2022 D3 Indoor Top 15 Rankings (Men): Update #2

TSR Collaboration
Feb 9, 2022
8 min read

Written by Brett Haffner & Kevin Fischer, additional contributions by Garrett Zatlin

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 guide when determining eligibility.

KEY

(Unranked):

Was not ranked in our last update.

(#/#):

First number indicates how much the individual has moved in the rankings.

The second number indicates where they were ranked in our last update.

15. Tucker Cargile, Senior, Redlands (Unranked)

Tucker Cargile has earned All-American honors in both the 800 meters and in cross country, so it should be no surprise that he can be nationally competitive in multiple events.

The Redlands veteran continued to show off that versatility this past weekend with a 4:15 mile at 7000 feet of altitude in Flagstaff, Arizona. That time converts to an eyebrow-raising mark of 4:09 for national qualifying purposes.

Not only that, but Cargile doubled back with a converted 1:55 mark in the 800 meters, so it will be interesting to see what he can do in an 800 meter race when he's not only fresh, but when he's also not at altitude.

Cargile holds one of the fastest personal best marks in the country at the 800 meter distance, having run a time of 1:50 back in 2019. However, at this point, Cargile's proven success during cross country seems to balance his 800 meter speed, leading us to believe the mile would be his ideal event this winter.

That, in theory, would be a great event for him to pursue at the national meet. He has the 800 meter speed for tactical races, but the cross country All-American accolades to prepare him for more strength-based races.

On paper, Cargile is primed for a promising postseason.

14. Graham Tuohy-Gaydos, Freshman, Williams (Unranked)

Tuohy-Gaydos, the only true freshman in our Top 15 rankings, is an incredible talent.

The young Williams phenom has integrated well into the Ephs’ “Big Three” alongside Ryan and Lindgren. He ran a time of 8:17 for 3000 meters at the Conference Challenge Cup the other weekend, beating the SUNY Geneseo duo of Nick Andrews (TSR #6) and Ezra Ruggles.

Not only is that a great time, but that's a really valuable win as well.

Tuohy-Gaydos only has one and a half seasons of collegiate running under his belt, yet his resume is already looking very impressive. He has earned All-American honors in cross country and has all-but locked up national meet qualification times in both the 3k and the 5k.

It will be fun to follow this guy’s progress over the next few years, but for now, seeing Tuohy-Gaydos gain experience against some of the best talents in D3 this winter will be valuable for his long-term growth.

13. Carter Oberfoell, Sophomore, Loras (Unranked)

Mike Jasa isn’t the only Loras middle distance star who needs to be on your radar.

Carter Oberfoell placed 3rd in the 800 meters at the Wartburg Select Meet this past weekend in a race that he could have won. However, what’s even more important is that he maintained his TSR #3 spot on the national leaderboard for the 800 meter event.

As the season progresses, the national leaderboard has become more and more telling about where everyone truly sits in the NCAA hierarchy of distance talents.

The fact that nobody outside of Mike Jasa (TSR #2) and Steven Potter (TSR #5) has posted a better mark than Oberfoell’s flat-track time of 1:52 makes his performance, in retrospect, even more impressive.

12. David Fassbender, Senior, UW-Whitewater (Unranked)

It feels like all of the best distance runners in the country are posting ridiculous 3000 meter times, and Fassbender is no exception.

While his 8:17 mark at the Leonard “Squig” Converse Invitational was two seconds off of his personal best from 2020, it still shows us that he hasn’t lost a step since the cross country season, and that he is not far away from being in the best shape that he’s ever been in.

Fassbender is in a spot where he is capable of contending for All-American spots in either the 3000 meters or the 5000 meters come March. His extensive national meet experience should make him a factor at the indoor national meet.

To what extent? I guess we'll eventually find out...

11. Elias Lindgren, Junior, Williams (-5 / 6)

Has not competed since our last update.

10. Henry Pick, Junior, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (-6 / 4)

Henry Pick has competed once since his throwing down an 8:11 (3k) season-opener at Boston University. That second effort was a 4:10/1:56 double...on an outdoor track.

Pick drops a few spots because of his relative inactivity over the last two months, but his opener remains as a top-three mark on the national leaderboard. Because of that, he stays comfortably within our rankings...for now.

After all, it’s hard to fault someone at a California school for not racing much during the indoor season. However, will be interesting to see whether Pick competes in any further indoor meets during regular season.

9. Christopher Collet, Sophomore, Wartburg (-4 / 5)

Christopher Collet was part of the nation’s leading DMR squad at the Wartburg Select Meet this past weekend, splitting 4:11 on the anchor leg.

Collet broke into our rankings during our last update after a breakout 4:06 mile. And while he does drop a few spots due to some of the performances from other D3 guys, he still very much remains a favorite to score at the national meet and earn All-American honors again.

A fast 3k could be in his future as well. Given his steeple and 5k personal bests, along with his recent mile, he can definitely run faster than his current PR of 8:25. If he does, then he would have all of the necessary racing tools in his arsenal to have success on the national stage in the 3000 meters.

