TSR's 2024 D1 Outdoor Top 25 Rankings (Men): Update #3

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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.

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25. Tarees Rhoden, Senior, Clemson (Unranked)

We have never doubted the raw fitness of Tarees Rhoden, an aggressive front-runner who has emerged as a multi-time All-American during his NCAA career. However, the Clemson star has also had moments where his ambitious racing approach has led to some less-than-optimal results.

But this past weekend, Rhoden showed a bit more patience in his 800-meter final at the ACC Championships. Yes, he was the reason why the race went out in 51 seconds, but rather than defend his position, he let Virginia Tech's Nick Plant take the lead. That, in turn, led to Rhoden kicking past his Hokie rival for an ACC title and a 1:45.97 (800) PR.

Rhoden doesn't necessarily need to abandon his front-running approach to find success on the national stage. However, this past weekend did prove that he can be effective when tailing the leader(s) which is not something that we could have said about him prior the ACC Championships.

24. James Corrigan, Sophomore, BYU (Unranked)

The progression that we've seen from James Corrigan this spring has been brilliant as the BYU sophomore has gone from 8:50 to 8:46 to 8:34 to 8:29 in the steeplechase. That latter mark came this past weekend en route to a BIG 12 title where he kicked past Oklahoma State's Victor Shitsama for the win.

Throughout this entire academic year, Corrigan has proven that he is a national-caliber name who is capable of taking down top-ranked talents. However, Saturday's steeplechase effort felt like a defining moment that truly elevated Corrigan from "good" to "great" in the NCAA landscape of competitive stars.

Now, with tons of momentum under his legs and Coach Ed Eyestone holding a history of developing elite steeplechasers, all signs are pointing upwards for Corrigan.

23. Gary Martin, Sophomore, Virginia (-1 / 22)

We didn't learn a whole lot about Gary Martin this past weekend at the ACC Championships. The dynamic Virginia star finished a somewhat narrow runner-up over 1500 meters behind Ethan Strand and he later doubled back to score in the 5k with an 8th place finish.

Martin's decision to take the lead in the latter-half of this race was truthfully a bit surprising. For someone with 1:47 (800) speed, you would think that the Cavalier star would want to wait to make his move to the front when he can get the most pop out of his legs.

Even so, it was an admirable effort by Martin and he shouldn't be too upset about it.

22. Elliott Cook, Rs. Junior, Oregon (Unranked)

After redshirting last spring and remaining absent for 95% of the 2024 indoor track season, it's sometimes easy to forget that Oregon's Elliott Cook was a mile All-American in 2023. Of course, after seeing what he's done this spring, there should no longer be anything surprising about how talented this Duck middle distance runner is.

So far this season, Cook has run 1:47 for 800 meters twice (three times if you include relays, four times if you include conversions) and he has recorded a strong 3:38 (1500) PR to his resume as well.

However, what might be most impressive was the fact that he defeated Washington's "Big Three" of Luke Houser, Nathan Green and Joe Waskom en route to a PAC-12 title over 1500 meters. Not only that, but Cook later doubled back to win the men's 800-meter conference title in a time that would earn a 1:47-low conversion.

Cook is looking incredible right now. His speed has made him absolutely lethal and there are no signs of him slowing down. Don't sleep on this Oregon runner who will be racing on his home track should he advance to the national meet.

21. Rivaldo Marshall, Junior, Iowa (-11 / 10)

Placing 4th overall in the 800-meter finals at the BIG 10 Championships this past weekend was...well, not great. In what turned out to be a tactical race, Marshall narrowly took 4th, although he could have easily finished 2nd if a few strides broke his way.

This Iowa junior has been very solid this season, running 1:45 (800) and holding his own in a handful of races. Even so, this isn't the result that you would expect to see from a national champion. Of course, the counter point to that is that Marshall placed 5th at the BIG 10 Indoor Championships before winning NCAA gold.

The Hawkeye ace is still very much in the national title discussion, but his status in that event is beginning to drift more towards "contender" rather than "favorite."

20. Parvej Khan, Freshman, Florida (+3 / 23)

The Florida freshman continues to do veteran-like things. That's because, this past weekend, Parvej Khan secured the SEC title over 1500 meters with a kick that no one else in the field could match. And then, to top it all off, Khan doubled back to the 800 meters where he ran 1:46 for 3rd place!

Khan has quickly developed a reputation for having what might be the scariest kick in the NCAA. And now, the Gator rookie is also showing that he can thrive with a heavy workload and be plenty effective in the multiple rounds. That's a great sign as we approach the regional and national meets.

