What To Watch For: The "Track Meet" Preview

2020 has been a weird, crazy year to say the least. However, fewer things are more odd than an outdoor track meet (held in December) called the "Track Meet" garnering entries from some of the top collegiate and professional distance runners in the country.

Despite the uniqueness of this racing opportunity, which takes place over two days (December 4th and December 5th), distance running fans should be plenty excited to see what will likely be a plethora of very fast times.

Below, we highlighted some of the major (current) collegiates in these fields and broke down what we'll be watching for when they toe the line...

A few weeks ago, a couple of the Oregon men took to the track in an effort to test their fitness via a time trial. The results, while far from official, were incredibly encouraging, with times rumored to be 7:44 (Teare), 7:45 (Hocker) and 7:50 (Hunter).

While those are certainly incredible marks -- especially for Hocker who is just 19-years old -- it's tricky to gauge time trials. Luckily, all three of those men will have a chance to move up in distance and put their fitness on full display starting tomorrow.

Teare is entered in the fastest 5k heat, one that will be gunning for a sub-13:15 time. Hocker and Hunter, meanwhile, are in the next fastest heat which will be paced for a sub-13:30 time.

The best battle of the night (collegiately) could end up being Cooper Teare vs Luis Grijalva, a matchup that we haven't gotten to see too often on the track. Grijalva, the Northern Arizona ace, ran 7:42 for 3000 meters a few weeks ago, beating out Adidas pro Drew Hunter and a field that featured members from both Tinman Elite and NAU. So, much like Teare, we know that Grijalva is incredibly sharp right now.

The upcoming Teare vs Grijalva matchup could end up being a national title preview. For which season? Well, your guess is as good as mine.

However, one could argue that Hocker's and Hunter's performances will be the biggest ones to watch. If Hocker and Hunter are able to run anything close to their 5k equivalents of 7:45 and 7:50 respectively, then the Oregon men should be wildly encouraged that they have two more true All-American cross country contenders on their roster.

That would theoretically give the Ducks some of the best firepower in the NCAA.

It's rare that D2 runners are able to work their way into nationally-elite fields such as this one. However, it's even rarer when two D2 runners make their way into the same national-caliber race.

Sure enough, we will get to see Adams State veterans Roisin Flanagan and Eilish Flanagan toe the line on Friday night in a field which is set to chase a sub-15:10 time. The Flanagan sisters have dominated the D2 scene for years now, winning multiple national titles, securing endless All-American honors and running some of the NCAA's fastest times year in and year out.

However, Friday will present an entirely new challenge for the Adams State duo as both Eilish and Roisin will be facing what is likely the best competition of their careers. It's been a while since we've seen either of these two officially race (they no longer have cross country eligibility nor indoor track eligibility according to TFRRS), but this race could be an exciting precursor for the 2021 spring track season if collegiate competition were to resume.

The Flanagan sisters are the only collegiates listed in the fastest 5k field, but the next-best race will be crowded with a mix of established collegiate front-runners and a handful of up-and-coming talents.

Women such as Haley Herberg (Washington), Taryn O'Neill (Northern Arizona), Olivia O'Keeffe (New Mexico), Gabrielle Jennings (Furman), Sami Corman (Georgetown), Allie Shadler (Washington), Emilie Renaud (California Baptist) and Katie Dammer (Georgetown) are set to make up a heavy portion of this 5k field. Don't be surprised if some of these women run significant personal bests.

Depending on who you ask, women like Herberg, Jennings and Schadler are likely the best candidates to finish as the top collegiate in this heat. However, be sure to keep Olivia O'Keefe in mind. She has been relatively quiet during her collegiate career so far, but she could end up making some noise.

It isn't expected to be the fastest field of the day, but the next-best group in the men's 5k holds a handful of exciting names who could very easily produce a plethora of top times.

The pace will be set for a sub-13:30 effort, an ambitious time even for the likes of superstar freshman Nico Young (Northern Arizona). Even so, Young will garner plenty of attention when he toes the line on Friday, as will BYU's Casey Clinger who finally returned to competition this past fall after taking an extended time off for his church mission.

Clinger looked very strong in his comeback season and although we only got to see him race twice, it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to say that he can flirt with that 13:30 goal time.

However, the one key name that we should keep an eye on is Andrew Jordan, the Washington veteran who is still listed on the Huskies' roster. Jordan has battled injuries throughout his time in college, but has been a true star when he's at his best.

During the 2019 cross country season, Jordan finished 3rd at the PAC-12 Championships and won the West regional title before pulling out of the NCAA Championships for precautionary injury reasons. His 5k personal best is 13:55, but his 7:51 (3k) PR suggests that he can run a lot faster when he's at 100%.

We should also note that Jordan is actually listed in both the hot heat and the next fastest heat of the men's 5k, so it's unclear which race he'll actually be toeing the line for.

