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One Sentence Previews: 2022 NCAA Indoor Championships Men's DMR (D1)

  • Writer: Admin (Garrett Zatlin)
    Admin (Garrett Zatlin)
  • Mar 7, 2022
  • 3 min read

1. Washington Huskies

Not having Brian Fay on this relay hurts, but having two 3:56 milers in Houser and Waskom, both of whom will be fresh, on either end of this lineup still gives the Huskies an incredibly lethal (and admittedly inexperienced) DMR.


2. Notre Dame Fighting Irish

As long as this relay puts Nuguse in the lead (or near the lead), then the Fighting Irish should be favored to win, especially when you consider that everyone on this relay will be completely fresh.


3. Ole Miss Rebels

On paper, the Rebels have the necessary pieces to battle for DMR gold, but their options for many of these legs (i.e. Garcia Romo, Young, Crorken and Rivera) are all going to be doubling back from open events, leaving us unsure what this relay will look like when they toe the line.


4. Alabama Crimson Tide

We know Kipsang is a superstar, but we'll be fascinated to see how Cheruiyot and Lamb fare in their second national-caliber DMR field, especially when there is more pressure and an All-American honor on the line.


5. Oklahoma State Cowboys

This Oklahoma State relay has the perfect option for each spot in their lineup and it also doesn't hurt that Schoppe is peaking at the right time, recently running a 3:57 personal best in the BIG 12 mile prelims.


6. Indiana Hoosiers

Initial concerns about youth, consistency and relay fits were tossed aside when the Hoosiers proved that they could not only contend with, but also defeat, some of the best distance programs in the country, making it far more challenging to pick against them this time around.


7. Princeton Tigers

This team has a high floor and a low ceiling. I don't expect them to have a bad race, but someone on this relay would need to have a monumental split for Princeton to place any higher than 6th or 7th place this weekend.


8. Michigan Wolverines

Both Miles Brown and Cole Johnson were instrumental to the success of this relay earlier in the season, but having both of these men double back from the 800 meter prelims leaves me unsure whether or not Nick Foster, the anchor leg of this DMR, will be in a good enough position to earn All-American honors when gets the baton.


9. Wisconsin Badgers

Having Abdullahi Hassan scratch out of the 800 meters to be fresh for this relay signals that the Badgers are going all-in, although it will be fascinating to see if the Wisconsin men want to include Hacker in this relay (who isn't racing the 3000 meters until day two) or if they will stick with their duo of Spencer and Sharp on either end of this lineup.


10. Texas Longhorns

This roster was built for the DMR, but with so many men running the 800 and the mile before this relay, expect Texas to field a lineup that looks a bit different than it did at the Alex Wilson Invitational, potentially with Yaseen Abdalla or Cruz Gomez involved.


11. Iowa State Cyclones

The Cyclones may have (one of) the best middle distance roster(s) in the nation, but despite Nehemia Too splitting 3:57 earlier this season, they'll need a bit more firepower on their anchor leg to truly contend with the top teams in this field.


12. Arkansas Razorbacks

Elias Schreml is a super underrated anchor, but he needs the rest of this lineup to produce some big splits, including Kieran Taylor who might be doubling back on the 800 meter leg after contesting the open 800 meters.


Final Predictions:

  1. Notre Dame Fighting Irish

  2. Wisconsin Badgers

  3. Oklahoma State Cowboys

  4. Washington Huskies

  5. Indiana Hoosiers

  6. Alabama Crimson Tide

  7. Ole Miss Rebels

  8. Princeton Tigers

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