Admin (Garrett Zatlin)
Feb 2, 202010 min
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TSR contributors may value certain aspects and ranking criteria differently between men and women when constructing our Indoor Top 25...
Was not ranked the week before.
First number indicates how much the individual has moved in the rankings.
The second number indicates where they were ranked the week before.
Some people might be frustrated with this ranking.
Iowa State fans will argue that Roshon Roomes has run faster in the 800 meters than Rivera has this season (and that's true).
Northern Arizona fans will want to argue that Abid Nur and Ryan Raff deserve to be in our rankings after running converted 5k times of 13:39 and 13:40 (and they may be right).
Middle Tennessee State fans will say that Choge has been just as good as Chemadi has been this season (and that is an argument that I wouldn't have an issue with).
But Rivera has been silently consistent. He's run fast on more than one occasion. He's taken down names ranked ahead of him. He's slowly gaining experience. All of that is worthy of a ranking in my eyes.
Rivera finished this past weekend with a 2nd place finish to Cooper Williams and a time of 1:48.50. His personal best (1:48.13) was run earlier this season at the Vanderbilt Invitational where he finished 2nd to (you guessed it) Cooper Williams.
What's important about Rivera's result this past weekend was that he took down both Festus Lagat and Roshon Roomes. Sure, he may not have the flashy 1:47 PR's that they have, but Rivera has run fast enough this season to grab our attention and now he has wins over those two. Keep an eye on this guy as we dive into the month of February.
It wasn't a bad weekend for Griffith, he just didn't run anything exciting. HIs 4:06 split on Arkansas' DMR isn't too big of a deal and neither is his runner-up finish to Cooper Teare in the mile where he ran a time of 4:02. I was hoping we would see more fireworks from him, but when you look at all of the other races other than the DMR, no one at this meet really delivered anything too thrilling.
Not the best weekend for Chemadi who was on double duty at the Razorback Invitational, running both the DMR and the 3000 meters. His 3k result on Saturday was frankly sub-par if we're being honest as Chemadi finished 13th overall in a time of 8:13.
Yes, that race wasn't ideal, but I've been encouraged by all of his other performances. Still, I can't help but wonder if Chemadi is getting burned out. He's run in five different races so far this season while most guys have only competed twice. I like that MTSU is making an effort to refine Chemadi's race tactics, but it feels like he needs a weekend off.
Tanner's win in the 1000 meters at the UW Preview the other weekend now feels more significant given the awe-inspiring performances that we've seen from the Oregon Ducks recently. To now have a sub-four mile result (3:59) only helps his ranking.
His 3:59 mile likely won't get Tanner into the national meet and his 2:21 1k performance (as impressive as it is) isn't a relevant result as far as NCAA's are concerned. Still, Tanner has risen to the occasion every time he has toed the line this season. For that, he gets a small boost in our rankings.
Talem Franco is now a sub-four miler. That just feels right to say. The BYU veteran has been one of the most consistent and underrated milers in the nation for the past few seasons, seemingly always on the cusp of running a fast time (such as this) or earning a top finish at a nationally-recognized meet.
And after year's of waiting for his moment, this seems like his breakthrough result. A 3:58.09 mile performance at the University of Washington this past weekend is now #5 fastest time in the NCAA so far and it will almost certainly qualify him for Nationals in March.
This may seem like a harsh, unnecessary drop in our rankings, but Villarreal didn't have a great run this past weekend, running 8:10 for 3000 meters. With a personal best of 7:52 in this event, it would have been good to see him dip under the eight minute barrier. Villarreal's best race is the mile, so it's not time to hit the panic button just yet. Still, we needed to make room for a few others and I think this is an appropriate spot for Villarreal...for now.
Nothing too surprising here for Orange. He was unable to beat Jewett at Texas Tech this past weekend, but his NCAA #3 time of 1:47.62 (altitude converted) is very strong. It's clear that Orange still needs to work on properly positioning himself to win these kind of races, but that shouldn't take away from the fact that he ran well this past weekend.
My goodness Kieran Tuntivate, what a time! Fans who intently follow the sport know that Tuntivate was one of the better distance runners in the country, but I don't think anyone expected him to run an Ivy League indoor record of 7:49 for 3000 meters (which is now the top time in the NCAA). The Harvard veteran has been known for his aggressive race tactics and relentless paces, but this was not at all what we thought was possible for him.
