TSR's 2023 D2 Outdoor Top 25 Individual Rankings (Men): Update #4 (FINAL)

Written by John Cusick, additional edits and commentary by 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 guide when determining eligibility.

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25. Ben Sumner, Sophomore, Azusa Pacific (-1 / 24)

We originally had Ben Sumner stuck at our TSR #24 spot in these rankings before we made some adjustments to our final order.

Sumner’s second outdoor national meet was a much more successful one than his first appearance from last year. He opted for just the half-mile this time around which we considered to be his stronger event after seeing him run 1:48 (800) and 3:45 (1500) at Bryan Clay in April.

Our biggest concern, however, was his inexperience and if he’d be able to handle a field of extremely talented 800 meter runners.

After qualifying for the finals, the only thing that was left for Sumner was to beat a single opponent to claim a top-eight spot. He did that and then some as he secured a 7th place finish in one of the best 800 meter finals in Division Two history.

Sumner should only get better from here on out. It’s more than likely that Sumner’s best event will be the half-mile, but he has shown incredible promise over 1500 meters, leading us to believe that maybe, just maybe, he could eventually develop into a national title contender one day.

24. Zach Kreft, Rs. Senior, Walsh (-8 / 16)

It was a tough end to the season for Zach Kreft.

After such a strong campaign on the grass which led to a strong indoor track campaign, the outdoor track season didn’t seem to align with his earlier success. A bout of bronchitis certainly affects how he performed this spring, but we still thought Kreft would be a top name to watch in the 10k at the outdoor national meet.

Unfortunately, Kreft fell victim to a quick pace at altitude and once he lost contact with the main pack, it was nearly impossible to make up any ground in the late stages of that race.

Even so, in just one year, Kreft has placed himself within the elite ranks of Division Two and his TSR #24 spot isn’t a full representation of his talent level.

23. Cameron Allan, Junior, Adams State (-11 / 12)

It was a rough outdoor national meet for Cameron Allan.

After coming in with the top seed time in the 10k, Allan didn’t finish inside the top-10 as he fell all the way to 15th place by the end of the race. We were hoping we’d see a bounce back in the 5k and early-on, it appeared that Allan was ready to compete for a top-eight spot.

However, to his misfortune, Allan slowly moved backward through the 5k and found himself back in 12th place by the time all the chaos had ended in the men’s 5000 meters.

Allan has the tools to be a top talent for Adams State and we wouldn’t be surprised to see him come back in a big way during the fall of 2023. But for now, we must slide him back 11 spots to TSR #23 to end the year.

22. Isaac Prather, Senior, Concord (-3 / 19)

Isaac Prather finally became an All-American on the track after missing out on a top-eight honor over the previous two seasons in the steeplechase.

Prather qualified for the finals yet again in 2023 and after finishing 10th at last year’s outdoor national meet, the Concord star was able to keep himself together in the latter-half of the race to finish in 6th place and secure his first-ever All-American honor.

Yes, Prather also contested the 5k the following day, but ultimately fell to 16th place after the pace was quickened by some fresher athletes. That said, it should not take away from his performance this past weekend as Prather was one of the top steeplechase talents in the country and that was solidified in Pueblo.

21. Afewerki Zeru, Senior, UC-Colorado Springs (-3 / 18)

This was not the end to the season that Afewerki Zeru likely expected when he decided to focus on just the 5000 meters at this year’s outdoor national meet.

The reigning champion in the event posted a 5th place finish this past weekend over the 5k distance. And while that’s impressive, it’s still not what we expected from Zeru when we entered the weekend.

To be fair, it’s not like Zeru waited around and lost touch. He moved to the front of this field when it became slow and proceeded to string it out. In that effort, he likely took the legs out of him for the finish.

Zeru will leave UC-Colorado Springs as an eight-time All-American and arguably the greatest distance runner in the program’s history. That’s quite the career to hang your hat on as he should walk away incredibly proud of what he put together.

20. Simon Kelati, Junior, Western Colorado (Unranked)

Simon Kelati has been one of the most underrated athletes on the Division Two level during this calendar year. And truthfully, he may have an argument to be a couple of spots higher.

