Fred, Mylik and Virginia Kerley share more than a last name. They share a love for running and a talent for running sprints.
Growing up in Taylor, the dinner table conversation centered around track, of course.
"It was always competitive in everything we did," Virginia Kerley said. "We'd talk about who was better than who."
The family also shares Aggie ties, NCAA titles and record times.
Fred, 22, broke the 25-year-old collegiate record in the 400 meters last May, running a 43.70. That came two months after Fred and Mylik teamed up in the 4x400 relay to set the NCAA Indoor meet record of 3:02.80 to secure the national team title for the Aggies.
Fred now runs professionally, and last weekend at the IAAF World Indoor Championships he ran the fastest lead-off split in history. His time of 44.85 propelled the U.S. to a silver-medal finish in 3:01.97, which came within 0.01 of the American record.
Mylik, now a senior, leads the Aggies into the NCAA Indoor Championships on Friday and Saturday at Gilliam Indoor Stadium.
Virginia, a freshman, is only starting her collegiate career, but the Aggies expect her to follow in her brothers' spikes.
"They are just a talented group of people," A&M coach Pat Henry said. "They have been involved in all kinds of athletics, and they've done very well. It's fun to watch a group like that."
Mylik took the leadership baton from his brother after Fred finished his career last season and has become a star in his own right. He has qualified for the NCAAs in the 400 and 4x400 relay.
Mylik ran the anchor leg in the 4x400 at the 2018 SEC Indoor Championships as the Aggies posted a 3:02.35 to break the conference meet record, the Gilliam Indoor facility record and the school record. It ranks as the seventh fastest ever on the world list, the fourth best on U.S. list and the third best on collegiate list.
"The mindset of the team is the same, whether he was on the relay or not," Mylik said. "He was definitely an asset to our team last year, one of the biggest assets that we had, but after he left everybody was still motivated to be good. Somebody had to step up to fill his shoes, so a lot of guys were putting in work. I saw that they were putting it all out for me, so I wanted to put it all out for them. I think A&M is one of those programs where we are never going to have a huge drop off. Even in a bad year for A&M, it's still pretty good compared to other teams.
"A lot of people felt like we weren't going to be as good without my brother, but we're still one of the top teams in the NCAA, if not the best."
Mylik wanted to follow his brother to A&M, but the Aggies had only book money for him coming out of high school. So he took the money and ran, going to Stephen F. Austin, which gave him a bigger scholarship.
He made the NCAA Championships in the 400 and 4x400 as a sophomore but decided after the season that it was time to transfer. Mylik considered Texas and LSU before deciding to join his brother in College Station.
Mylik finished third in the 400 at the NCAA Indoor Championships in 2017 with a 45.75, and he ran past Florida's Ryan Clark on the final leg of the 4x400 for a victory he calls "sweet." The Kerleys also led the Aggies to the NCAA outdoor title in the 4x400.
Fred calls Mylik "the backbone" of the Aggies' 4x400 relay.
"He's gotten a lot better [the last two years]," Henry said of Mylik. "He's just in a different environment, which creates opportunity. Given the opportunity in our environment here, he got to be around his brother. His brother was the best to ever run [the 400] in college. We had a great relay with both of them on there. So it was a great move for him."
Mylik might be even faster than he realizes.
"Mylik is better than he thinks," Fred said. "He's got 'killer' in him. He doesn't know how good he is yet. He has a [time of] 43 [seconds] in him, if you ask me, or even better. . . . We are Team USA's future and future record-holders."
As competitive as the siblings are with each other, they have no bigger fans than each other.
"I'm out here every day with my sister now, trying to help her reach her potential," Mylik said. "My brother did the same thing with me. It's good. I get to see both of them grow, not just on the track, but as people. It's really good to see your siblings do good, and the people you really care for reach their goals."
His goal this weekend is to continue the family's winning tradition and the Aggies' winning tradition.
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Growing up in Taylor, the dinner table conversation centered around track, of course.