Tuntivate has single-handily forced us to reevaluate how we view this year's 3000 meter field.
This past weekend was a big one for Jewett as he not only secured the top time in the NCAA for the 800 meters, but he took down a fellow All-American contender (Carleton Orange) in the process. Jewett's time of 1:47.12 would've been enough to be the top time in the NCAA regardless of conversions, but since he ran this at attitude, his time now reads 1:46.82.
It's tough not to be impressed by this performance. Jewett ran a fast time and beat a big name all in one race. He hasn't displayed the consistency or range that Lagat and Williams have, but gosh it is hard to dislike this result.
There was no hiding the fact that Nebraska's George Kusche was talented. He had an exceptional cross country season this past fall and showed tremendous poise during his freshman year. To see him throw down a 3:57 mile is on par with expectations, but this was the first time that his potential really manifested itself on the track. After running 1:49 for 800 meters the other weekend, Kusche is on a roll and primed to drop something fast in the 3000 meters next weekend.
This is one of those odd situations where even though West ran incredibly well, performances from others were enough to push him back in the rankings. Don't think of his new ranking as a punishment, but more of a temporary placeholder.
Regardless, it was business as usual for West who, much like Cooper Teare, took home two wins this weekend with his DMR performance being the most impressive. West's monster 2:53 split on the opening leg of Oregon's DMR set the tone for the rest of the race as the Ducks chased a new collegiate record (and got it).
If that wasn't enough, West would later drop down in distance to the 800 meters, taking home the win in a time of 1:49.69 over an underrated Florida veteran in Justin Pacifico (who ran 1:49.76 for 2nd). West is firing on all cylinders so far this season, leaving us to believe that he is primed for a big mile or 3000 meter performance in the near future.
Beamish had a bit of an off-day in the 5000 meters at Boston a couple of weeks ago. His 13:51 isn't terrible, but it's certainly not at the level that we would expect of him. It's important that we don't read too heavily into a time like this. Beamish is still plenty talented and more than capable of running a fast national qualifying time.
Lagat has been on fire so far this season, running 2:20 for 1000 meters, dropping a 2:53 split on Iowa State's DMR, and soloing a 1:47 at the Cyclone Open (en route to the win) just the other weekend. However, when it came to facing competition that he'll likely see again on the national stage, he faltered. His 3rd place finish and 1:48 result isn't bad, but it puts into perspective that he isn't unbeatable.
Mau's 4:00 mile at Vanderbilt the other weekend wasn't ideal, but it's easy to forget that he soloed a 13:44 5k back in early December. Pair that with his 7:51 3000 meter time (another result that he essentially soloed) and it's fair to argue that he deserves a (minor) boost in our rankings this week. Still, I want to see if he can return to facing competition that legitimately challenges and how he handles that.
There was plenty of hype surrounding the Iowa State men when it came to the 800 meters (and rightfully so). However, this unintentionally left Cooper Williams overlooked at times. That, of course, ended up being a bad idea. The Indiana veteran took home his fourth straight individual win of his season, running 1:48 en route to yet another win over Ole Miss' John Rivera and Iowa State's Festus Lagat and Roshon Roomes.
Between his fast times, consistency, and ability to take down big names regardless of the race, Williams is showing that his pair of 5th place finishes at the National Championships weren't flukes.
His 3:58 altitude converted mile was a great way to start his season, but it wasn't totally surprising. That performance was well within his wheelhouse. But to then go to Boston and drop a mind-boggling time of 13:29 for 5000 meters is super impressive. Grijalva now has the luxury of being able to pursue the mile or the 5000 meters at Nationals with enough time to potentially run a national qualifying mark in the 3000 meters as well.
Suliman was supposed to run the 3000 meters against Kyle Mau and Ben Veatch at the Indiana Relays this past weekend, but he remained absent from the starting line.
It was one heck of a weekend for Cooper Teare. The Oregon ace dropped a massive 3:55 split on the anchor leg of the Ducks' DMR on Friday night to secure a new collegiate record in the event. The fact that Teare was essentially running alone for his entire leg makes it that much more impressive.