An All-American finish on the grass led to an All-American finish in the 5k during the indoor track season. And it was those two results that propelled Kelati to his two top-eight finishes this past weekend at the outdoor national meet.

Kelati navigated his way to 4th place finish in the 1500 meters before coming back a few hours later to finish 7th overall in a chaotic 5000 meter affair.

This Western Colorado star has proven to be a very savvy racer on the national stage and that was apparent in Pueblo, Colorado. He has a rare blend of strength and speed that makes him a threat from 1500 meters up to 10,000 meters.

If there were one thing that we want to see from Kelati moving forward, it’s merely just a longer racing schedule. He competed just one time before the indoor national meet and he only contested three meets prior to this year’s outdoor national meet.

If he can race this well on such little race experience, then Kelati could turn into a serious threat for a national title next year if he gains enough exposure to a variety of race scenarios.

19. Caleb Futter, Junior, Grand Valley State (-4 / 15)

It feels criminal moving Caleb Futter back four spots after his showing at the outdoor national meet this past weekend.

We knew how good Futter could be in the steeplechase as he finished as the runner-up at the 2021 outdoor national meet. But since then, he's had a few moments of consistency that have left us unsure what to expect at times.

But Futter quickly put any doubts about him to rest this past weekend as he easily qualified for the steeplechase finals. And what he did on the final lap of that race has likely earned Futter much respect from the rest of the country.

Going into the final lap Futter was sitting in 9th place before he put together a 63-second final lap, four seconds faster than anyone else in the field, and crossed the finish line in 4th place while fighting for the bronze medal.

Futter did double back in the in the 5000 meters on Saturday, but it was clear that he put most of his effort into the steeplechase as he finished 14th.

18. Loic Scomparin, Junior, Colorado Christian (+2 / 20)

Loic Scomparin had an interesting season in his Oredigger singlet.

After setting a new personal best of 3:45 (1500) in April, there was some thoughts that we could may see Scomparin contest the 1500 meters at the national meet. Of course, those thoughts were premature as Scomparin put together marks of 13:45 (5k) and 29:09 (10k) to qualify for the national meet.

The Oredigger would go on to finish as the bronze medalist in the 10k on Thursday night before doubling back to finish 9th in the 5000 meters. The times that Scomparin have posted indicate that he has taken a step forward in fitness level and that could spell trouble for future opponents.

This is the fifth time that Scomparin has walked away as an All-American on the track and that alone makes him a prime candidate to be the new leader of Colorado Mines in the fall of 2023.

17. Josh Pierantoni, Junior, Colorado Christian (+1 / 18)

Josh Pierantoni has continued to get better and better throughout his career at Colorado Christian and this past weekend only added to his already-impressive resume.

The Cougars veteran worked with teammate Matthew Storer and navigated the fields of the 10k and the 5k with calmness. That level of composure led to Pierantoni finishing 5th in the 10k and then 3rd in the 5k. The Cougar veteran is now three-for-three in All-American finishes during this calendar year.

And honestly, this is what we expected from Pierantoni when the outdoor track season started. He proved just how good he was on the grass in the fall and all he has done since then is validate that level of fitness over the past three months.

16. Clement Duigou, Junior, Adams State (-6 / 10)

Coming into the 2022-2023 calendar year, there were very high expectations for Adams State's dynamic steeplechase star, Clement Duigou. But this spring, he just never round his rhythm.

Despite never running anywhere close to his PR in the steeplechase this year, Duigou still managed to finish in 3rd place this past weekend amongst a strong steeple field. He would double back the following day in the 5k, but ultimately recorded a DNF in the event.

Despite the strong steeple showing, it never felt like Duigou was in good form this season. Qualifying for the national meet was harder than expected and it’s more than likely that Duigou benefited from the national meet being held at CSU-Pueblo.

Regardless of your opinion on the Frenchman, Duigou remains in our top-20 due to his ability to perform when it matters. Yes, we would have liked to see him run better in the 5k, but we can’t ignore how good he was in his main event.

15. Albert Hesse, Sophomore, Western Colorado (Unranked)

Albert Hesse is arguably the biggest surprise from this past weekend’s national meet.

After not competing during the indoor track season (he’s part of Western Colorado’s nordic ski team), it had been more than four months since we had seen Hesse race once he finally debuted in March.