19. Anass Essayi, Junior, South Carolina (+1 / 20)

Credit where credit is due, Anass Essayi may have put together the most impressive double of anyone this past weekend. That's because the South Carolina talent posted a huge 800-meter PR of 1:46.06 at the SEC Championships before doubling back not too long after and running 13:34 for 5000 meters! Both efforts ended with silver medals.

We have never once questioned Anass Essayi's talent. This is, after all, someone who has run 3:32 for 1500 meters before. And frankly, we always knew that he had some of the best range in the country (although we never thought it was this good). However, with a very streaky history in the postseason, it is the national meet that will truly dictate Essayi's end-of-season ranking more so than anyone else.

18. Ethan Strand, Junior, North Carolina (+1 / 19)

A simple sit-and-kick tactic in the 1500-meter finals of the ACC Championships was all it took for Ethan Strand to take the lead from Gary Martin on the final straightaway. And while the North Carolina star did have to truly grit his teeth and pump his arms to get gold, there wasn't much that surprised us about Strand's performance.

This was an impressive win and a big win...but there isn't a whole lot more to say about Strand. We knew that he was roughly this good and we knew that his battle with Martin would likely be tight.

Sure enough, that was the case.

17. Brian Musau, Freshman, Oklahoma State (-4 / 13)

It was a tough weekend for Brian Musau who contested the 1500 meters at the BIG 12 Championships. The Oklahoma State rookie took the lead in the finals of what turned out to be a fairly tactical race. And with 150 meters to go, Musau was swallowed up by a large pack which consisted mostly of Iowa State guys. In the end, the Cowboy freshman faded to 4th place.

If there was ever a time for Musau to have an "off" day, this past weekend was the time. Plus, the 5000 meters will likely be his focus moving forward, not the 1500 meters. Even so, that was the first time that the Oklahoma State freshman has proven that he is human this season.

16. Sean Dolan, Senior, Villanova (+2 / 18)

During the winter months, Sean Dolan looked like the most complete half-miler in the country. His experience, positioning, varying tactical approaches, fast times and consistency are all aspects that have made him an extremely challenging name to defeat.

But with a prior 800-meter PR of 1:46, there was a question of whether or not Dolan would be able to contend for NCAA gold with so many stars running under the 1:46 barrier this season. Of course, after this weekend, there are no more questions about Dolan's upside.

A solo 1:45 effort to win the BIG East title over 800 meters now leaves us wondering if the Villanova veteran should be placed within the national title conversation. That's a debate to be had on the podcast and in our national meet previews, but it's hard to find a flaw on Dolan's resume right now.

15. Abdelhakim Abouzouhir, Senior, Eastern Kentucky (0 / 15)

14. Victor Kibiego, Junior, Texas A&M (+2 / 16)

There's admittedly not much to say about either Abdelhakim Abouzouhir or Victor Kibiego.

Yes, Abouzouhir had a fairly underwhelming weekend over 1500 meters, but it's clear that he is a far better steeplechaser than anything else. As for Kibiego, the Texas A&M star took gold at the SEC Championships in 8:57, defeating a field that he was heavily favored over.

At the end of the day, all you need to know is that these two men are still in the conversation for the steeplechase national title.

13. Liam Murphy, Junior, Villanova (+4 / 17)

There's not much to report with Liam Murphy. He secured the BIG East title over 1500 meters (as expected) and ran 3:39.00 in the process. A win over teammate Charlie O'Donovan and Georgetown's Abel Teffra was great to see, but anything other than 1st place would have been considered an upset.

Murphy does get a nice four-spot boost in our rankings. Part of that is due to his win, but the other part is due to other top-tier names either remaining stale in our rankings or simply struggling this past weekend.

12. Fouad Messaoudi, Junior, Oklahoma State (-1 / 11)

Admittedly, we expected much more out of Fouad Messaoudi at the BIG 12 Championships over 5000 meters. On that stage, the Cowboy star recorded an unexciting time of 13:56 and took 7th place overall.

Is that the most encouraging performance? No, it's not, but given that he has run 3:36 and 3:37 for 1500 meters this season, it's hard to really question Messaoudi's ability to be nationally competitive this spring. Plus, the Oklahoma State star also ran a 1:48 (800) PR earlier this month!

Simply put, all that we learned about Messaoudi this past weekend is that his aerobic strength may not be where it's been at in the past.

11. Nathan Mountain, Junior, Virginia (+3 / 14)

The men's steeplechase field at the ACC Championships, in addition to 8:20 steeplechaser Nathan Mountain, boasted proven talents such as Yasin Sado (Virginia), Brett Gardner (NC State), CJ Singleton (Notre Dame) and Michael Keehan (Duke).

