Whiz Kid: Bob Kough

A new event for Bob Keogh proved to be his calling.

The Willow Grove native is wrapping up his senior season with the track and field team at Temple University. Keogh had found success throwing the discus at Archbishop Wood High School. 

When he arrived at Temple, he was introduced to the hammer throw.

“I never knew the hammer in high school,” Keogh said. “The first time I heard about the hammer was when I went to college. I picked it up pretty quickly. I have the right build for the hammer, and I became more competitive with that than the discus.”

Keogh’s new passion proved to be the skill that would bring him his greatest success on the college level.

Recently, Keogh advanced to the NCAA hammer throw championship finals after finishing seventh and placing in the top 12 in the NCAA East Regional. His qualifying throw of 205-10 was enough to qualify for the finals event.

“It is a big accomplishment,” said Keogh. “It hasn’t really hit me yet, but it’s a great honor. I didn’t do anything special. I was just hitting my marks. I was able to finish seventh overall.”

The NCAA birth is the culmination of four impressive seasons at Temple for Keogh. Earlier this season, Keogh set a school record with a hammer throw of 208-04. He won the gold medal in the event at the Atlantic 10 Championships and collected five first-place finishes this spring.

Keogh credits the arrival of assistant coach Aaron Ross for his success in the hammer throw. Keogh also put himself through a vigorous off-season training program.

“I got my old coach back who taught me the hammer my freshman year,” Keogh said. “He was back here my senior year as a volunteer, and I was really happy about that. I was taking summer classes, and I was able to work with my strength coach. He pretty much trained me like a power lifter, so he got me a lot stronger physically.”

Keogh has found success during his first three years at Temple in both indoor and outdoor events. However, Keogh had to battle through injuries during his junior year and took a different approach to the 2011 campaign.

“It was good to have a healthy season,” said Keogh. “Last year, I had back injuries from lifting. I was just so burned out. This year, I just took everything and take everything nice and easy while still keeping the intensity.”

Keogh has been equally impressive in the classroom.  He was one of 10 student-athletes named to the named to the 2011 Atlantic 10 Men's Outdoor Track & Field Academic All-Conference team.

“My grades were definitely a priority,” Keogh said. “I was just a walk-on on the track team. Good time-management is just required to balance grades, athletics and even a good social life. I was able to have good time management over my years at college.”

Keogh’s road to success in track and field began at Archbishop Wood. During his senior year, Keogh placed second in the discus in the Philadelphia Catholic League Northern Division. Keogh’s passion for the sport was evident as he continued to progress in high school.

“I was definitely hungry coming out of high school,” said Keogh. “I was learning not only to throw, but to love the sport. All of the coaches in high school told me I had a lot of potential, but I just didn’t have the immediate resources.”

When Keogh went looking for the college that would give him the best chance to compete in track and field, Temple provided the perfect solution.

“I wanted to be in the city of Philadelphia,” Keogh said. “I knew it was the best choice.  Growing up, I was always a Temple Owls fan, especially in basketball. My other options were Pitt and Penn State, and it would have been harder for me to walk onto those teams. Temple was a good choice for me.”

Keogh will have a chance to take home a national title in an event that was new to him only a few years ago. It will cap off an impressive four-year run with the Owls for the Willow Grove native.

“The years went by pretty fast,” said Keogh. “But I wouldn’t have had it any other way. I’m really glad that all of the hard work and dedication is paying off.  I definitely will miss it.”