Transfer Market (Part 10)

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Another day, another round of key athletes on the move. While this update isn't quite as extensive as our last round of transfers, there were still plenty of athletes venturing to new programs who we wanted to highlight. Let's jump right in...

A star Canadian distance talent will be venturing the University of Washington starting next fall. Kieran Lumb, a superstar in the Canadian collegiate realm, will be pursuing his Masters degree in Seattle starting next fall as a graduate transfer. He is expected to have one year of eligibility remaining.

This is a massive signing for the Huskies who will get an instant injection of firepower and scoring potency from this University of British Columbia star. On the track, Lumb has secured personal bests of 4:00 (mile), 7:45 (3k), 13:40 (5k) and 28:10 (10k), making him arguably one of the most valuable distance transfers in the entire country.

This is a massive pick-up for the Washington men as they will look to build upon the promising cross country season that they had this past winter. Men like Isaac Green and Talon Hull showed promise as low-sticks over the last few months, but additional scoring potency was needed if the Huskies were going to elevate themselves towards the NCAA's top-10 tier of programs.

With Lumb now set to join this roster, the Huskies will be able to rally around a star low-stick who can also take over the scoring duties while less experienced runners like Leo Daschbach continue to develop.

Not only that, but Lumb will also be joined by Irish distance standout Brian Fay, a 28:41 (10k) runner, next fall. Together, those two will be able to redefine Washington's cross country lineup structure six months from now.

On the track, Lumb will bring additional depth to an already-loaded mile portion of Washington's roster. However, his 7:45 personal best for 3000 meters immediately puts him into NCAA title contention, although that also depends on who returns to the collegiate scene next winter.

A young, promising distance talent will be leaving the Furman Paladins and will be venturing across the country to join the Utah Utes next fall. Peterson is expected to have three years of eligibility remaining between cross country and indoor track as well as a fourth season of eligibility during outdoor track.

Peterson was a standout distance talent in high school, running times of 2:16 (800), 4:51 (1600), 10:31 (3200) and 17:20 (5k XC). The Minnesota native was a two-time NXN qualifier, finishing in the top-36 on both occasions. She also qualified for the Foot Locker National Championships where she placed 25th overall.

Since coming to Furman, Peterson has continued to make progress, albeit at a relatively modest pace. At the collegiate level, she has run 9:48 for 3000 meters and is a two-time top-15 finisher at the Southern Conference XC Championships.

However, Peterson's introduction to the Utah team seems like a perfectly synonymous team/athlete dynamic. The Utes are essentially going through a program revamp as they have lost (and will soon lose) a handful of top-ranked veteran distance talents. In other words, they're entering the next phase of their roster life-cycle.

That's why Peterson is entering this program at the perfect time. She clearly has more room for growth and can continue to build with this roster over the next few years. There are numerous younger women on this team who are quietly making steps in the right direction and there are also a few graduate transfers who will soon be joining the Utes as well.

Both Peterson and the Utah women are seemingly going to have fresh starts in the near future and on paper, that makes this transfer a great fit.

This isn't always what we expect to talk about when discussing transfers, but a top-ranked All-American distance talent is no longer transferring and is instead staying with their original program.

A few months ago, it was announced that Ehab El-Sandali was going to be finishing his collegiate eligibility with the Arkansas Razorbacks. This was a massive development as the Canadian distance talent would've brought consistent, top-tier firepower to a program that was already littered with All-American low-sticks.

However, El-Sandali has since confirmed that he will no longer attend the University of Arkansas next year and will remain with the Iona Gaels. This decision could have a huge impact for both teams involved.

For the Razorbacks, this is a difficult blow. Assuming that certain men returned to the team in the fall, the Arkansas men would've been in a position to not only battle for the podium once again, but they could have potentially put themselves in the national title conversation. There is, after all, a chance that Northern Arizona doesn't return Luis Grijalva and/or Blaise Ferro next fall (but that has yet to be determined).

Does El-Sandali's decommitment devastate this Arkansas program? No, not at all. However, his additional firepower and extensive championship experience would've been incredibly valuable for a team that already has an arsenal of distance running weapons.

That said, El-Sandali's decision to stay with Iona could potentially put the Gaels on the podium next fall. El-Sandali was the 29th place finisher at this year's NCAA XC Championships while teammate Jack O'Leary was just a few spots ahead in 25th place.

However, the crazier fact is that Johnjack Millar, the 26th place finish from the 2019 NCAA XC Championships, didn't compete for Iona this year. Not only that, but the Gaels also didn't have the scoring services of Ed Goddard, a breakout Australian talent who ran 28:23 for 10,000 meters this past January.