The Oregon junior would then come back the next day and win the mile in a modest time of 4:00. It wasn't the fastest time ever, but comfortably beating out Arkansas' Cameron Griffith in the process is still a great resume booster.
I don't know if anyone is having as good of a season as Ryan Adams, at least not through the month of January. Yes, he did lose to Waleed Suliman in the mile at the Vanderbilt Invitational, but he still recorded a jaw-dropping time of 3:57. He later went on to run 7:49 for 3000 meters at the Dr. Sanders Invite, showing that he may have the best range out of anyone in the NCAA...at least for the time being.
It will be fascinating to see what events he ends up pursuing at NCAA's and what other races he'll toe the line for. I don't think there is anyone in country with as much momentum as Adams right now.
Has not yet competed this season. If he doesn't race by our next update, he'll be out of the rankings.
Kurgat's 13:24 from December is still impressive, but it suddenly doesn't seem as potent as it once was given that Tyler Day ran 13:16, Grijalva ran 13:29, and Klecker looks to be in the best shape of his life. Still, his 3:59 split on the anchor leg of Iowa State's DMR this past weekend was encouraging and that was enough for him to keep his spot in our top five.
His converted 3:59 mile was impressive, but it didn't really tell us anything new about Day.
But his 13:16 American collegiate 5k record in Boston? Well, that's a different story.
Tyler Day has changed the game and has reshaped our understanding of who can win a national title in March, especially with Nationals being held at altitude this year. There are still questions about his closing speed and his ability to race tactically in championship settings, but his most recent performance should not be taken lightly.
Dixon has yet to make his season debut in the 800 meters, but he has thrown down some impressive times in other events such as a 1:15 for 600 meters at the Texas Tech Invite this past weekend. It's obvious that Dixon is building up to post something special in his ideal event later this season.
It's not that the Wisconsin ace ran poorly this past weekend, it's just that Joe Klecker ran better. In fact, Hoare ran pretty well in his own right, recording a time of 1:49 (high) for 800 meters and winning his heat at the Indiana University Relays. This was clearly just rust-buster for Hoare and a way for him to refine his speed so that he can tackle the mile later in the season.
Let's not try to complicate things. Joe Klecker made his season debut by running a 4:01 mile at 5300 feet of altitude. That converts to a jaw-dropping mark of 3:55. The mile will likely not be the event that Klecker pursues at the national meet, but sometimes you have to recognize greatness. That is why we're giving Klecker the top spot in our rankings...for now.
John Rivera (Ole Miss)
Kieran Tuntivate (Harvard)
George Kusche (Nebraska)
Talem Franco (BYU)
Sam Worley (Texas)
James Sugira (Eastern Kentucky)
Ben Veatch (Indiana)
Alex Ostberg (Stanford)
Thomas Ratcliffe (Stanford)
Mick Stanovsek (Washington)
Charlie Hunter (Oregon)
Kasey Knevelbaard (Florida State)
Jacob Choge (Middle Tennessee State)
Eric Hamer (Colorado State)
Ryan Raff (Northern Arizona)
Abdi Nur (Northern Arizona)
Roshon Roomes (Iowa State)
Daniel Nixon (Iowa State)
Takieddine Hedeilli (Texas Tech)
Dustin Nading (Washington)
Sam Worley (Texas)
Ben Veatch (Indiana)
Alex Ostberg (Stanford)
Matthew Schadler (Indiana)
Tanner Anderson (Washington)
Jackson Mestler (Oregon)
Jaret Carpenter (Purdue)
Brody Smith (Purdue)
Matt Manternach (Iowa)
Dan Schaeffer (Binghamton)
Gilbert Boit (Arkansas)
Michael Rhoads (Air Force)
Jack Rowe (Washington)
Crayton Carrozza (Texas)
Jake Brophy (Navy)
Alex Masai (Hofstra)
Jacob Heslington (BYU)
Domenic Perretta (Penn State)
Andrew Jordan (Washington)
John Dressel (Colorado)
Casey Comber (Villanova)
Reed Brown (Oregon)
Jonathan Davis (Illinois)
Robert Brandt (UCLA)
James Sugira (Eastern Kentucky)