union.
During his freshman season, Cobb had to adjust to the increased level of competition college basketball provides. Even playing DIII, the point guard was still impressed by the high-level of play he was seeing.
“I saw a lot more talent and a lot more skill than I thought, on my team and teams that we faced,” Cobb said. “That made me work even harder than I already was. I love the coaches, fans, teammates; the basketball program has plenty of all-around great people.”
One of Cobb’s basketball teammates, Tanner Slack, is also a high jumper for Mount Union. Sticking to his original plan out of high school, Cobb decided to get back to high jumping as a junior this past spring, learning plenty from Slack right away.
“Tanner Slack, that man is a lifesaver,” Cobb mentioned. “He also pushed me a little bit to jump in college. I asked him questions and for so many tips on how to do this and how to do that. He really is a big help and a big part of where I’m at today. I wanted to be the best, so why not learn from the best.”
Whatever Slack taught Cobb worked sooner than anyone may have imagined. In his third meet of the season in April, Cobb set what was then a national-best season mark with a jump of six feet, nine-and-a-half inches. The jump even bettered that of Slack by half an inch.
MT&F: There's a new number one in NCAA Division III High Jump freshman Elijah Cobb today jumped 6-feet 9.5-inches taking the top spot from teammate Tanner slack by half an inch! Evan Hershberger also jumping huge today making over 6-feet 8.25-inches. #GoMountGo #FlightCrew
— Mount Union Purple Raiders (@purpleraiders) April 10, 2021
While impressive, Cobb notes that it took a tremendous amount of work and effort on the part of he and his coaches to get back to such a high level after two years off from competition.
“I definitely had to buckle down,” Cobb said. “I knew I had the potential or what I call, the starter pack, and have the potential to really be good at this. If I want something, I will get it by any means necessary. I wanted to score 1,000 points, and I did it in two-and-a-half years. I wanted to be if not the best, one of the best high jumpers on the track team, and I became that. I wanted to become a college athlete, I did that.
“If someone told me, ‘Hey, Elijah, do you remember being at the track at 12 at night,’ I would say that I don’t remember that. That’s how many days and nights and that’s how much time I spent since I started my college high-jump career. I worked so hard. I did whatever I had to do and talked to whoever I needed to talk to to reach that accomplishment.”
Ultimately, the hard work Cobb put in paid off in more ways than one, as he also had the chance to compete in the NCAA Division III 2021 Outdoor Track & Field Championships. There, he would finish sixth in the high jump, earning All-American status.
“I still don’t believe that I went, and not only did I go, but I placed sixth,” Cobb said. “I have to give praise and all my glory to God. Going to outdoor nationals my first year doing track in college, I don’t think a lot of people can say that. I’m not trying to brag at all, but that’s just not very common. That was definitely one of the top-five best moments of my life.”
Now, Cobb will have one final year at Mount Union to show off his skills both on the hardwood and on the track, and hopes to finish off his athletic career right.
“For basketball, I really want to go further than what we did last year,” Cobb noted. “Everybody wants to win a national championship, that’s everyone’s top goal. If not win a championship, I want to lose the championship game.
“With track, I want to continue to have the same work ethic that I did to get me here. I really want to go and jump as high as the Lord has me jump. I’m just going to continue to work and we’ll see how things go.”
The uniqueness of Cobb’s story is part of what makes the talented athlete so special. Not only is he a rare two-sport collegiate athlete, but excelling in his secondary sport right off the bat at the next level is tremendously impressive. For the incredibly talented Cobb, he is not finished writing his story, but hopes it may serve as a bit of inspiration for fellow athletes.
“Go get it,” Cobb concluded. “As long as you work for it, it’s there for you. You can be whatever you want to be as long as you put the work in and put your mind to it. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that statement is really true. That’s really how my mentality is and how I look at life. My brother told me one thing that I will never forget. He said, ‘Do the unexpected, do what people would not expect you to do.’ Ever since he told me that, I’ve applied that to my life and it’s been working for me so great.”