If all four of those men return to the NCAA next fall, then you're looking at a group that could boast one of the most lethal groups of top-four scorers in the nation. On paper, that contingent would offer enough scoring potency to earn a spot on the podium.

That, however, only felt realistic if El-Sandali stayed with his original program -- and that is exactly what is happening.

The Stride Report has confirmed that BYU's Connor Weaver will be finishing his eligibility as a graduate transfer at Utah State starting next fall. He is expected to have all three seasons of eligibility remaining, although that is not yet confirmed.

This is a much bigger development than some people may realize. Weaver owns personal bests of 14:00 (5k) and 29:02 (10k), the latter mark qualifying him for the 2019 NCAA Outdoor Championships. Weaver was also a member of BYU's 2019 title-winning cross country team.

The Utah State men will be adding a key name to their roster who can add valuable depth to a lineup that appears to be a bit top-heavy. The Aggies were exceptional this past winter, putting up outstanding results that shattered our expectations. They eventually finished 11th overall as a team at the NCAA XC Championships.

Utah State was outstanding, although there were some areas where they could have improved, specifically at the backend of their lineup. If Weaver can come into this program and provide some scoring stability at the fourth of fifth position of this varsity group, then you're looking at a Utah State team that is capable of competing with (and taking down) some of the nation's best distance rosters.

That, of course, depends on which Utah State seniors will return to use their eligibility.

And even if Weaver doesn't have an impact on the grass, it's important to remember that he was gaining some outstanding momentum during the 2019 outdoor season. He ran two consecutive personal bests prior to qualifying for the national meet.

We've already seen how successful BYU graduate transfers can be at Utah State. Just look at how strong Dallin Farnsworth was during the 2019 cross country season. He was a key reason why the Aggies had so much success prior to the pandemic and he actually won the Mountain West cross country title that year.

If Weaver can emulate at least some of the success that Farnsworth had at Utah State, then the Aggies could be in store for some additional firepower and some better-than-expected scoring.

This Kansas veteran has been one of the more underrated distance talents in the BIG 12 and Midwest region. Butler, who originally started out his collegiate career with the Oklahoma State men before transferring to the Jayhawks, has produced top finishes on the grass over the last few years.

In 2019, Butler finished 20th overall at the Midwest Regional Championships. Fast forward to the 2020 cross country season and Butler would end up placing 13th at the BIG 12 XC Championships. That performance was enough to qualifty him to the NCAA XC Championships were he finished 136th overall.

Now, Butler will be finishing his collegiate eligibility with the Campbell Camels as a graduate transfer, a respectable distance program that is quietly building an underrated collection of cross country scorers.

Yes, the Camels did lose Amon Kemboi to the Arkansas Razorbacks last year, but they still have the services of top scorer Athanas Kioko and a promising youngster in Godwin Kimutai who finished 19th at the 2019 Southeast Regional Championships.

With Travis Koekemeor showing plenty of promise on the track and Dennis Kiptoo potentially emerging as a solid talent in his own right, the Camels may actually be able to assemble a complete top-five next fall with Butler now joining the program.

If Coach Michael Kelly is able to bring in one more Kioko-like talent by that point, then this could be a sneaky-good team capable of mixing it up with some of the top programs in the region.

Now, admittedly, we're making a lot of assumptions about just how good the Campbell men could be six months from now. They still have a ton of question marks that won't be answered for quite some time and a handful of scorers need to make clear improvements between now and then.

Even so, this team has potential and Butler could fill that final scoring spot that the Camels need to be truly competitive.

The Bucknell veteran isn't venturing too far from Lewisburg, PA. In fact, he'll be traveling just a little over an hour to join the Nittany Lions from State College as a graduate transfer.

McMenamin is a quietly strong distance talent who has shown glimpses of being a top scorer in a variety of meets. The future Penn State runner boasts a personal best of 9:03 for the steeplechase and has also run 14:29 for the indoor 5000 meters. He was also the 5th place finisher at this year's Patriot League XC Championships.

Will McMenamin bring overwhelming firepower to this Penn State roster? Maybe not, but he is a quietly valuable scoring piece who likely gives the Nittany Lions a top-five scorer during cross country as well as someone who can potentially be a contender at the East Regional Championships in the steeplechase.

It has also been promising to see his consistent level of progression over the past few years. Some athletes have one breakout year or plateau at earlier points in their collegiate careers. However, McMenamin seems like he is still improving and has yet to hit his peak. That should leave the coaching staff at Penn State encouraged about what he could bring to the table next year.