As a talented young football player and sprinter at Rocklin (Ca.) High School, the thought of playing college sports had yet to resonate with Nathan Kent.
 
But the idea of serving his country in a military role already was high on his list of goals.
 
Kent's path took a turn for the best at Rocklin, where, as an upperclassman, he attracted eight offers from Division I schools that included BYU, UNLV, Army and Navy. Most schools wanted to award Kent with either a football or track and field scholarship.
 
Army and Navy offered Kent a chance to do both.
 
Ever since Kent chose to join the Midshipmen as a wide receiver and a sprinter, he has never regretted his decision. Since arriving in Annapolis directly from high school in the summer of 2022, Kent has made his mark as a rare two-sport athlete who plays varsity football at the academy, where he also has elevated his game as a runner with world class speed on the track.
 
"As a Midshipman who understands the workload and the work-life balance you try for around here, it's incredibly impressive what [Kent] has done," said Blake Horvath, Navy's senior quarterback and offensive captain.
 
"He is a craftsman, so into the little details about everything he does. He is also tough as nails. Guys look up to him," Horvath added. "He just loves working to get better. He knows how to maximize his ability. His mindset is all about the team's success."
 
Kent, now a senior who is captain of the track team and is the position captain in Navy's receivers room, has earned varsity letters every year in football, indoor and outdoor track. He is in position to finish with an extremely rare 12 varsity letters.
 
"It wasn't until my junior and senior years [at Rocklin High] that I started getting offers to play football and run track. Up until that point, my plan [after high school] was to enlist and join the military," Kent said. "My aspiration has always been to serve my country. To have the option to start that at the Naval Academy was kind of like the icing on top. I knew I was in the right place."
 
Last fall, Kent, 6-feet-3, 180 pounds, had his best season on the football field, starting 11 of 13 games and helped the Mids finish with a 10-3 record. The season culminated with Navy's first Commander-In-Chief's trophy since 2019 and a victory over Oklahoma in the Armed Services Bowl.
 
Kent's steady performance as a solid perimeter blocker and his blazing speed at the wideout spot stood out.
 
He helped to set the tone in a 34-7 win at Air Force on October 5 by taking a reverse pitch from Horvath and flying down the right sideline untouched to score a 34-yard, second-quarter touchdown.
 
A week earlier, Kent had teamed up with Horvath on a 77-yard score to fuel a 40-18 blowout of UAB. At East Carolina on November 29, quarterback Braxton Woodson combined with Kent on a 61-yard touchdown play that gave Navy a 21-6 lead early in the fourth quarter. The Mids scored all their points in the second half of a 34-20 victory over the Pirates.
 
Kent's fine football season was bracketed by outstanding clutch performances on the track in the spring of 2024 and 2025. In each year, he earned Second-Team All-America honors after qualifying for the NCAA Championship.
 
A year after winning Rookie of the Meet honors as a freshman at the Patriot League Outdoor Championships in 2023 – highlighted by his 200m victory with a time of 21.17 – Kent took a huge step forward as a sophomore.
 
After clocking the second-best time in school history in the 400m (45.69) at the NCAA East Regional to qualify for nationals, Kent placed 13^th in the event with a time of 45.85. His showing earned him a spot at the United States Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon.
 
Kent fell five places short of making America's Olympics team. He ran a school-record 45.42 in his first 400m race at the Trials and advanced to the semifinals. The next day, Kent lowered his school record to 45.32 in the semifinals. He finished 12^th out of 27 runners at the Trials.
 
Earlier this year, Kent returned to the NCAA Championships and earned Second Team All-America honors again in the 400-meter competition. He ran the fourth-fastest time in program history (45.46) to place third in his semifinal heat and 10^th overall. He had punched his ticket to the nationals by breaking his own Navy record again with a 400m time of 45.23.
 
As a Midshipman, Kent, who will graduate in May with a degree in Foreign Area Studies – Middle East, has literally spent his time at Navy carving his varsity sports years in two – six months each for football and track and field.
 
"You are never able to balance it all at one time. You get pulled in so many directions at the academy. You need to make some things a bigger priority than others," Kent said. "I wouldn't call it a science as much, I would call it a harmony. It took me some time to learn the harmony and the dance. Whatever is in season [football or track], that is all I'm doing."
 
"[Kent] doesn't even utter the word 'track' during football season. When he's in this building [Ricketts Hall], he's a football player," said Luke Hutchison, a junior wideout who edged out Kent for the starting job.
 
