At the NCAA Championships, you won the finals of the 100-meter dash in 9.89 seconds, which tied a 26-year-old TCU record. What does it feel like to run that fast? I’m relaxed. That’s really the way you’re supposed to feel. Not tight. You can’t stress. It looks like I am working really, really hard, but it is really more about concentrating on fluid technique. That’s how you know you’re reaching your top speed. You’re going fast, but there’s no strain. Track and field really is a mental sport, not just a physical one.

What are you doing when you get in the starting block? I pray before I get in the blocks and I keep saying my prayers as I am getting into the blocks. But once I am in there, everything just goes blank. I’m not thinking about anything. No thoughts. A blank mind until after the race.

What did you do to go from very good to elite this season? Last year, there were guys I beat who were improving. I wasn’t. Coach [Daryl] Anderson and I had a talk about that, and he said that I needed to train harder and be more disciplined. I needed to be more mature. I needed to change my work habits. So I starting eating better. I took the TV out of my bedroom. I basically made up my mind that I would be in the training room more and work harder. A lot of the small technique stuff was not as good as it should be. Pretty soon, it came down to the mental part. I started to get the confidence in myself and knew that I would be ready for elite competition.

Is it true that you tore knee ligaments in high school? I played running back on the football team in high school and tore my ACL my junior year and then the other ACL my senior year. I had two surgeries. So my football career was over, but my trainer was a mastermind in keeping my spirits up and helping me stay focused on getting the strength back in my legs. He would always say that I still had my natural speed and I could have a successful track career. And he was right. I went on to win the 100 at state. I still text him and thank him for keeping my head on straight.

When did you know you were fast? I’d say fifth grade. I was playing football with my brother Kevin against some guys. He handed me the ball, they came at me, so I made one move and I was gone. I didn’t want them to tackle me. I guess I was running scared. After that, my brother starting telling me I was fast.

Read more of the interview with Charles Silmon, including the difference between sprinting indoor versus outdoor events, how he approaches senior leadership, who his track heroes are, and what it meant to win the Big 12 Conference title in his hometown of Waco at magazine.tcu.edu/webextras.