Other key collegiate names to watch in this field include the Wisconsin duo of Jack Meijer and Jackson Sharp as well as Arizona State's Fearghal Curtin. It should be noted that Sharp is listed in both this heat and the third-fastest heat.

The third-fastest 5k field still features plenty of strong talents as well. The Michigan duo of Devin Meyrer and Jack Aho, two Wolverine low-sticks who finished as All-Americans in cross country last fall, are two more names to watch. They'll be battling both Charlie Sweeney (Western Colorado) and Carson Bix (Adams State) tomorrow night, two upper-echelon names in D2.

Other current collegiates in this field include Mason Coppi (Furman) and Jamie Dee (Iona).

The second day of the "Track Meet" will be headlined by the 10,000 meters which has a total of four races, two for the men and two for the women.

The fastest men's race, which is aiming for a sub-27:30 performance, features top-ranked NCAA runners such as Iowa State standout Wesley Kiptoo, Hofstra ace Alex Masai and recent Georgetown grad transfer Robert Brandt.

From a collegiate point of view, few matchups will be more exciting than this one.

Masai has proven to be an aggressive front-runner who will push the pace and hang on to run fast times. That led to Masai securing personal bests of 7:53 (3k) and 13:28 (5k) last winter in what was a huge breakout track season for him.

As for Kiptoo, he was a JUCO juggernaught before joining the Cyclones, running personal bests of 4:04 (mile), 7:51 (3k) and 13:43 (5k) during his time with Colby CC. Kiptoo eventually transitioned to the D1 level where he cruised past high-level BIG 12 competition this past fall, ending his season with a comfortable 14-second win over Oklahoma State's Isai Rodriguez at the BIG 12 Championships.

We then come to Robert Brandt. One of the most experienced distance runners in the NCAA, Brandt will be finishing his eligibility with the Hoyas after finding major success with UCLA. The California native is an underrated tactician who has often put himself in All-American positions at numerous national meets.

It will be interesting to see how he handles what will surely be an aggressive pace, but after running a sub-four mile in a time trial earlier this year, Brandt could be ready to surprise a few people coming into this race.

The women's fastest 10k race also features three current collegiates: Katie Izzo (Arkansas), Elly Henes (NC State) and Cailie Logue (Iowa State)

A race like this could very easily benefit someone like Izzo who has had her best performances when she faces top-tier competition. The Razorback star finished a surprising 3rd place at NCAA XC Championships last year before venturing to Boston University's indoor track where she ran an electric 5k PR of 15:13, losing only to teammate Taylor Werner and beating out recent Under Armour signee Weini Kelati.

In theory, this race should highlight Izzo's greatest strengths and allow her to hit a huge new personal best on Saturday.

As for Henes, it has been quite some time since we last saw her race. The NC State veteran, who is out of cross country eligibility, finished 10th at the NCAA Championships last year and owns a personal best of 15:31 for 5000 meters. Despite never racing a 10k on the track before, Henes has enough raw talent to overcome that inexperience and follow the pace to what should be a fast time.

The last collegiate in this heat is Cailie Logue, the Iowa State low-stick who flat-out dominated her competition this past fall. Despite having to face Taylor Roe twice, Logue was simply the better runner and finished the altered 2020 cross country season unbeaten in three races.

Luckily for us, we'll get to see where Logue's true fitness is come Saturday as she will face competition that far surpass any of the women that she raced this past fall.

The second-fastest 10k fields may not have the same pace pushers that the top heats do, but there are still plenty of interesting collegiate runners set to toe the line on Saturday.

In the women's race, we'll get to see the debut of Fiona O'Keeffe in a New Mexico uniform. The grad transfer from Stanford joined the Lobos this past offseason with a personal best of 33:36 in the 10,000 meters. With the field aiming to run under 32:25, O'Keeffe has a good chance of securing herself a new PR even if she falls off the pace.

That same field will also feature Devin Clark (Arkansas), Maria Mettler (Air Force) and Jeralyn Poe (Northern Arizona). All three of those women were All-Americans on the grass last fall, although Poe is now with the Lumberjacks after moving to Flagstaff, Arizona to pursue her PhD. All of these women have shown that they can be legitimately competitive and one of them may surprise with a faster-than-expected time.

On the men's side, we will finally get to see Alex George make his debut for the Arizona State Sun Devils. After leaving Arkansas and joining ASU as a graduate transfer in the summer of 2019, George has yet to race for the Sun Devils (he has no XC eligibility remaining). With a personal best of 13:40 for 5000 meters, George should be primed to run something relatively quick if he is anywhere near that same level of fitness.

In that same race, George will be joined by two relatively younger runners in Shuaib Aljabaly (Wisconsin) and Abdi Nur (Northern Arizona). Both men are expected to be front-runners for their respective teams in the next couple of seasons, so this race will be a good indicator of the progress that they have made.