SLIPPERY ROCK — Brady Kadlubek and Gunner Coleman are hoping not to be humbled in Humble, Texas.

Next week the Slippery Rock High athletes will travel to the small town just north of Houston to compete in the USATF National Junior Olympic Track and Field Championships.

Kadlubek, a senior, will compete in the 800-meter run against more than 50 competitors from all across the nation. Coleman, a junior, will compete in the 400-meter hurdles against more than 100 others.

It’s a daunting field, but the duo both say they really have nothing to lose and everything to gain from the experience.

“That’s exactly why I’m going,” Coleman said. “To see all the other kids from all over the country, and to see where I stack up against them.”

Kadlubek and Coleman began Junior Olympic track and field this year almost on a whim.

Coleman was the first to give it a try and then Kadlubek joined in.

“Gunner got me interested in it,” Kadlubek said. “We both love it. We both love track and field.”

They both punched their tickets to Texas at the USATF Region 2 Junior Olympic Championships last weekend in Galloway, N.J.

Kadlubek finished third in the 800 with a time of 2 minutes, 1.48 seconds. Coleman placed fourth in the 400 hurdles with a time of 1:03.01.

Coleman slashed nearly four seconds off his time to qualify for nationals.

“It was kind of both the competition there and everything started to click,” Coleman said. “I’ve worked a lot with Brady. He’s been kind of my mentor. I think the adrenaline kicked in during the finals.”

Coleman, though, is ranked near the bottom in the seeding among the 100 competitors in the 400 hurdles.

“If I can cut two more seconds off my time, I’ll be right in the mix of placing,” Coleman said.

But he also has a disadvantage because he doesn’t have much experience in the event. Pennsylvania is one of just a few states that eschew the 400-meter hurdles for the 300-meter hurdles during high school track and field season.

That extra 100 meters is a big deal, Coleman said.

“It’s actually real tough,” he said. “There’s an extra turn and it makes it a lot different race.”

Both Kadlubek and Coleman play football for Slippery Rock and have had to squeeze out time to pursue track this summer.

They are both running unattached — unaffiliated with a team. They have had to practice on their own throughout the process and get themselves to and from meets.

Kadlubek and Coleman will fly down to Texas Tuesday. The meet begins Wednesday.

Kadlubek said he was shocked he has made it this far because his times in the 800 are slower than the marks he put up during high school track and field season this spring.

“I was extremely happy. This is a chance of a lifetime,” Kadlubek said. “I just wanted to go out and compete and have fun.

“At the end of the regular high school season, I was running (1:59.91) in the 800,” he added. “I hope with the competition down there, I can get to that again.”

Kadlubek is a three-sport star with the Rockets. As a receiver on the football team, he caught seven passes for 219 yards and four touchdowns. As a guard on the basketball team, he averaged 10.9 points per game and drained 40 3-pointers. And this spring, he ran the 400, 800 and legs on both the 3,200- and 1,600-meter relay teams.

His favorite sport is dependent upon what season it is.

“Friday nights during the fall, football is my favorite thing,” Kadlubek said. “In the spring, track is my favorite thing and I love basketball, too.”

This week, he’s going to love track and field on the highest scale.

“Gunner and I are doing a couple of workouts and we both hope to drop a couple of seconds off our times,” Kadlubek said. “Hopefully, we can do that.”