8. Ryan Wilson, Junior, MIT (Unranked)

Ryan Wilson has raced the mile twice now in his collegiate career.

His first effort produced a 4:24 result at the Springfield Triangle Classic in February of 2020. But the second one? Well, he ran a 4:06 mile at Boston University's Bruce Lehane Scarlet and White meet last Saturday.

Now, Wilson is a cross country All-American, and he has run 2:26 for the 1000 meters, so to some extent, we knew what he was capable of. A mark in the 4:10 range seemed realistic for someone of his caliber.

However, throwing down a 4:06 mark is another level beyond that. For Wilson to come to Boston University and execute on his fitness as effectively as he did against such a talented field should be massive for his confidence.

If all goes well, he should be able to add an All-American finish on the oval to pair with his cross country honors on the grass. And between his 1000 meter mark and his past cross country accolades, Wilson is primed to be a key name on the national stage.

7. Tyler Morris, Sophomore, Colby (+1 / 8)

Morris’ December 5k mark still holds up fairly well on the national leaderboard, maintaining the NCAA #2 rank with his 14:23 performance. The Colby standout raced this past weekend at the Maine State Meet, putting up some solid performances -- but also nothing crazy, given limited the competition.

Seeing Morris in another 5k race before the indoor national meet, or a fast 3k race, would be good in order for us to see where his fitness is currently at. A lot can change between December and February...

6. Nick Andrews, Sophomore, SUNY Geneseo (Unranked)

Finishing right behind fellow ranked teammate Matthew Lecky at the cross country national meet, placing 39th overall, is Nick Andrews who has established himself as a top contender in the 5000 meters after his blistering 14:23 mark at the Bomber Invitational.

More than that, Andrews has also stretched down to run 4:12 in the mile (NCAA #12) and 8:20 in the 3k (NCAA #9), giving him three nationally competitive marks to his name.

This SUNY Geneseo talent is one of the better all-around distance runners in D3 who is always in the mix regardless of what he's running. He's a steady and reliable talent, but we'll be curious to see how he executes his race plans in the postseason now that he has reached a new tier of fitness.

5. Steven Potter, Junior, UW-Oshkosh (+4 / 9)

In a year where the nation’s best 800 meter marks mostly came from the month December, Potter still holds the NCAA #2 performance in the 800 meters with his 1:52.4 mark after the cross country season.

Potter has raced a few times in some "off" distances, along with winning a decently-competitive 800 meter race this past weekend in a mark of 1:54.7. That was a solid result, but we have yet to really see him in a high-intensity racing scenario.

Once he gets into a competitive 800 or mile race, we’ll see Potter emerge as the elite national-level threat that we know he can be and has proven to be before.

4. Matthew Lecky, Sophomore, RPI (Unranked)

Having earned his first All-American honor in cross country this past fall, placing 38th overall, Lecky stormed onto the national scene in a brilliant fashion this winter, running 8:16 in the 3000 meters. That mark was (and still is) good enough for NCAA #2 on the D3 national leaderboard, placing himself right at the top of the division.

As he races in the coming weeks, we’ll see if Lecky ends up stretching down to the mile or up to the 5000 meters as he was a bit of an unknown before his monster 3k performance.

If his cross country success tells us anything, it's that the 5000 meters will be the ideal distance that he should seriously pursue next. This isn't to say that he couldn't run a fast mile time, but there's greater evidence to suggest that going up from the 3000 meters would make more sense for Lecky.

3. Alex Phillip, Sophomore, John Carroll (-1 / 2)

Has recorded two DNF results since our last update.

2. Mike Jasa, Junior, Loras (+1 / 3)

Breaking the 1:50 barrier for 800 meters at the D3 level is something that has only been done by a select few. Loras star Mike Jasa added himself to that group this past weekend, throwing down a blistering mark of 1:49.45 against some healthy D1 competition at Notre Dame.

Jasa has been at the top of the 800 meter national leaderboard ever since December and that doesn’t seem all too likely to change for the time being. While we would like to offer more analysis here, I'm not sure that performance changes our thoughts on Jasa.

At the end of the day, he is really, really good...and that's something we already knew.

1. Aidan Ryan, Senior, Williams (0/ 1)

In the wild past two weeks of D3 competition, there was one men’s performance in particular that truly stood out. Running a 3:56.88 mile time in ANY of the three NCAA divisions would be wildly impressive, let alone it being from the D3 ranks.

Aidan Ryan proved a major point by running that mark, becoming the second runner in D3 history to break the elusive four-minute mile barrier, crushing the former national record in the process.

The undisputed TSR #1 runner in our rankings, Ryan has a wide array of options to consider when it comes to his race selection at the indoor national meet.

He’s currently ranked at NCAA #1 in both the mile and the 3000 meters by wide margins. However, he also has the ability to hop on a DMR with his Williams teammates.

It’s pretty safe to say that regardless of what Ryan toes the line for, he’ll be the title favorite.