LIFE-CHANGING

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This is the fourth in a series of stories profiling this year's inductees for the Baylor Athletics Hall of Fame and Wall of Honor, which will be posted every week at BaylorBears.com.

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider

Not that it's the life he would have chosen, but Trayvon Bromell pretty much knew for certain where he was headed had he not landed a full-ride track and field scholarship to Baylor University and found his way out of St. Petersburg, Fla.

"Rough areas, a lot of projects, a lot of low-income family households," said Bromell. "And because of that, it led to a lot of gang violence, a lot of drug traffic. It's just the reality of what I grew up in. . . . Once I got done with high school, for me, the reality was that I was either going to work for somebody, like at a grocery store, stuff like that. And that just wasn't in my cards. Or I was going to the streets."

Through his own faith and the persistence of Baylor coach Michael Ford, Bromell not only got out of St. Petersburg, he became a four-time All-American, five-time Big 12 champion and two-time NCAA champion at Baylor and has won five global medals representing the U.S.

"When I got the opportunity to go to college through sports, that was God's way of relieving me of that situation," said Bromell, part of the 2026 class for the Baylor Athletics Hall of Fame. "It's tough to even think there's a reality where you don't have to live like this out there in the world when you grow up in it. I saw gun violence at a young age. That was just the outcome for a lot of people like myself who came from those types of environments."

It wasn't until his senior year at Gibbs High School that Bromell even gave much thought to college, because "it wasn't a reality for people that I was hanging around with or who grew up on the side of the neighborhood that I grew up in, because you didn't see it." He had an uncle that was the only male in his family that had gone to college before.

"There weren't any superheroes where I came from. I saw bullets flying more than I saw books being read. That's just the way it was," he said. "I remember we threw a party when my school became a D school. And it's not because the teachers weren't doing a good job, it was kids like myself . . . who just did not care."

While other schools backed off because of Trayvon's high school academics, Ford was persistent in defending him and was able to get him admitted with a promise that he would push him to graduate.

The first freshman in a decade to win the 100 meters, Bromell won the NCAA title in 2014 with a wind-legal time of 9.97 seconds after capturing the Big 12 championship in the same event with a wind-aided 9.77.

"I was on academic probation right before the indoor season, when they told me, 'Tray, you've got to do a mini-mester, because your grades are not reflecting the eligibility status for you to compete,''' he said. "We almost did not see Trayvon the national champion that year, because it was tough for me to adjust. My freshman year is one I will always remember, because it wasn't just about winning the NCAA meet, it was all that transpired into me winning."

As a sophomore, Trayvon won the NCAA indoor title in the 200 meters with a school-record time of 20.19 and then finished second in the 100 and third in the 200 meters at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, losing to Canadian Andre De Grasse in both.

"If there was anybody I was going to lose to, I felt that it probably would have been Andre," Trayvon said. "Obviously, my mindset is I'm thinking I'm going to win, especially after (running 9.90) in the semifinals. But when it came down to the final, he was just prepared. You just have to tip your hat to that. And Andre as a person, that's my boy now. That's my brother."

Before officially turning pro and signing a multi-year deal with New Balance in October 2015, Bromell finished second in the USA Championships behind only Tyson Gay and then third in the 100 at the IAAF World Championships in Beijing behind Olympic gold medalists Usain Bolt and Justin Gatlin.

"Getting a (bronze) medal at a World Championship against the likes of Usain Bolt and Justin Gatlin, it doesn't make any sense to come back," he said. "You're beating top-notch pros, and the level of competitiveness is bar none. If I would have come back, it would have been like, 'Why is he still running in college?' I just didn't want to hear all that."

Eleven years later, he is still chasing that elusive gold medal in the Olympics. Twice representing USA in the Olympics, Bromell made the 100-meter finals and placed eighth at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016 and made the semifinals at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. He did win a gold medal in the 4x100 relay at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo.

Time and time again, Trayvon has battled through the adversity of injuries and bounced back to remain one of the top sprinters in the world, even at 31 years old. This year, he ran the fastest indoor 60-meter time of his career (6.42) and won the 100 at a Diamond League meet in Paris, clicking off a time of 9.91.

"You learn how important it is to have somebody working on your body all the time," he said, "so that you can continuously put down the practices, put down the performances, recoup and get back at it the next day. . . . I had a full-time person working on my body so I could get up the next day, hit it again and not worry about something happening."

Although he doesn't have a specific timetable in mind, Trayvon said he wants to get through 2028 and then see what the Lord has for me." The 2028 Summer Olympics will be back in the U.S. in Los Angeles, just after Trayvon turns 33.

"I think we've already had a glimpse of how powerful having a track meet in the United States when we had the World Championships in Eugene (Oregon) in 2022," Bromell said. "If you become a name, or you have a story and actually perform at a high level at these games, I believe that your life changes.

"Anytime you compete for the United States and you get an opportunity to go to these events, it's like the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals and the World Series. It's one of those things where you're like, 'Dang, I'm the best of the best.'''

Staying in school, Trayvon graduated from Baylor with a degree in health, kinesiology and leisure studies and holds master's from Full Sail University and Liberty University. He and his wife, Alexis, were married two years ago and have a 3-month-old son, Levi.

Taking off the indoor season to try to focus on the outdoor season in 2027, Trayvon said he is excited about the Nov. 20 Baylor Hall of Fame banquet at the Hurd Welcome Center Grand Ballroom.

"I'm glad to be a part of something so historic," he said, "and just looking forward to the ceremony and what's to come."

Joining Bromell in the 2026 class are "Voice of the Bears" John Morris, football's Corey Coleman, basketball's Quincy Acy, baseball's Zane Carlson, Hayley Davis from women's golf and Tiffani McReynolds and the late Bill Martineson from track and field.

The 2026 Baylor Hall of Fame Banquet is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 20, in the Hurd Welcome Center Grand Ballroom on the Baylor University campus. Registration is available here.

-BaylorBears.com -

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