Todd Rose | Daily Press Jared Hanson (center) poses after signing his letter-of-intent to play baseball at Central Michigan University Wednesday in the Escanaba High School library. Also pictured are his parents Scott (left) and Dawn (right).

ESCANABA — Jared Hanson is one step closer to living out something he has always dreamed of, attending and playing NCAA Division 1 baseball at Central Michigan University after he signed his national letter of intent Wednesday afternoon in the Escanaba High School Library.

“It’s amazing. It’s something I’ve always dreamed about, and I can’t believe it’s finally here,” Hanson said after the signing. “They’ve always been on my radar. They’ve always been one of the top three teams I’ve wanted to go to and just, like, as a dream from when I was eight years old. Since coach Jandron started recruiting me, they got on my radar, I got on theirs. It was kind of a mutual thing. They saw me a couple times and offered me it right there.”

With his name signed on the paperwork, Hanson said there was a bit of pressure relieved from his shoulders.

“It’s a sense of relief knowing that the whole process is over, everything is settled down, and I can just get to work getting ready for college,” he said.

The right-handed Hanson will continue to work from atop the mound as he will be joining the Chippewas as a pitcher. In doing so, he won’t see too much action from the batting side of things, but he seems comfortable with that.

“I’m not much of a hitter,” he laughed.

On the schooling side of things, Hanson is looking at several divisions within the sports medicine world with his sights set on a Master’s Degree.

“I’m looking at exercise science and kinesiology,” he said. “And then I’ll probably try to get into physical therapy as a Master’s. It’s a great school for it.”

With one season left in Escanaba, Hanson is looking forward to a last hurrah with his Eskymos teammates while he prepares for Central.

“We got some unfinished business,” he said. “Hopefully, we get that regional championship this year. So, we’ll see what happens.

“(To prepare), it’s just putting more work in the weight room, putting work into my craft and just being the best I can be for when I can get there.”

Of all the things he is excited about, being a part of the CMU community ranks high on Hanson’s list.

“I’m definitely most excited about their culture and team together. They just have such a family unit there,” he said. “It’s something I can’t wait to be a part of and, hopefully, make an impact in.

“I just want to shout out my friends and family for supporting me along the way and my girlfriend especially.”

Alongside Jared his entire life has been his father Scott who doubles as his Eskymos varsity baseball coach.

“Jared is extra special to me,” coach Hanson said about the signing. “I’ve seen the time and effort he’s put in to reach this level. I don’t even know if I would have seen it as a coach. I’ve seen it more as his dad. The weight room time, the travel commitment we put in going all over the country — Georgia, Indianapolis and Kansas City — we were all over this summer, and those are the things to get to the D-1 level.”

Coach Hanson added an important part — alongside Jared’s choice of Central Michigan for educational purposes — of the whole thing is that it was Jared’s dream above all else.

“This has always been Jared’s dream, and as a parent, I wanted to make sure it was his dream and not my dream,” he said. “I’ve always helped him if he’s asked, but he’s driven and he’s got a work ethic that’s second to none.

“So, I’m pretty proud of that.”