Two generations of two sports in Chubb family

It is a common cliche that the Penn scholar-athlete has the best of both worlds -- an excellent athletic program and one of the best educations in the country. Junior basketball player and high-jumper Adam Chubb is not, however, the typical scholar-athlete.

He has the best of three worlds.

Basketball fans know the junior finance major as a high-flying center -- a player who has been on the receiving end of a few explosive alley-oops and the clutch player who came off the bench in an important game against Yale to score a critical 14 points.

Those who have witnessed Chubb's alley-oops have surely noticed his impressive leaping ability -- a talent he uses often in arguably his better sport -- track and field.

And he's not the first Chubb to excel in two sports. Chubb's father -- Edward Chubb -- was a center on the Penn State basketball team and ran hurdles for the track team in the early 1970s. Like his son, the elder Chubb focused his athletic efforts on basketball.

"I actually started running track when I was younger because my father did in college," the apprentice said. "Back then, it was something fun to do and nothing big, and as I kept doing it, I got better."

Like his father, Chubb prefers basketball to track.

"Basketball is the sport that I'd say is my first sport," Chubb said. "But track is something I have a great time doing. I'm happy I came to Penn. It's the best of three worlds."

Chubb, as much as anyone on Penn's campus, embodies the modern-day, two-sport scholar-athlete.

He defies an increasing trend in American sports -- athletic specialization at an early age.

The result of this growing phenomenon has been a significant decrease in the number of two-sport, Division I athletes.

However, two-sport stars like Franny Murray used to be prevalent on college campuses. In the football season of 1936, Murray -- a member of the so-called "destiny backfield" -- led Penn to a 7-1 record and No. 10 national ranking. That winter, he removed his shoulder pads, stepped onto the Palestra hardwood and captained the Quakers to a 12-0 record in the Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League.

But athletes like Murray are a dying breed.

The Ivy League, largely because it does not offer athletic scholarships, is one of the last bastions of two-sport, Division I athletes. For that reason, Chubb appears to have made the appropriate college selection. Penn men's track coach Charlie Powell certainly agrees that Chubb made the right decision.

"I think it's easier to be a two-sport athlete at Penn because we are more supportive of it," Powell said. Powell was a two-sport athlete himself at Western Kentucky, where he played wide-receiver for the football team and ran hurdles in track.

"You go to a jock-factory and they're selfish with their athletes," Powell said. "I think it's more conducive here. It's a lot easier for a guy to do it here."

Chubb's path to Penn is an intriguing one. He was a member of the prestigious Hershey Track Club growing up and attended Susquehanna Township High School. As a senior, he won the state championship in the high jump.

Amidst courtship from several elite track and field programs, Chubb's love for basketball continued to trump all else, prompting him to take a postgraduate year at Mercersburg Academy, where he hoped to attract attention from more Division I basketball coaches.

Chubb attracted attention from several programs after a successful year at Mecersburg. Chubb took his official visits to Boston University, James Madison, Virginia Tech and Miami University in Ohio. He was also recruited by Penn basketball coach Fran Dunphy.

Had Chubb not attended Penn, he may have been denied the opportunity to showcase his high-jumping talent. "Ever since freshman year, I knew I made the right decision," Chubb said.

As a freshman, after breaking the Penn high jump record, Chubb went on to place 11th at nationals. Hampered by injuries throughout the spring of his sophomore season, the junior is hoping to improve on his precocious freshman year.

Chubb has picked up where he left off two years ago at nationals. The high-jumper won the Penn State-hosted Collegiate Challenge Series several weeks ago with a jump of 6'10.25".

Although Chubb missed his personal best -- which also happens to be the Penn record -- of 7'2.5" by more than three inches, he had been practicing with the track team for a mere week following a well-deserved respite after the basketball season.

"I came out at Penn State and put together a pretty good performance," he said. "It kind of reaffirmed in my mind that I can go higher than I did before and try to go to nationals and see what I can do."

Chubb will play a key role in Penn's quest for a third straight Heptagonal championship.

"Adam's huge for us at Heps," Powell said. "He's got a great shot at being the Heps champion."

During his freshman year, Chubb finished second. This year, he appears to be the early favorite.

"I definitely think I can improve," he said. "If I can perform my best at nationals, I'll definitely have a chance to be in the top 10."

But no matter how high the Powell-described "awesome talent" jumps, Chubb's profound affection for basketball will remain constant. After college, Chubb hopes to compete professionally at some level.

"I have the desire to play basketball," he said. "If for some reason basketball doesn't work out, track is going to be the next thing. If I can do both, that'd be great, but that's kind of pushing it a little."

Powell feels that Chubb has the ability to be a "world class high-jumper" if he dedicates himself to the trade. But for now, Powell is supporting Chubb in whatever he chooses.

"We don't mind sharing him because his true love is basketball," Powell said. "How many big men do you know that are that coordinated?"

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