But even when that race grew increasingly more intense in its final moments, it was Mountain who took control with 500 meters to go. The Virginia veteran secured the ACC title in a time of 8:30, comfortably defeating a very good field that likely featured multiple eventual All-Americans.

Both Victor Kibiego and Abdelhakim Abouzouhir are still too good and too proven to be ousted from the steeplechase national title conversation. However, between those two and Mountain, it's the latter who is building the best case to be the title favorite in June.

10. Yusuf Bizimana, Junior, Texas (-1 / 9)

Yes, Yusuf Bizimana does drop one spot in our rankings, but that's largely due to other runners moving up rather than anything that he has done.

The Texas star had a fantastic race this past weekend, taking control over the 800-meter finals at the BIG 12 Championships with a lap to go. And even though he was challenged by both Darius Kipyego (Iowa State) and Sebastian Fernandez (BYU), the Longhorn talent found one more gear and pulled away for a 1:46-low mark over 800 meters.

While Bizimana hasn't necessarily done anything to truly hurt his status as a national title contender this spring (for 800 meters), he also hasn't given us a marquee performance that truly put him in that tier. And after his mishap at the indoor national meet, we felt like we needed a bit more validation from Bizimana before going into the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Well, sure enough, we now have that validation and with it, Bizimana very much remains as one of two or three (or four?) national title favorites.

9. Nathan Green, Rs. Sophomore, Washington (-1 / 8)

There isn't much to discuss when it comes Nathan Green. He attempted the 1500/800 double at the PAC-12 Championships this past weekend, taking silver in the former event and 4th place in the latter event.

Not defeating Oregon's Elliott Cook for the metric mile title is hardly the end of the world. And based on his weekend double, it seems fairly clear that Coach Andy Powell simply wanted his Husky stars to refine their speed before going into the regional and national meet rounds.

8. Luke Houser, Rs. Senior, Washington (-2 / 6)

Just like his teammate Nathan Green, we saw Luke Houser attempt the 1500/800 double at the PAC-12 Championships this past weekend. There, the Washington veteran had to settle for 3rd place in an ultra tactical 1500-meter affair before doubling back to give his team points with a 5th place effort over 800 meters.

Should we overreact to this result and suddenly say that Luke Houser is no longer a national title contender? No, we shouldn't, that would be silly. But compared to the winter months, Houser's resume this spring hasn't exactly been flawless. That may not matter in an attempt to win NCAA gold, but when it comes to these rankings, we felt that a small two-spot bump was appropriate.

7. Sam Whitmarsh, Junior, Texas A&M (+5 / 12)

In a field that featured multiple middle distance stars, it was Texas A&M's Sam Whitmarsh who convincingly took home the 800-meter title at the SEC Championships this past weekend. The Aggie ace went straight to the front of this field and led the entire way, securing gold in a wire-to-wire effort with a 1:45 mark.

At this point, if someone wanted to say that Whitmarsh was the sole national title favorite over 800 meters this spring, I wouldn't argue...too much. We now have multiple instances of Whitmarsh comfortably running under 1:46 for 800 meters and when you really think about it, he hasn't truly been pushed this season.

The scariest part about Whitmarsh isn't what he has done so far this season, but rather what he could do when he peaks for the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

6. Ky Robinson, Rs. Junior, Stanford (-1 / 5)

Seeing Ky Robinson win the 10k/5k double at the PAC-12 Championships isn't necessarily surprising. The Stanford star was a very heavy favorite to win both races, although he deserves plenty of credit for easily succeeding at altitude.

Here's a fun thought exercise: Nico Young does not currently have an NCAA regional qualifying mark for 10,000 meters. And with the Olympic Trials coming up, I can't help but wonder if Young would want to preserve his legs and attack the 1500 meters instead of the 5000 meters at the NCAA Championships.

If that happens (which feels unlikely), then there is a very realistic world where Ky Robinson is battling for yet ANOTHER pair of national titles between the 10k and the 5k. Now, admittedly, both Habtom Samuel and Parker Wolfe will pose as much greater threats than what the Aussie ace faced last year, but it is something to think about.

5. Habtom Samuel, Freshman, New Mexico (-1 / 4)

There isn't much to discuss when it comes to Habtom Samuel. The New Mexico megastar secured double gold over 5000 meters and 1500 meters at the Mountain West Championships this past weekend. This was likely just an effort for Samuel to get some turnover under his legs before battling through the regional and national meets.

