Calvin Wetzel is a 25-year-old student athlete but not because of an NCAA loophole.

The Pittsburgh native arrived at the University of Tennessee in August of 2021, but didn’t actually compete for the university until 2025. Calvin Wetzel suffered a stress fracture in his foot in November 2021. An injury that could sometimes take a few weeks to heal took three years.

The surgery that he required is difficult, and success is not certain. Not to mention, determining success takes patience.

“About a year into it, you find out, OK, was this successful?” Wetzel said. “And, unfortunately, that was not the case, so I had to get a second surgery. Went through the process, you literally start right over again.”

A year after his first surgery, Wetzel could finally begin to jog again. That’s when he found out that the screw was too long, causing discomfort. Wetzel had his second surgery in January of 2023.

Following another eight months of physical therapy, Wetzel refractured his foot in his first practice back in August of 2023. His third surgery came in September of that year. Finally, the surgery was a success. In August of 2024, he returned to the track for the first time in three years.

Prior to Tennessee, Wetzel ran at Army West Point for two years. Student-athletes are able to transfer before their junior year without owing any military service after graduation. He took that opportunity to change direction, but his career ahead was even more unconventional than his time as a cadet.

Tennessee track and field sports administrator Marcus Hilliard has known Wetzel since he first joined the team in 2021. Hilliard credits much of Wetzel’s mental strength to his experience at West Point.

“With his background having the ties of the military academy formally and then just how mature he was and his approach, it was almost like he was Superman. ” Hilliard said. “Every time, you know, he either got hurt or there was a setback, it almost kind of made him stronger.”

Along the way, Wetzel continued to cheer on his team and remain a positive influence despite all that he was going through.

“A lot of people face injuries and adversity, and there’s a couple different ways you can take it,” Hilliard said. “And you could let it kind of consume you, and woe is me. But that was never Calvin’s approach.”

Wetzel focused on his education throughout the three-year injury. He earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, a master’s degree in computer science and held three internships, including a graduate fellowship with the U.S. government, all while in recovery.

As if that wasn’t enough, Wetzel made the decision to pursue a doctorate degree in computer science. He approached his professor, Dr. Hector Santos, with the idea in the spring of 2024.

“I see a student that is performing super well in the classroom,” Santos said. “But also is an athlete — a high-performing athlete. I knew that he’d be a unicorn. He’d be someone that I would like to have on my team.”

There’s a lot of work that goes into being a good teammate in both the classroom and on the track. Wetzel spends six to eight hours working and another three to four hours at practice every day.

When does he sleep? Saturday, sometimes.

“I try to leave Saturdays for myself if I can, but sometimes we’re traveling,” Wetzel said. “But that’s also a lot of fun.”

Hilliard is pursuing his Ph.D. while working with the track and field team but had no idea that Wetzel was doing the same. He noticed Wetzel studying on trips, but with no impact on his attitude or performance, Hilliard didn’t think twice.

“I never got a sense of how much and how heavy his workload was,” Hilliard said. “I’m a working professional, and I’m working on mine, and I’m complaining about all the reading and all the writing I’m having to do, and this kid has no complaints at all.”

Not only was it unnoticeable in his athletic performance, but it was also separate from academic research. Wetzel was the first student-athlete that Santos has ever seen pursue a Ph.D., and yet, there is no difference in his effort or product.

“Even when he has all these pressures, he excels,” Santos said. “He’s so effective that for him having those commitments, I don’t see an impact on what he delivers.”

Consistent with the rest of his life, Wetzel likes to challenge himself on the track. He runs the 400-meter hurdles, generally regarded as one of the most challenging events in track and field.

“You feel quite a lot of pain,” Wetzel said.

The 400-meter is the longest distance for hurdle events, requiring a strong rhythm and resiliency to bounce back after each of the ten hurdles and manage fatigue.

In last year’s SEC Championships and his first year back competing, Wetzel ran the 400-meter hurdles and finished with a top-six time of 50.21 seconds. Last season, Tennessee’s 400-meter hurdle group finished as the fastest 400-meter hurdle group in NCAA history.

The expectations are high for this group this year. Wetzel has seen a lot of change in the program over the last five years, including the arrival of head coach Duane Ross at Tennessee in 2022. He cites this team’s veteran presence as the difference maker this year.

“We have several returners that have been at the world’s biggest stage,” Wetzel said. “People that have really competed at the highest level, and now they’re coming back with that experience, and they can share all that with us.”

For his last year of eligibility, Wetzel wants to compete. He spent three years rehabbing so he wouldn’t have any regrets.

“Every battle and every challenge that’s been thrown his way, he’s overcoming,” Hilliard said. “I can’t wait to see how he finishes as a student athlete on the competitive side but also in the classroom. I’m just jumping for joy — can’t wait for him to finish.”

In every facet of his life, Wetzel is a good teammate. He showed up and encouraged his team during a very discouraging time in his life. He does any research or coding that’s required of him and then more. He doesn’t make excuses — even when they may be valid.

“I think it takes a special person to just be a hurdler,” Hilliard said. “Then you add to the adversity from the injury standpoint. You add his academic journey on this Ph.D. grind. From top to bottom, Calvin Wetzel’s got to be one of the toughest individuals I’ve ever met in my life.”