FRESHMAN CLASS

(Sydney McLaughlin-Kentucky)

THE FRESHMAN TO LOOK FOR

The 2017 season treated us to many great performances in track and field from all levels. Last season’s high school seniors put on quite a few impressive performances. There were new national records and all-time top 10 performances. We even have some Olympians and World Medalist that we will see compete. In this post, we will look at the freshman that are most likely to make an impact.

WOMEN

SYNDEY MCLAUGHLIN (KENTUCKY)- Syd the kid as she has been referred to is a name that many around the world have known about for a couple of years. She made her name famous as a junior when she became the youngest member of Team USA in the women’s 400 hurdles. Her time of 53.82 ran last season at US Nationals was not enough to qualify for London 2017 but she set another national record.

McLaughlin who is now at the University of Kentucky will now return to competing in the 100 hurdles and the open 400. She has not run the high hurdlers regularly since her sophomore year in high school due to injury. Coach Floreal however decided to give her that opportunity to enjoy track and field and take away some of the intense expectations she will likely be under. The sky is the limit for this stud, competing in the SEC expect her to be an exciting piece to a great conference.

SAMMY WATSON (TEXAS A&M)- Watson is the latest 800-meter star to compete for Texas A&M. The aggies already have talented NCAA Indoor record holder in Jazmin Fray returning to compete this season and now they have the very talented Sammy Watson to add to their repertoire.

Watson has been a household name since she was a sophomore with her great performances in the 400, 600 and 800. She set a personal best of 2:00.78 as a high school senior last season making her one of the top competitors in the NCAA already for this season. Training with Fray should give Watson the proper challenge to go under 2 minutes indoors.

TARA DAVIS (GEORGIA)- Davis is a rare athlete. She is a top performer in several events. She ran under 13 seconds in the 100 hurdles, jumped 22 feet in the long jump and could jump over 43 feet in the triple jump. Davis landed at perhaps the school that will improve her skills the most.

Georgia has become the hotbed for field event athletes. Having the triple jump American record holder in Keturah Orji as a training partner and mentor is a huge advantage. She also has the defending outdoor NCAA Champion in the long jump in Kate Hall as a teammate as well. Davis will also look to lead an improving hurdle group and should among the top competitors in the country.

MEN

HAKIM SANI BROWN (FLORIDA)- It has become a regular occurrence for the Gators to have an incoming freshman expected to provide a big impact. This season is no difference. Brown like McLaughlin has international experience. Brown competed this past summer at the World Championships in London in both the 100 and 200. Brown made the final of the 200-meter dash finishing in 7^th place.

Brown will be training with world class talent and being coached by a world class coach in Mike Holloway. Florida should again be in the mix for another national title with Brown as a major key to their success.

CAMERON COOPER (LSU)- Cooper had quite the career for Oak Park High School, my parents’ alma-mater. Cooper had quite the performance last season running the 800 in a time of 1:47.59 to win the US National Junior title. Cooper arrives to LSU as their top 800 runner for a team that has a history of producing great 800 runners.

Cooper will be under the tutelage of a new distance coach in Mark Rinker. His coach has a history of having great 800 runners and Cooper will look to add to that legacy. Competing in the SEC with a time of 1:47.59, Cooper will be ready to compete at a high level right away.

COOPER TEARE AND REED BROWN (OREGON)- Oregon recently said good bye to perhaps the greatest NCAA Champion in history in Edward Cheserek. Cheserek had won so many NCAA titles and huge point grab for the Ducks that to replace him they would need someone just as special as him. Enter in Cooper Teare and Reed Brown. Yes, that is two but Cheserek was just that talented and successful.

Teare and Brown enter this season as the top freshman in the mile and two mile. With both competing for the Ducks they will likely not be given a heavy burden and be allowed to develop at a slower more natural pace. With the long-distance events getting ready for a new star it is not hard to believe that these two-talented freshmen can contribute to the Ducks Championship campaign and provide solid points at a Championship level.

JORDAN GEIST (ARIZONA)-  Jordan Geist was the nation’s top shot putter last season. He had a throw of 76 feet and has been among the top throwers since his junior year. Although the shot put from high school to college increases 4 pounds Geist should adjust quickly and be able to compete for Arizona rather immediately. 

INDOOR IS COMING!

The Indoor Season is coming!

