FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — From Fayetteville to New Jersey and back, former purple dog and track and cross country athlete Camren Fischer is back home to bring his dream to life, competing for the Arkansas Razorbacks.
"It means a lot," Fischer said. "Obviously, I'm from here, from Fayetteville, so coming home is very exciting, very nice. And I'm just really looking forward to being back settled down in the town of Fayetteville and representing the U of A."
Fischer returns home after graduating from one of the best academic institutions in the world, Princeton University, a place where being a student athlete can be tough.
"It's a lot of demand coming from all different directions, and it really forces you to try and figure out a good balance with your life," he said. "Like I said, it was difficult at first, but you kind of figure things out and later on, it gets better.”"
Overall, he’s glad he got that opportunity.
“I took that opportunity, and I don't regret it. It was a great time. Learned a lot about myself as an athlete, as a human being," Fischer said. "Like I said, more than anything, it's a great homecoming to come back here and be at such a great place like this."
Fischer believes the five years competing at Princeton has prepared him to be a Hog.
"Having those five years under my belt in the NCAA, you experience a lot, you see a lot, you kind of understand the system," he said. "Being a little more mature coming into this, knowing that I'm coming here to get work done and just compete, you know, I think I've gotten some of the early excitement out of my system, and I'm just ready to get to work."
While he says competing at an Ivy League school was difficult, it’s nothing to what it will be like in the SEC. He said he's excited for the challenge.
“I think there's obviously just a lot of the athletes here, a lot of the coaches here, [that] are just really focused on sports in general and making sure you perform to the best of your ability," Fischer said. "I think that's what I'm really looking forward to the most about coming back to the SEC and Arkansas in general."
His main goal for his one year in a hog uniform is to prove to himself that he belongs here.
"Test myself, see what I'm capable of," Fischer said. "Obviously, I want to help out the team any way that I can, but more so just, enjoy the process. I still love running, and that's the biggest part of it for me, why I've continued to do it."
Now, back home where his love of the sport began, at the place he calls the ‘Track Capital of the World,' he's ready to make his childhood dream come true.
"The best place to be for a track and field cross country athlete," he said. "The emphasis here on this sport is insane. Best facilities, best coaches, best trainers. You know, this is the place to be."
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