Since then, Hesse has put together a strong season, but nothing that really indicated that he should finish as the runner-up in the steeplechase at the national meet. And while there are still plenty of questions surrounding Hesse as a whole, it’s clear that he has an innate ability for running over barriers.

If Hesse can refine his aerobic fitness during this summer, then it wouldn’t come as a surprise to see him start to take over as the lead man at Western Colorado in the coming years. And if that does happen, then Hesse will likely be better than just TSR #15 moving forward.

14. Charlie Dannatt, Junior, Simon Fraser (-3 / 11)

We mentioned how this outdoor track campaign was the best that we had seen from the Simon Fraser star. And truthfully, Charlie Dannatt’s 5th place finish over 1500 meters this past weekend doesn’t quite align with just how good Dannatt has been for the Red Leafs.

That 5th place finish will likely be what’s talked about the most from the 2023 outdoor track season, but Dannatt ran 3:41 for the metric mile to back up his 3:58 mile from the indoor track season. It’s very clear that Dannatt was an elite talent among the top class of Division Two and sometimes that talent gets outweighed by unexpected performances and tactical efforts.

You could argue that if this were the 1500 meter field from last year, then this year's version of Dannatt could have very easily finished as a national title winner. Instead, the field he faced was some of the most experienced athletes and it showed at the end of this race.

13. Matthew Storer, Sophomore, Colorado Christian (+9 / 22)

I’m not sure that there is a much better series of results than what we saw Matthew Storer accomplish this past weekend at the outdoor national meet.

In two incredibly smart race plans, we saw Storer take home 4th place over 10,000 meters on Thursday night before finishing 2nd over 5000 meters on Saturday night.

The outdoor national meet caps off a sensational year for a guy who placed 6th at the NCAA XC Championships, 5th over 5000 meters at the indoor national meet and finally, two more top-eight finishes at the outdoor national meet. His consistency and rising reliability in numerous race scenarios has proven to be wildly valuable.

If Storer races like this for the rest of his career, then he’ll have the opportunity to bring Colorado Christian to the forefront of a national title race and in turn, hopefully continue to build out this budding powerhouse program.

12. Hamza Chahid, Freshman, Wingate (-6 / 6)

Admittedly, Hamza Chahid underperformed at the outdoor national meet relative to his expectations.

Chahid easily navigated through the preliminaries of the 1500 meters where he ultimately wound up finishing in 6th place following a hard finish from the entire field. It was clear that the earlier final impacted his ability to compete in the 5000 meters as he pulled out of the race before he had even reached the halfway point.

We know how talented this Wingate athlete is and we saw what he was capable of doing during the indoor track season. We should expect to see that winter form from him again in the coming years. It was also clear that Chahid was fighting the altitude and that seemed to zap the firepower we’re accustomed to seeing from him.

If Chahid returns to the D2 level in 2023-2024, then he’ll be a prime candidate to watch as he has all the makings to be an elite talent from the grass to the indoor and outdoor ovals. Because let's not forget, this is a guy who still ran one of the fastest outdoor 5k times (13:33) in D2 history earlier this spring.

11. Jared Gregoire, Freshman, MSU-Moorhead (+12 / 23)

Jared Gregoire burst onto the scene in April when he ran 1:49 (800) and 3:43 (1500) in back-to-back weekends.

From that moment on, we’ve somewhat waffled back and forth between what we were expecting from Gregoire as he entered the outdoor national meet for the first time. Not only was his inexperience leaving us a little uncertain about what he would be able to do this past weekend, but it was also the fact that he would have to race altitude-based athletes on their terms in Pueblo, Colorado.

Well, it's safe to say that Gregoire answered all of our questions beautifully after he calmly navigated the 1500 meter preliminary rounds and then proceeded to finish as the bronze medalist in the metric mile. The level of composure that Gregoire has shown in his true rookie season gives us all of the reason to move him up 12 spots in our final round of rankings.

And if his career follows the same trajectory as his freshman campaign, then we’ll be talking about Gregoire as one of the biggest threats for the indoor mile and outdoor 1500 meter national titles.

10. Dillon Powell, Sophomore, Colorado Mines (-6 / 4)

Dillon Powell didn’t race at the outdoor national meet due to an apparent injury.

