TSR Collaboration
Jan 3113 min
Written by Josh Beam, Nolan Ryan, Garrett Zatlin, edits via Garrett Zatlin
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Click here to see our Just Missed and Honorable Mention names.
Listed eligibility takes redshirts and Covid-related extensions into consideration.
TFRRS is used as a general, but not strict, guide when determining eligibility.
Was not ranked in our last update.
First number indicates how much the individual has moved in our rankings.
The second number indicates where the individual was ranked in our last update.
Since our last update, Indiana Wesleyan's Luke Pohl opted to contest the 3000 meters at Grand Valley State. However, that race did not treat him well. The former Cornerstone runner holds an 8:18 (3k) PR, but faded to a time of 8:36 this past weekend.
Was that an ideal result for someone who we have viewed so highly? No, it's admittedly not, but Pohl was listed as high as TSR #9 in our last set of rankings. And in our eyes, this top-20 list is an aggregate -- one performances shouldn't totally eliminate someone from our rankings.
Even so, we'll be looking for Pohl to rebound with a stronger moving performance in the near future, likely the mile if we had to guess.
We'll admit, this Dakota State sophomore is someone who we neglected to include in the first edition of our rankings. But since then, he has quickly made his way into this week’s conversation.
Cody Farland ran to an NAIA #6 mile time at the Jim Emmerich Alumni Meet to guarantee a trip to the national meet. His mark of 4:12 earned himself spot on this list, but on this same day, he also ran a 2:30 time over 1000 meters! While a case could be made that his 1k time isn't exactly nationally competitive, it must be said that he won that event by six seconds.
Additionally, the Dakota State sophomore grabbed the 8th place spot at last year's outdoor national meet 800-meter final in a time of 1:51. It's easy to root for fast young athletes with championship experience and that is exactly what we have in Cody Farland.
We expect Cody to pick up a couple more "A" standard times over 800 meters and 1000 meters before deciding his schedule for the national meet. At the very least, we have a name in contention for a mile All-American honor, but the upside is a rapidly progressing middle distance star.
Donovan Denslow’s seasoner opener on January 13th was not something that we believe represented his true talent. That's because, in the two weekends that followed, Denslow would go on to produce special performances rivaled by very few people in the NAIA.
If we had to say anything about this athlete, it would be that he is an absolute work horse. In 2021, Denslow ran five events at the NJCAA Outdoor Championships. Out of those events, he won three and placed 2nd in one relay.
That meet would only set the stage for what kind of runner this Missouri Baptist star would go on to be. His 14:40 (5k) flat-track conversion from this past weekend is what caught our initial attention, but that is only half the reason why he is on the list.
At his core, Denslow is a long distance guy -- and his prior credentials show it. But with that in mind, he did something on January 20th that has our minds twisted. An hour and a half after racing in the mile, the senior from Missouri Baptist ran 1:56 for 800 meters!
How many athletes in the NAIA can you name that have a PR of 1:56 for 800 meters and 30:39 for 10,000 meters? Denslow’s 1:56 mark will not put him on the national stage, but remind yourself that a month from now, he is going to be racing in the longer distances.
Only a few guys on this list demonstrate similar range, but even those men do not touch the 10,000-meter event like Denslow has.
What stops Donovan Denslow from being higher on our list is his inconsistent championship finishes. From our analysis, the fifth-year senior runs an aggressive amount of mid-season races combined with a busy conference schedule. In three consecutive weekends, he has run five races and he is still a few weeks until his conference meet.
But if this highly promising Missouri Baptist talent can keep his legs fresh going into the national meet, then he may use his special talent to secure another top-five All-American honor.
In our first rankings, we noted that Walif Jafarni struggled with consistency in previous seasons. However, the current results that we have for him suggest a more patient approach to his current winter campaign.
Jafarni ran 4:11 in the mile on December 9th to open his season. We expect that to be the event he prioritizes at this year's indoor national meet, especially since it is the only one that he has currently qualified for.
On January 20th, the Texas Wesleyan sophomore made efforts on the opposite ends of his main event that we believe could benefit him over the next month. He ran 8:31 (3k) and 1:54 (800) at the NAIA / JICO Challenge, both of which he placed 2nd in.