We have now arrived in November. Several Power 5 teams will begin the indoor season in a month and the rest will start in early January. Last season was a season of records. What will this season be? With so many records broken is it possible for them to broken again this season. Let us also remember that quite a few NCAA Champions went pro early. The team race will be very different for the Lady Oregon Ducks and what will become of Florida without their dynamic hurdling duo.

SPRINT SENSATION

Hannah Cunliffe is the defending champion in the women’s 60-meter dash and her teammate Ariana Washington is the defending champion in the 200-meter dash. Both are members of the Oregon Lady Ducks who look to win yet another NCAA Indoor title. Gone from their amazing sprint core is Deajah Stevens who almost set not only an NCAA record but an American record for the women’s 200-meter dash indoors. They should see competition from conference rival Deanna Hill of USC and from San Diego State’s Ashley Henderson.

In the long sprints Kendall Ellis of USC is the top returnee. Her outdoor personal best in the 400 was 50.00 and earned her a selection on Team USA last summer and gave her valuable international experience. She will have to deal with true freshman superstar Sydney McLaughlin of Kentucky who will be focusing on the 60 hurdles as well as the open 400-meter dash.

In the 60 meter hurdles Pedrya Seymour is the top returnee. She has transferred to the University of Texas and will be a part of a great 1-2 punch with Rushelle Burton. Anna Cockrell of USC also is a name to watch. She is the only freshman returning with a personal record under 8 seconds.

On the men’s side, there will be new champions in all three of the sprints. Christian Coleman last season’s champion in the 60 and 200-meter dash has turned pro early after a successful outdoor season that saw him earn two IAAF World silver medals.  Kendal Williams of Georgia is the top returnee with a personal best of 6.51. He was thought to be the perfect challenge to Coleman who proved to be too much for Williams in the end. Williams will see challenge from Jaylen Bacon of Arkansas State who also garnered international experience winning a silver medal on Team USA’s 4x100 relay this past summer.

In the 200 Kenzo Cotton of Arkansas steps into the light as the top returnee. He has been a huge part of the Arkansas sprint core since his arrival and last season made his presence even more known as a junior earning All-American honor. He will have to deal with conference foe Ncincilili Titi of South Carolina and Maxwell Willis of Baylor.

Fred Kerley had an amazing season last year for Texas A&M that saw him break the NCAA record last season. His younger brother Mylik Kerley is one of the top returnees from last season. Kunle Fasasi of Florida will also put his hat in the race. Fasasi dealt with injuries all last season and was an unfortunate disqualification in the finals last indoor season but he returns as the top guy overall. Michael Norman will be a sophomore at USC and after an injury riddled start will be in better position to show what he is capable of.

Grant Holloway of Florida is the lone returning champion in the sprints and hurdles. Holloway won the event as a freshman with a winning time of 7.58. Chad Zallow of Youngstown State and Michael Dickson of North Carolina A&T are also top returnees and challenged Holloway all last season with their times. Florida is expected to be a top five team heading into the Indoor season and Holloway will look to be a big part of that.

THE DISTANCE RUNNERS ARE HERE

Jazmine Fray of Texas A&M is perhaps the biggest name returning in middle distance. Last season she broke the NCAA Indoor record for 800 meters with a time of 2:00.69. Her time was not beaten at all last season and remains the record to this day. At the NCAA Indoor Championships last season, she was thwarted by multi-winning national champion Raevyn Rogers of Oregon. With Rogers have gone pro a year early Fray is in the clear to garner her first NCAA title.

The mile should be an interesting race between defending champion Karisa Nelson of Samford and Elinor Purrier of New Hampshire. The two ladies finished 1-2 last season at the NCAA Indoor Championships. Purrier has the better personal record by Nelson has the title. Time will not matter when these two race again, what will matter will be who wins.

In the long-distance races Erin Finn of Michigan has another indoor season of eligibility and hopefully will use it to compete against Missouri distance star Karissa Schweizer of Missouri. These two had quite the race at the Indoor Championships last season in the 5,000 and it would be a real treat to see those two compete again. Also, either could drop down to the 3,000 and compete against defending champion Dani Jones of Colorado.

On the men’s side, the distance era begins a new with King Edward Cheserek of Oregon not off to the pro’s. Anthony Kosgei of UTEP is one of the new big names in the 800. He is returning after a stellar freshman campaign that saw him run 1:46 indoors as a freshman. Patrick Joseph of Virginia Tech and Daniel Kuhn of Indiana will also challenge for the NCAA title.