"Not many people could do what he does, and do it at the level he does it," added Hutchison, who roomed with Kent on road trips last year and credits his teammate for helping him to transition successfully from quarterback to receiver.
 
"There were countless nights when we just talked about receiver stuff. [Kent] has taken on that leadership role in the meeting room. He is always making sure everybody knows what's going on. If I line up a yard from where I should be, he'll be telling me to move over another yard. To have the ability to play fast, you have to be calm and know what you are doing."
 
"[Kent] is a super-competitive guy who wants to be the best at whatever he's doing. He is comfortable being uncomfortable," said Cody Howard, Navy's senior tight end. "He catches back up to football very quickly. It speaks to how elite he is at managing his time. Being fixated on the details when it comes to sports is natural for him, since he lives it every day."
 
One downside of Kent's two-sport life is the inevitability of carrying injuries from the end of one endeavor into the next season. By January, he is no longer doing weightlifting workouts designed to build his body for the next football campaign, since the indoor track season is in session.
 
Kent does not participate in the "fourth quarter" workouts that precede spring football. There are no on-field football reps for him during the spring session. He will make time to attend team meetings, watch plenty of film and get pass catching reps done with the jugs machine.
 
"No cleats, no pads, no football lifts," said Kent, who, one week after Navy's 21-20 takedown of Oklahoma last December 27, was back in track mode.
 
Drew Cronic, Navy's second-year offensive coordinator, took a while to get to know Kent in 2024, in part because he didn't get to evaluate him in spring practices.
 
"Nathan has missed both springs and a lot of this summer [since I've been here]. But if anybody can handle that, it's him," said Cronic, who added that he has coached a handful of two-sport players in previous coaching stops, but none with the talent and dedication Kent exhibits.
 
"Whatever [Kent] is doing, he's 100 percent in," Cronic added. "He has all of the characteristics to be the captain of a football team. He might be a Senator one day. His teammates respect him. He is undoubtedly the leader of his position group. He hustles, blocks his tail off. If we have more success this year, he will be one of the reasons we do."
 
Mick Yokitis, Navy's 15^th-year wide receivers coach, recalled being struck by Kent's maturity when he met him at his California home on a recruiting trip.
 
"[Kent] knew what he wanted to do with his life. His discipline level was obvious when he stepped on campus. There is no wasted time with him. In his four years at Navy, he has been running a marathon at a sprinter's pace," said Yokitis, who understands Kent's frustration when Yokitis has limited him in practice during preseason camps or early in the season.
 
"We have honest conversations in the summer," Yokitis added. "Nathan is such a competitor, and he is one tough dude. But my job is to protect him at that point, as his body adjusts to football again. As the captain in my room, his no. 1 job is to lead, on and off the field. And I love the way he leads."
 
Roosevelt Kent, Jr., Nathan's father, got an up-close look at his son's developing leadership skills, as the head coach of the Rocklin High School track and field team over four years.
 
Roosevelt and his wife, Maura, were members of the Azusa Pacific track and field team from 1983-86, during which Roosevelt was a three-time, NAIA All-American jumper. Nathan Kent's parents later operated Revolution Express, an AAU track club, for 21 years.
 
By the time Nathan was entering high school, football and track were his favorite pursuits.
 
"Growing up around the sport [of track] and watching my dad coach people and train clients, I almost had a sense of what he was going to say before he said it," Nathan Kent said. "I was fortunate to have him coaching me through high school, when the idea of a track/football balance came into my life."
 
"I was a little nervous at first about how the team might see it – a father coaching his son on the team," Roosevelt Kent said. "But the rest of the team could see that Nate was really good.  His teammates just followed him, even as a freshman. Part of it was due to his ability and his strong drive to do better. Part of it was his willingness to help other kids on the team."
 
That is the same Nathan Kent who is savoring the last year of his journey at the Naval Academy.
 
"As much fun as the winning we experienced last year [in football] was, and with all of the good things that have happened with track, most of my memories that will last forever aren't the game days and the pomp and circumstance," Kent said.
 
"It's the people I've experienced it with around here. As a senior, I can step back and appreciate the guys who came before me," he added. "I've learned from so many great men. I've been surrounded by great people who helped me find my footing."
 
"This place is not easy. Every time you think you've got a handle on it, something comes along and reminds you that you are not as cool as you think you are. You have to remain just as humble as you were when you got here. For that, I am extremely grateful."