Fairview's Jacob Guthrie runs during the county cross country meet in 2016.

Jacob Guthrie won’t have to work up much of a sweat to continue his running career this fall.

The Fairview graduate recently signed a scholarship to attend and compete on the trails at nearby Wallace State Community College, which officially reintroduced its cross country program back in April following a nine-year hiatus.

Guthrie, who had originally planned to walk on with the Lions, couldn’t have been more excited to put pen to paper.

“I know my parents are absolutely happy and relieved,” he said with a laugh. “This is my dream. My goal has always been to compete against the best out there. I really enjoy doing this, and I’m glad that I’m getting the opportunity.”

Guthrie’s decision to target Wallace State as a potential landing spot came about rather quickly.

“I texted coach (Hobson) Hite as soon as I heard the program was coming back,” he said. “Then coach (William) Calvert just got in touch with me, and the ball just started rolling.”

Calvert is currently serving alongside Mark Aderhold as one of the primary recruiters for the Lions, who will eventually be led by former track and field coach Stan Narewski, who won a men’s NJCAA Division II national title in 1997.

According to the St. Bernard cross country coach, the decision to offer Guthrie made sense from multiple angles.

“First, Jacob is an outstanding young man of great character,” Calvert said. “His times indicate he’ll be a good runner. I really think he’ll do great things at Wallace State. He’ll surprise some folks. I’m excited to get this program back as well. We have a huge cross country following in this county. It’s really strong. That’s going to benefit local kids and Wallace State in the future as the program continues to build. I hope Jacob is the first of many.”

Added Guthrie: “I’ve made several new friends through running. It’s been a really good time. Hopefully, I can continue doing that for the next two years.”