Will Rogers Run Winner Andrew Bland Signs With UC Berkeley

Palisadian and Loyola High School senior Andrew Bland made it official on Feb. 1. He will be running track for University of California Berkeley in the fall.

Bland is a life-long Palisadian who on the Fourth of July. It was his first 5K.

"I met the Cal coach last year. I immediately liked his attitude and was impressed with his program," Bland told Patch in an email. "I am also excited because I am going to Cal to run with my fellow team mates Jared [Jones] and Ned [Trim]."

Bland said he was open to going to school on the east coast, but he is happy that his family will be able to attend his meets.

"There were some great schools on my list, but Cal was aggressive in recruiting me and I liked that," said Bland. "It will be an intense running program at Cal, but I can't wait to run in college."