Neither of those efforts was monumental or even resulted in a national qualifying mark, but this is someone who had not raced in 40 days. We wager that the sophomore is prioritizing his training and improving in other areas besides the mile before cashing in at the finale.
Remember, he has already cemented himself as a threat in the mile, so if a national title is on the mind of this Moroccan runner, then we are not discouraged by his less-than-fast performances from earlier this month.
When we previously ranked Peter Shippy at TSR #11, it was his steeplechase national title from the NAIA Outdoor Championships, coupled with some solid PRs, that gave him the spot.
However, Shippy's season opener left us wanting more as the national champion over the barriers ran just 8:35 for 3000 meters. That time does not qualify him for the national meet, and unlike the previously discussed athlete, Shippy does not have a qualifying time yet in any event.
We will not, however, ignore the fact that we complimented his ability to peak at the national meet -- but it is also important that he qualifies for the meet first.
Dordt has a meet on their schedule for the next three weekends, including the GPAC Championships. In our eyes, Shippy will have more opportunities to get the time that he needs.
The bright side is that he is not far off of the standard for 3000 meters and he tends to be quicker over 5000 meters which he has yet to run. But until that happens, we opted to put Shippy back to TSR #16.
Gosh, it's hard to dislike Luiz Perez right now. This Saint Mary junior has proven to be incredibly versatile in the middle distances this winter, currently hold three top-20 marks on the NAIA national leaderboard.
With times of 1:54 (800), 2:27 (1k) and 4:12 (mile), Perez is on fire. Not only that, but he ran that 1:54 (800) mark on the same day as he ran 4:12 in the mile. The catch? That was his second time this season running 4:12.
With nationally competitive 1k and mile times, great consistency, an ability to effectively and prior experience, you could argue that Perez deserves to be higher in these rankings. But for now, he'll reside at our TSR #15 spot.
This middle distance ace hasn't raced a ton since our last update, but the one event that he did contest over the last two weeks was the rarely contested distance of 600 yards. But when Charles Doresett III did compete at that distance, he thrived, running a tremendous time of 1:10.
For perspective, that time would have made Doresett III one of the fastest 600-yard runner in Division Two history if he competed at that level.
Now, admittedly, the 600 yards is not a race that is often contested at the collegiate level. And while a 1:10 mark is great, it's hard to get a decent historical understanding of what means for his 800-meter hopes. However, we can't help but be encouraged.
We really like where Dylan Branch is at in his fitness. The Montreat veteran has been known for his exceptional range, finding success in any event from the 800 meters to 10,000 meters in cross country. However, it felt like he Branch didn't necessarily have a marquee event or personal best.
That, ladies and gentlemen, may have changed this past weekend. That's because Branch just threw down an excellent 8:28 mark for 3000 meters...on a flat-track. Before conversions, that was already an outright PR. But after conversions, he now sits on the national leaderboard with an 8:22 mark.
Truthfully, the men's 3000-meter field this year is very deep, pushing Branch's very strong 8:22 mark to an NAIA #8 position. Even so, few men in the nation have the versatility (and therefore a dynamic racing skillset) that could be so valuable for Branch on the national stage.
We hadn't seen Serhii Shevchenko toe the line for a race since early December when we last did our rankings. However, after a great cross country season and a solid 14:36 (5k) mark, we were excited about the potential that this rookie held.
However, the only race that Shevchenko has contested since then was a mile which resulted in the Cumberlands freshman placing 17th with a modest 4:23 mile performance.
With personal bests (on his World Athletics profile) that are far better than what he has shown us so far, we're not willing to give up on this first-year Ukrainian distance standout. If he's firing on all cylinders, he'll be a major problem. But until then, he drops a handful of spots in this week's rankings update.
So far so good for Eli Fullerton! The Indiana Wesleyan junior kicked-off his indoor track season this past weekend with a 3k result that certainly caught our attention. Fullerton's tremendous 8:19 mark for that distance not only puts him at NAIA #6 in that event, but he also finished 2nd place overall! The only runner he lost to was Illinois-Sringfield's Cortland Ross, a top distance runner at the Division Two realm.