Despite him opting out of the national meet, Powell remains in our rankings based on his flat-out incredible raw talent and firepower. He ran 13:30 (5k) earlier this season and sits at NCAA #4 all-time in that event. And while we didn’t get to see him run a 10k at sea level, but we’re confident that he would have been a factor at the front of both races.

If this is the final season for Powell at the Division Two level, then it was quite the ride as he has put himself in the conversation for being one of the best distance runners in D2 history.

9. Butare Rugenerwa, Senior, West Texas A&M (-1 / 8)

This was another half-mile race that Butare Rugenerwa couldn’t have run any better.

His 3rd place finish makes it the second-straight bronze medal for Rugenerwa in the 800 meter discipline. The Buffs ace opted to run with the chase pack instead of going out with Reece Sharman-Newell and it nearly paid off. He moved up two positions over the final 400 meters and secured the fifth All-American honor of his career.

Rugenerewa has been one of the staples at the half-mile level for the past five years and his departure should open up the ranks for another athlete to become a household name.

8. Miguel Coca, Senior, Adams State (-6 / 2)

A six-spot drop admittedly seems a little steep for Miguel Coca, but this drop isn't the result of him performing poorly over this past weekend.

Coca put himself in the almost perfect position to secure his second NCAA title, but was thwarted by the likes of Luke Julian. Coca returned to the track on Saturday evening to contest the 5k where he finished 10th.

The 2023 outdoor track season was a successful one for Coca as he set new personal bests of 3:41 (1500) and 13:35 (5k) which cemented him as one of the most dynamic runners in Division Two. His ranking of TSR #8 isn’t necessarily indicative of his talent level, but it’s more of an indication of just how good the Division Two landscape is at the current moment.

7. Reece Sharman-Newell, Sophomore, CSU-Pueblo (0 / 7)

There may be some questions about the strategy that we saw from Reece Sharman-Newell this past weekend, but you certainly can’t fault him for trying to win a national title on his home turf and on his own terms.

That effort led to Sharman-Newell’s best national meet finish in his young career. It also solidified him as the biggest threat to Wes Ferguson if/when they meet again. The raw talent is there for Sharman-Newell and we’ve seen him slowly piece it together over the last two calendar seasons.

If he finally puts it all together next year, then there’s a real chance that we could see two men go under the 1:45 barrier for the first time in Division Two history (yeah, I said it, that's not a typo). Of course, that’s easier for me to say than it is for Sharman-Newell to do.

6. Jan Lukas Becker, Senior, Mississippi College (+8 / 14)

Jan Lukas Becker had one of the gutsiest efforts I’ve ever watched in a live track race.

Becker looked like he had made a huge mistake trying to run with Awet Beraki when he broke away from the field. At one point, he was six seconds back of the Adams State star, but that apparently didn’t bother the German native.

Becker slowly inched his way back to Beraki and when he moved to pass with 800 meters to go, there was no looking back. Becker covered the 25 laps in 29:47 and put 12 seconds between him and Beraki in that final half-mile.

This is Becker’s first national title, but it was also the most refined that we've ever seen him look. He has always been a fairly balanced distance talent and his times suggested that he had the raw fitness to be among the best.

But in 2023, something about Becker just looked different. And if I had to guess, it would be his confidence that gave that title-winning edge.

5. Luke Julian, Rs. Senior, Colorado Mines (+8 / 13)

He finally did it.

Luke Julian held off the men's 1500 meter field in an incredible effort down the final stretch to secure his first national title in his final collegiate race. And honestly, we’re not sure you could write a better storybook ending than this.

Julian has come oh-so-close to winning NCAA gold before and we were afraid he might not have enough late-race firepower to hold off his opponents. But those concerns have dissipated after this weekend as he holds the top spot among 1500 meter runners for the 2023 outdoor track season.

4. Awet Beraki, Senior, Adams State (+5 / 9)

Awet Beraki put together two very good races in the 10,000 meters and the 5,000 meters this past weekend at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Beraki broke the 10k field open and appeared to be running away with the title before Jan Lukas Becker eventually pulled him back in. Beraki would go on to finish as the silver medalist in the 10k, making it two-straight years of runner-up national meet finishes in the event.