4. Colin Sahlman, Sophomore, Northern Arizona (+3 / 7)

It's one thing to run 3:33.96 for 1500 meters and it's another thing to run 1:45 for 800 meters. But to then run yet another 1500-meter race under 3:35? Well, that's the reason why we have Colin Sahlman cracking our top-five.

Sahlman's second sub-3:35 (1500) performance of the season came in Arizona where he and teammate Nico Young battled to the line en route to a pair of 3:34 marks. And while we could talk about Sahlman's performances at the BIG Sky Championships, the more relevant result(s) are him further validating himself as an all-time elite at the metric mile distance just a few weeks back.

3. Adam Spencer, Junior, Wisconsin (0 / 3)

Adam Spencer isn't necessarily considered to be an 800-meter runner. Instead, he's viewed as one of the most complete milers in the NCAA. Even so, the Wisconsin star dropped down in distance this past weekend at the BIG 10 Championships to take on middle distance juggernauts such as Camden Marshall (Indiana), Handal Roban (Penn State) and Rivaldo Marshall (Iowa) in their primary event.

The end result? An Adams Spencer win. The Badger ace secured conference gold in a somewhat tactical 800-meter race with a time of 1:47. The above three men would finish in that listed order.

We said before this past weekend that Adam Spencer had enough raw talent to drop down in distance and still win a conference title -- and that's exactly what happened. He has raced sparingly this spring, but Spencer's chances to win NCAA gold over 1500 meters have seemingly never been higher.

2. Parker Wolfe, Junior, North Carolina (0 / 2)

Not much to report here. Parker Wolfe completed the 10k/5k double at the ACC Championships, securing gold in both races. The former event was more tactical while the latter effort led to Wolfe running a very quick time of 13:19 (5k).

I was a bit surprised to see Wolfe run as fast as he did over 5000 meters given that I didn't really think he needed to. Even so, Wolfe is still among the most elite men in the NCAA and there isn't anything that I've seen from him lately that says otherwise.

1. Nico Young, Junior, Northern Arizona (0 / 1)

The BIG Sky Championships featured Nico Young running three different events. He won the 5k title, was 2nd over 1500 meters and placed 3rd over 800 meters. But truthfully, nothing from that meet told us anything about Young that we didn't already know. He also ran 3:34 for 1500 meters a few weeks back, but even that didn't surprise us. That should just go to show how unbelievably great this NAU star has been in 2024.

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ADDED

James Corrigan (BYU)

Elliott Cook (Oregon)

Tarees Rhoden (Clemson)

KICKED OFF

Rynard Swanepoel (Wake Forest)

Alex Phillip (North Carolina)

Darius Kipyego (Iowa State)

JUST MISSED (in no particular order)

Rynard Swanepoel (Wake Forest)

Brett Gardner (NC State)

Alex Phillip (North Carolina)

Darius Kipyego (Iowa State)

Ernest Cheruiyot (Texas Tech)

Evan Jenkins (Washington)

Wil Smith (Gonzaga)

Abel Teffra (Georgetown)

Nick Plant (Virginia Tech)

Tyrese Reid (Mississippi State)

Handal Roban (Penn State)

Victor Kiprop (Alabama)

Rob McManus (Montana State)

Levi Taylor (Montana State)

Ezekiel Rop (Iowa State)

Parker Stokes (Georgetown)

Camden Marshall (Indiana)

Gable Sieperda (Iowa State)

Isaac Basten (Drake)

Graham Blanks (Harvard)

Victor Shitsama (Oklahoma State)

Sebastian Fernandez (BYU)

Yasin Sado (Virginia)

HONORABLE MENTIONS (in no particular order)

Sanele Masondo (Iowa State)

Said Mechaal (Iowa State)

Kristian Imroth (Eastern Kentucky)

Logan Measner (Wisconsin)

Finley McLear (Iowa State)

Joe Waskom (Washington)

Alex Maier (Oklahoma State)

Max Wehrli (Utah Valley)

Evans Kiplagat (New Mexico)

Patrick Kiprop (Arkansas)

Marco Langon (Villanova)

Chandler Gibbens (Kansas)

Adisu Guadia (Oklahoma State)

Alex Stitt (Oklahoma State)

CJ Singleton (Notre Dame)

Denis Kipngetich (Oklahoma State)

Ben Perrin (Montana State)

Joey Nokes (BYU)

Nickolas Scudder (Charlotte)

Will Anthony (Virginia)

Jesse Hamlin (Butler)

David Mullarkey (Florida State)

Austin Vancil (Colorado)

Notes

- N/A