"It was always competitive in everything we did," Virginia Kerley said. "We'd talk about who was better than who."
The family also shares Aggie ties, NCAA titles and record times.
Fred, 22, broke the 25-year-old collegiate record in the 400 meters last May, running a 43.70. That came two months after Fred and Mylik teamed up in the 4x400 relay to set the NCAA Indoor meet record of 3:02.80 to secure the national team title for the Aggies.
Fred now runs professionally, and last weekend at the IAAF World Indoor Championships he ran the fastest lead-off split in history. His time of 44.85 propelled the U.S. to a silver-medal finish in 3:01.97, which came within 0.01 of the American record.
Mylik, now a senior, leads the Aggies into the NCAA Indoor Championships on Friday and Saturday at Gilliam Indoor Stadium.
Virginia, a freshman, is only starting her collegiate career, but the Aggies expect her to follow in her brothers' spikes.
"They are just a talented group of people," A&M coach Pat Henry said. "They have been involved in all kinds of athletics, and they've done very well. It's fun to watch a group like that."
Mylik took the leadership baton from his brother after Fred finished his career last season and has become a star in his own right. He has qualified for the NCAAs in the 400 and 4x400 relay.
Mylik ran the anchor leg in the 4x400 at the 2018 SEC Indoor Championships as the Aggies posted a 3:02.35 to break the conference meet record, the Gilliam Indoor facility record and the school record. It ranks as the seventh fastest ever on the world list, the fourth best on U.S. list and the third best on collegiate list.
"The mindset of the team is the same, whether he was on the relay or not," Mylik said. "He was definitely an asset to our team last year, one of the biggest assets that we had, but after he left everybody was still motivated to be good. Somebody had to step up to fill his shoes, so a lot of guys were putting in work. I saw that they were putting it all out for me, so I wanted to put it all out for them. I think A&M is one of those programs where we are never going to have a huge drop off. Even in a bad year for A&M, it's still pretty good compared to other teams.
"A lot of people felt like we weren't going to be as good without my brother, but we're still one of the top teams in the NCAA, if not the best."
Mylik wanted to follow his brother to A&M, but the Aggies had only book money for him coming out of high school. So he took the money and ran, going to Stephen F. Austin, which gave him a bigger scholarship.
He made the NCAA Championships in the 400 and 4x400 as a sophomore but decided after the season that it was time to transfer. Mylik considered Texas and LSU before deciding to join his brother in College Station.
Mylik finished third in the 400 at the NCAA Indoor Championships in 2017 with a 45.75, and he ran past Florida's Ryan Clark on the final leg of the 4x400 for a victory he calls "sweet." The Kerleys also led the Aggies to the NCAA outdoor title in the 4x400.
RECORD BREAKING WIN!@aggietrk's men ran a record-breaking 3:02.80 in the 4x400 to capture their first NCAA Indoor team title. pic.twitter.com/YOUkqkgY4m
— NCAA Track & Field (@NCAATrackField) March 12, 2017
Fred calls Mylik "the backbone" of the Aggies' 4x400 relay.
"He's gotten a lot better [the last two years]," Henry said of Mylik. "He's just in a different environment, which creates opportunity. Given the opportunity in our environment here, he got to be around his brother. His brother was the best to ever run [the 400] in college. We had a great relay with both of them on there. So it was a great move for him."
Mylik might be even faster than he realizes.
"Mylik is better than he thinks," Fred said. "He's got 'killer' in him. He doesn't know how good he is yet. He has a [time of] 43 [seconds] in him, if you ask me, or even better. . . . We are Team USA's future and future record-holders."
As competitive as the siblings are with each other, they have no bigger fans than each other.
"I'm out here every day with my sister now, trying to help her reach her potential," Mylik said. "My brother did the same thing with me. It's good. I get to see both of them grow, not just on the track, but as people. It's really good to see your siblings do good, and the people you really care for reach their goals."
His goal this weekend is to continue the family's winning tradition and the Aggies' winning tradition.
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