Before beginning their initial practice warm-ups, the members of the men’s track and field team form a circle, laughing and joking with each other like a family at the dinner table. Two of the athletes, however, are actually related.

Ever since they were in junior high school, brothers Brendan and Kevin Hurley have been running in either track or cross country. Brendan is a junior middle distance runner, while Kevin is a sophomore multi-event competitor for the South Hill squad. Brendan credits his father, Dan Hurley, with introducing them to the sport.  

“I had played basketball, baseball and soccer as a kid, and I wasn’t really sure what sport I wanted to play,” Brendan Hurley said. “He suggested I try out for cross country, and I got hooked from there on out.”

Ithaca has always been a familiar place for the Hurley brothers. Growing up a half hour away in Erin, N.Y., they had indoor meets at Cornell University’s Barton Hall during their years at Horseheads High School, where their father coached for more than 10 years.

Track and field is a big part of Dan Hurley’s life, as he is a head official for Section IV track and field at the collegiate, high school and middle school levels.

He often finds himself in the challenging situation of officiating his sons’ meets. He said it is sometimes difficult to put his parental instincts to the side when he is officiating.

“I often have to curb my enthusiasm to yell encouragement at them if I’m working a meet they’re in,” Dan Hurley said.

Dan and his wife, Joan Hurley, who works in the Office of Admission at Ithaca College, have never missed a meet in which their sons have competed. Kevin Hurley said because of that, his parents are he and his brothers’ biggest supporters.

Though track and field can foster competition within the team for certain lineup spots, Brendan and Kevin have always been supportive of each other. The two have had a close relationship throughout their lives but the brothers usually do not run into each other on a typical day until afternoon practice.

“Track practices are really the time when we get to bond most,” Brendan said.

Brendan, an exercise science major, said he is a bit more laid back, but he attends classes early in the morning and late at night. He spends his afternoons working in the Office of Financial Services.

Kevin’s daily routine is jam-packed. He is majoring in physics and minoring in mathematics. After four straight classes Monday, Wednesday and Friday, he has just enough time to eat before practice, which is sometimes followed by games for the club soccer team.

Brendan had already been on the team during his freshman year, so when his brother decided to join him at Ithaca, the team was happy to have another Hurley.

“We’re excited when any new athlete comes to the team, but after we saw how Brendan performed, we were looking forward to having [Kevin] on the team,” senior captain Chris Covino said.

Joan Hurley said off the track, her sons have always pursued their separate interests. Brendan sang in high school and originally looked to come to the college as a vocal performance major. She said Kevin pursued his interest in science and explored college opportunities at Division I schools before deciding to join his brother at Ithaca.

“We understood when we were looking at Kevin that he was putting academics first and athletics second,” Head Coach Jim Nichols said. “But him and Brendan have always supported each other in whatever they have done.”

Though both brothers have found success in their sport, Joan Hurley said they take pride in other activities as well.

“They’ve always had commitments in different places besides the indoor and outdoor track teams,” she said.

The brothers are following in their father’s footsteps by officiating local high school and middle school indoor track meets throughout the season. The two will be seeing more of each other this fall in the Garden Apartment they’ll be sharing.

They both said track and field is more than just a sport; it’s something that bonds the family together.

“As brothers, we’re as close as ever,” Kevin Hurley said.