In the mile, the defending champion returns after his stunning upset of Cheserek last season. Josh Kerr of New Mexico shocked the world last year by defeating Cheserek in the mile as a freshman. He returns this season apart of New Mexico’s exciting distance core as another big new name. He proved his indoor season was no fluke by winning the 1,500 outdoors and competing at the IAAF World Championships.

In the 3,000 and 5,000 one big name returns to take Cheserek’s place. He won the 3,000 and 5,000 last indoor season completing an impressive double. This season Justyn Knight of Syracuse is the big name heading into the season after winning the NCAA men’s Cross-Country title. He has been a mainstay in the finals since he was a freshman and this season is in perfect position to match Cheserek’s double or by winning either event.

JUMPING and THROWING

It is quite conceivable that Georgia could win every jumping event on the women’s side except for the pole vault. The Lady Bulldogs have two defending champions, Madeline Fagan in the high jump and superstar Keturah Orji in the Triple Jump. Kate Hall won the NCAA Outdoor title in the long jump and finished 4th behind Orji last indoor season who finished 3^rd and is the top returnee. With so many talent and depth in the jumping events the Bulldogs could win the national title just off their field events alone.

In the pole vault a new Indoor champion will be crowned and there are a few names that will be competing for the title. You have the Weeks sisters from Arkansas, Alexis and Victoria. Arkansas has been the best program in the NCAA as far as their development of Pole Vaulters. They have many recent All-Americans. Olivia Gruver of Kentucky stunned the two sisters last outdoor season to win the National title. It was especially surprising since at the SEC Championships she recorded no height.

Both throwing events have the defending champions returning. Super stud Raven Saunders of Ole Miss continued her winning ways last season by winning the Indoor title in the shot put and breaking the NCAA record. Saunders will look to make it a four-peat. No other returning athlete in the NCAA has a personal best beyond 61 feet and she has a personal best beyond 64.

Saunders teammate Jeaneah Stewart is the top returnee mark wise with a throw of 76-0 ¾ in the weight throw. Annette Echikunwoke of Cincinnati is the defending champion in the weight throw and proved last season that she did not fear the two-headed monster coming from Ole Miss. Stewart would look to avenger herself after a poor performance last season.

In three jumping events on the men’s side we have defending champions competing. In the high jump Trey Culver of Texas Tech, Chris Nilsen of South Dakota in the Pole Vault and KeAndre Bates of Florida in the long jump.

Christof Bryan of Kansas State will be Culver’s top challenger in the high jump and is the outdoor defending champion. Matthew Ludwig of Akron is like Bryan in that he won the outdoor title and is the top challenger to Nilsen who the event in 2017 as a freshman. Bates may see the top challenge on his own team in Grant Holloway. Holloway has shown his superior athleticism and the only thing missing from a major jump perhaps is more control over his technique. Expect for him to make that leap. Bates is also the top returnee in the triple jump and is also the outdoor champion in the event.

Mostafa Hassan of Colorado State is the defending champion in the shot put. His best throw of 69 feet is four feet farther than his closest competitor Filip Mihaljevic of Virginia Tech. It is quite possible that Hassan surpasses 70 feet.

In the weight throw a new champion will be crowned. Grant Cartwright of Michigan and Gleb Dudarev of Kansas are the top two returnees from last season. Dudarev has the farther personal record with a mark of 76-11 but Cartwright finished higher at the Indoor Championships last season finishing 2^nd overall.

In the multi-events Georgia will be without the Williams siblings and new champions are two be crowned. In the women’s pentathlon Taliyah Brooks of Arkansas is the top returnee having almost score 4,600 points. In the men’s heptathlon Tim Duckworth of Kentucky is the top returnee. Duckworth was the favorite heading into the meet until Devon Williams of Georgia finally had a healthy season and nearly beat Duckworth.

TEAM BATTLE

The team battle this season will be tough. On the women’s side you have Oregon, LSU, USC, Georgia and Arkansas with considerable depth. All five teams have major points in numerous areas. On the men’s side you have Florida, LSU, Arkansas, Texas A&M and Oregon. Florida is returning a stable of champions along with quite an impressive recruiting class. Arkansas has perhaps is deepest team in years and Oregon and LSU will always be there in the finals.