Matt Dillon In Good Position For State

If, or when, Matt Dillon joins the elite 60-foot club, it’s going to be hard to pinpoint exactly why or how he did it.

The Ferris senior has been a consistent participant in track, without being consistent. And, without a football future, he may not be in this position, even if he was in this position.

What does all that mean?

Dillon threw the shot put 58-7-1/2 before the midway point of the track season, which put him in the position to think big.

“The biggest thing is he grew up as a person,” Saxons assistant Mike Pfeifer said. “He’s more mature so he cares about what he’s doing. He spends more time on technique. All three throws are technique events. Obviously, in the shot where he is competitive statewide, technique is where he can (have an advantage).

“Part of it is how bad he wants it.”

So, let’s figure out the development of Matt Dillon the shot putter.

The desire came from disappointment. A mediocre 52-foot thrower last year, he was on his way to the district meet at Central Valley when a friend’s car problem made them late for the competition. They were disqualified.

“That’s probably the main reason I came back this year. I wanted to go to state and compete,” Dillon said. “It’s laughable now but at the time it was pretty embarrassing.”

Yes, a 52-footer would be No. 2 in the Greater Spokane League so regional would be in and state would be realistic.

The 6-foot-5, 250-pound Dillon earned all-GSL honors as a defensive lineman and a scholarship to Idaho.

Without college football, Dillon might not have lifted weights as hard over the winter, building the strength to give 60 feet a serious run.

So instead of just getting to state, he can think about winning state since he is the leading 4A thrower.

One last thing, with a scholarship in hand, Dillon had to make a hard decision about what to do with his limited time.

“I’ve been doing (track) since I was a freshman. It’s the first sport I lettered in,” Dillon said. “I wanted to do it. I like track. You’re competing against yourself. There’s no other real factors. You can win, but that’s not really the goal. The goal is to improve.”

Once Dillon committed to track, he decided to see how much he could accomplish. One day he changed his throwing style from the glide to the spin, and 60 feet is in sight.

“I was really getting mad a practice. I decided to give it a try,” he said. “I’m more consistent with the spin. I’m not as off-balance.”

Pfeifer noticed an immediate difference.

“In practice he’s 57, 58 consistently,” he said. “Before when he threw 54 in meets, he was 50, 51, occasionally 53, in practice. The consistency wasn’t there. I don’t think he has topped out.”

While all that is going on, he’s become one of the top discus throwers in the GSL with a real shot of getting to state.

“The discus is a work in progress,” Pfeifer said. “He has potential to be in the high 60s, maybe 70s. He’s not an 80 or an elite thrower, but he’s good enough he can compete in the state and place - probably high.”

With success comes enjoyment.

“I kind of want to do track in college,” he said. “I want to do both sports if possible.”