If Fullerton was able to run that well and that competitive in what was effectively a rust-buster for him, then we're incredibly excited about what he could do over the next month. He has never run that fast before in the month of January. Plus, history suggests that he'll be due to improve upon his 8:15 (3k) PR a couple of weeks from now.
This Shawnee State veteran always seems to find another gear at on the national stage compared to his seed time. And this year, his seed time is going to be significantly better, meaning that Kammler's postseason could be the best it's ever been.
The 15th place finisher from the NAIA Indoor Championships opened up this semester with two 3k races, running 8:32 followed by a PR of 8:21. Right now, Kammler is positioned at NAIA #7, but separated from the NAIA #3 spot by five seconds.
The veteran may have only secured the seventh-best time in the nation this winter, but he is accompanied by a lot of guys who are also listed within our top-10. And frankly, it's hard to count out a guy who shows up when it counts, especially when he has been running faster than he ever has.
Rankings are hard. In fact, rankings are really hard the first time you do them for a specific season. In our first-ever TSR NAIA rankings update, this Grace College senior did not make it into our list.
And, well...he proved us wrong. Big time.
Margaritidis belongs within our top-20 and he proved it with a fantastic 4:09 mile performance at GVSU this past weekend. That 4:09 effort, paired with his 8:28 (3k) season opener in December, gives this Lancer veteran a lot of great nationally competitive value between the middle and longer distances.
At this point, assuming the senior doesn’t add the 1k to his repertoire, the mile will be the event that he goes after come championship time. And if that race is fast from the gun, then in theory, Margaritidis should thrive.
There is a theme right now in the NAIA. The theme is that every week that goes by, there is a new Cumberlands distance standout who rips another impressive mark. Recently, it's been freshman Gustav Bendsen who hails from Denmark. He has run 4:11 (mile) and holds an impressive 8:16 (3k) mark to start his winter campaign.
Cumberlands will have a lot of representation in Brookings in a month or so and among that group will likely Mr. Bendsen who could potentially be in the thick of competing for top-three finishes in whatever discipline he focuses on.
The general youth of this Cumberlands distance standout gives him great potential to possibly move up in future editions of our TSR rankings. But for right now, TSR #8 seems to be a good fit after his great start.
This four-spot drop for Brynn Woodall in our indoor track distance rankings is specifically due to racing head-to-head with his comrades.
In that race, Aaron Jones and Will Stockley joined Woodall for the 3k where the latter name would run a converted (and strong) 8:18 mark. He would, however, fall behind both of his teammates which is ultimately why he moves back to our TSR #7 position. Woodall also had a part in Milligan's NAIA #1 DMR time with a converted 9:56 effort the night before his 3k.
Woodall will have a tough task with a one two-hour turn-around to attempt that same double at the indoor national meet. Even so, he is still very much still a favorite to claim the 3k national title. Despite falling behind his teammates, we still like his chances given the consistency that he has shown at the two prior indoor national meets.
Defending 5000-meter national champion from last winter, Jones has had a busy start to his 2024 winter campaign. The well-known Buffalo distance star has competed in four different weekends since the fall months.
As we've begun to enter the more competitive portion of the indoor track season, Jones has produced very strong converted marks of 4:12/8:17 (mile/3k) which put him in similar territory of where he was a year ago.
It will be interesting to see the senior’s race selection over the next few weeks. He may have a fast 5k attempt in his future to get prepared for the "Big Show." Milligan has tremendous distance depth, so they may not necessarily need Jones, although he could very easily cut a leg for them if needed.
Jones has a strong finish capability with “solid” leg speed for the 5k, so right now, it is plenty reasonable to think that he could defend his national title a month from now.
The freshman phenom took the NAIA by storm with his 4:06 season opening mile time before the New Year. Since then, he hasn’t let off of the gas at all.
Luca Santorum has run in three meets since December, contributing to an "A" standard in the 4x800-meter relay, posting a fantastic NAIA #1 time of 2:27 for 1000 meters and then last week, running another sub-4:10 mile effort in 4:09.
Running two sub-4:10 mile times is scary-good. That's great consistency for someone like him to boast despite his youth. If he can translate that consistency to the national stage, then he may outlast a lot of veterans -- and maybe even compete for NAIA gold.
With the hectic NAIA Championship schedule, it is tricky to pick the right events to double/triple. Even so, Santorum is one of the few who looks very likely to pull that off to some varying degree.