Nearly 48 hours later, Beraki stepped on the track again in the men’s 5k where he ultimately held on for the national title. There was some confusion with the rest of the men’s finishers, but it was clear that Beraki was the best athlete in this 5000 meter field.

When looking at his results from this past weekend and seeing very few flaws in his resume, we think he's deserving of moving up five spots to our TSR #4 spot to finish the outdoor track season.

3. Reece Smith, Junior, Northwest Missouri (+2 / 5)

Reece Smith arguably came in as the biggest (distance running) national title favorite this past weekend. And if we’re being honest, there wasn’t much debate about who’d win NCAA gold in the steeplechase after the preliminaries finished up on Thursday evening.

Smith bided his time in the finals, struck when necessary and even with a tumble through the final water pit, the Northwest Missouri star still had ample time to win his second-straight national title in the steeplechase.

The Bearcat ace followed up that performance with a 6th place finish for 5000 meters on Saturday. Smith showed off his racing savvy and when other athletes thought they were finishing, he was able to move from 11th place to 6th place in the final 800 meters, giving him double All-American honors.

2. Oussama El Bouchayby, Freshman, Angelo State (-1 / 1)

Oussama El Bouchaby didn’t race at the NCAA Outdoor Championships due to a family emergency. Regardless, we felt like the second-fastest man in D2 history over 800 meters, who ran 1:45 twice this season while taking down Bryce Hoppel, deserved to stay inside our top-three.

We won't see El Bouchayby return to the Division Two level next year as he is headed to Alabama, but we think it's fair to say that he helped change the D2 landscape of the 800 meters at the national level.

1. Wes Ferguson, Junior, Nebraska-Kearney (+2 / 3)

Wes Ferguson is clearly the best racer we have in Division Two and this past weekend’s national meet only highlighted that strength even more.

Ferguson ran a tactical masterpiece as he let Reece Sharman-Newell put nearly 20 meters on him before the Nebraska-Kearney veteran reeled him back in. His comeback effort resulted in the third-fastest half-mile mark we’ve ever seen in D2 (1:45.46), giving him his third NCAA title in the event and back-to-back national titles on the outdoor oval.

Ferguson has been nearly perfect this spring and his ability to put away a national field like this propels him to our TSR #1 spot to end the year.

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ADDED

Albert Hesse (Western Colorado)

Simon Kelati (Western Colorado)

KICKED OFF

Drew Weber (Western Washington)

Luke Stuckey (Nebraska-Kearney)

JUST MISSED (in no particular order)

Angel Luera (Dallas Baptist)

Harry Ross-Hughes (Lake Erie)

Kaleb Tipton (CSU-Pueblo)

Tanner Maier (Minnesota State)

Jagger Zlotoff (UC-Colorado Springs)

Tyler Nord (Western Colorado)

Steven Goldy (Colorado Mines)

Duncan Fuehne (Colorado Mines)

Aron Orar (Adams State)

Paul Knight (Colorado Mines)

Nixon Korir (Azusa Pacific)

Ben Arens (Nebraska-Kearney)

Michael Grabowski (Western Colorado)

Aris Valerio (Cal Poly Humboldt)

Jakob Rettschlag (Wingate)

Alberto Campa (Colorado Mines)

Evan Graff (UC-Colorado Springs)

Dillan Haviland (Northwood)

HONORABLE MENTIONS (in no particular order)

John O'Malley (Colorado Mines)

Scott Nutter (Wingate)

Elliot Dotson (Anderson (SC))

Davonte Jett-Reynolds (Adams State)

Noah Fisher (Findlay)

Isaac Russo (Colorado Christian)

Marcus Graham (UC-Colorado Springs)

Chris Cathcart (Colorado Mines)

Jacob Hernandez (Western Colorado)

Evan Leist (Cedarville)

Felix Perrier (Azusa Pacific)

Mitchel Dunham (Walsh)

Soheil Boufrizi (Wingate)

Dylan Burrows (Oklahoma Christian)

Braxton Bruer (MSU-Moorhead)

Drew Weber (Western Washington)

Luke Stuckey (Nebraska-Kearney)

Trent Cochran (Colorado Christian)

Clayton Sayen (Michigan Tech)