We still have a few weeks ahead of us, but as of right now, he will be the mile national title favorite and potentially an integral leg on a top-ranked relay.
This British distance standout will have his choice at what event(s) he chooses to pursue come the indoor national meet. But whatever he chooses, he will be a contender.
Will Stockley's converted 8:11 mark for 3000 meters, which he ran last week at the JDL Fast Track facility, beating three other competitors within our TSR rankings, shows us that he is fit and ready to compete at the highest levels.
The senior has already proven that he is a true favorite on championship stages in the past, but running as well as he has this early in the season makes him scary to face in about a month in Brookings.
Running anchor leg for the NAIA #1 DMR lineup, Stockley will likely double in the mile and the DMR as he did a year ago and will surely be in the hunt to score some strong points for the Buffs in both events.
With Stockley running as well as he has, this Milligan crew is going to be hard to top in the DMR barring they get to the end of the indoor national meet fresh enough to pull it off. They have been edged-out in that event in years past, but this may be the year where they are standing atop the podium when it is all said and done.
The 2023 NAIA cross country national champion showed out his first indoor track race of the season, letting everyone know that he is here to stay atop of our rankings. The senior distance ace from the small school in Billings, Montana opened his winter campaign with a win, running an outstanding converted time of 8:08 (3k).
The Battling Bear star is going to have a real chance to go after the 3k or the 5k national title at the NAIA Indoor Championships a month from now. He has not yet contested a 5000-meter race, but we can assume in the next few weeks that he will secure that standard.
Sometimes, runners just perform better on the grass than on the track. However, with Wilson being a top-four talent at both the NAIA Indoor Championships and the NAIA Outdoor Championships last year, that doesn't apply to this distance standout.
It is safe to say that Wilson has the best chance to be the first NAIA guy of the year to break 14 minutes for 5000 meters -- it's just a matter of time.
Has not competed since last rankings
Right now, within the NAIA middle and long distance realm, there is probably no clear-cut TSR #1 runner. Frankly, it is very difficult to pick. This spot may change again after the next edition of our rankings come out, but for now, it’s the senior Defender, Payton Mauldin.
This veteran middle distance star showcased his range last weekend, running a 200-meter dash time in 21-high. However, he also has a 1:51 (800) performance from the week prior!
His consistency is next to none when it comes to the 800 meters. However, it's probably safe to say that after watching him dip into the 200 meters, that the focus will be the 600 meters on the national stage.
With that being said, Mauldin will most likely be on a relay of some sort, whether that's the 4x800-meter relay or the DMR. But if you put those relays aside, this looks like the year where he finally gets that top spot in an individual event.
Gustav Bendsen (Cumberlands (KY))
Dimitri Margaritidis (Grace)
Luis Perez (Saint Mary (KS))
Donovan Denslow (Missouri Baptist)
Cody Farland (Dakota State)
KICKED OFF
Liam Neidig (Saint Mary (KS))
Isaac Kiprop (Campbelsville)
Forbes Joel (Cumberland (Tenn.))
Braden Sweet (Indiana Wesleyan)
Daniel Rush (The Masters)
JUST MISSED (in no particular order)
Hunter Nichols (Eastern Oregon)
Daniel Rush (The Masters)
Carter Hyuser (Kansas Wesleyan)
Griffen Parsells (Lewis-Clark)
Evan Hodkinson (Mt. Vernon Nazarene)
Dillon Callaway (Tabor)
Landon Wakeman (Indiana Wesleyan)
Griffin Armbrustmacher (Lawrence Tech)
Luca Madeo (Cumberlands)
Mathew Keitany (Goshen)
HONORABLE MENTIONS (in no particular order)
Ben Neidick (Indiana Wesleyan)
Dominick Beine (Saint Mary (KS))
Liam Neidig (Saint Mary (KS))
Justin Ash (Eastern Oregon)
Mehdi Hamoud (Madonna)
Forbes Joel (Cumberland (Tenn.))
Isaac Sytsma (Saint Xavier)
Brendan Robeaux (Oklahoma City)
Ben Hardy (Aquinas)
Sylas Chambers (Milligan)
Notes
- N/A