Here are the 8 of the best matchups that you should watch out for this indoor track season... 8. Harris vs White The 800 field is a wild one. Most fans who follow the sport know that. Yet, with Emmanuel Korir now out of the picture, it seems like Isaiah Harris is the favorite to win it all as we enter the season. Still, the entirety of last year wasn't just about Korir and Harris. The Virginia Tech duo of Piazza and Joseph, UTEP's Michael Saruni, Robert Heppenstall of Wake Forest, and Indiana's Daniel Kuhn all put immense pressure on the top group. No one seemed to be a "lock" for the title. The one name that seemingly went under the radar was Georgetown's Joe White. The Hoya senior got the best of Harris throughout the entire indoor track season and often threw down performances that put his name in the title conversation. White ran a 2:21 1k to upset Harris at the Nittany Lion Challenge, defeated Harris (again) at Indoor Nationals, and later pulled off a 1:45 during the outdoor season. The spring season would be a reversal of what happened during the winter. Harris would best White at the Florida Relays as well as at Outdoor Nationals. While there may a slew of top-tier elites, Harris and White may be one of the more exciting matchups to keep an eye on as we transition into 2018. 7. Colorado State vs Colorado It's a well known fact that the Colorado Buffaloes are one of the best collegiate distance running programs in the nation. With that in mind, we need to start giving the Colorado State Rams some love. When you look at the personal bests and the weapons that each team holds, we could see multiple exciting matchups throughout this winter season. The 5k will be an interesting battle between these two teams as CSU's Jerrell Mock and Grant Fischer will look to take on Joe Klecker and John Dressel. With strong 10k PR's and indoor track personal bests of 13:44 (Mock) and 13:46 (Fischer), this Ram's duo looks like a formidable opponent for Klecker and Dressel. Then again, Dressel placed 4th in the 5k at Indoor Nationals last year. Who is going to get the edge in 2018? Will Dressel even be healthy enough to compete this winter? If Colorado State dominates the 5k, then the Buffs will still be able to lean on their talent in the 3k. Last year, Dressel, Klecker, and Perrin all ran under 7:56 in the 3000. In fact, Colorado actually had four individuals in the top 20 when the season ended. Only Oregon had more than one individual in the top 20 last year (Cheserek and Maton). Each team boasts some impressive talent with potential new-comers looking to step up (i.e. Eduardo Herrera). This might be one of the more underrated in-state rivalries in the nation. 6. Teare vs Herrera (vs Worley?) This past cross country season was an exciting one for many freshmen across the nation. Cooper Teare gained national attention by leading the Oregon team as just a freshman with Matthew Maton out of commission. His 8th place finish at PAC-12's earned him PAC-12 Freshman of the Year honors over Colorado's Eduardo Herrera who was 14th at Pre-Nats and 10th PAC-12's. Of course, Herrera would later go on to finish 33rd at Nationals and earn All-American status while Teare was 44th overall. Who really deserved PAC-12 freshman award? One name that fans of the sport are still unsure about is Sam Worley. The Texas Longhorn freshman was a stud during cross country as he led his team throughout most of the regular season. However, he was a DNF at the South Central Regional Championships and a DNS at Nationals. Is Worley healthy enough to be racing this winter? Will we even see him at all? He would be one of the very few freshmen who could push Teare under the 4-minute mile mark. Luckily, Reed Brown is training right next to Teare... 5. Scott Carpenter vs Jonathan Green It's not unusual to see some of the best rivalries in the NCAA occur on the same team. Cheserek vs Jenkins is a perfect example of that and Baxter vs Day is developing into a solid (friendly) rivalry as well. Yet, one of the more underrated matchups we could potentially see this winter is the Jonathan Green and Scott Carpenter. 2015 was the first time we saw Jonathan Green really have a breakout season after placing 5th at Nationals in cross country. Fast forward to 2016 and Green would sustain an injury. Luckily for the Hoyas, Carpenter stepped up and had a breakout season of his own when he placed 10th at Nationals. Now, Green is healthy and back to the height of his fitness which is evident by his 10th place finish at NCAA's this past cross country season. The upcoming indoor track season will be the first time that both of these men are at the peak of their fitness, 100% healthy, and running with full eligibility. Green owns personal bests of 13:45 and 29:09 while Carpenter has run 7:51 and 14:00. We could potentially see these two push each other to the top of the NCAA leaderboards in an effort to establish Georgetown dominance in the distance events. 4. Knight vs Fisher What? Did you think that we weren’t going to mention Knight and Fisher? The graduation of Edward Cheserek has left us with new favorites fighting for the title. Naturally, we were left with the two best runners in the NCAA. After Fisher’s upset of Knight in the 5k last spring, this past cross country season proved to be a season of vengeance for Knight who finally earned his first individual title while Fisher fell back to 5th at NCAA’s. The best part of this rivalry is that both of these individuals acknowledge the importance and excitement that this matchup brings to the running community. It’s difficult to say what these two will run and if they will even race each other at all at Nationals. Could one enter the 5k and the other enter the 3k? It is certainly very possible, but we’ve seen that these two aren’t afraid to back down from competition and take the easy way out to get the win. They elite duo will most likely seek each other out and give the fans one of the most anticipated matchups of the indoor track season. 3. The DMR: Historic Powerhouses vs The New Guys The DMR is always an exciting race because you never know what is going to come out of it. There are so many pieces of each squad to decipher which makes the race that much more entertaining. Despite this being a hard event to predict, we always see teams like Penn State and Oklahoma State emerge towards the top of the results. Of course, this year may be a little different. Penn State, much like last year, isn’t showing that they have a true ace in the mile this year. They have the perfect pieces 1200 and 800 legs in Domenic Perretta and Isaiah Harris, but if they don’t have a sub-four minute miler, can they really be competitive? Oklahoma State is in a similar scenario after losing Josh Thompson to graduation. They have guys capable of going under four minutes in the mile, but aren’t always the most consistent. Oregon is another team that is often found in the All-American spots every year. Yet, with Cheserek now gone and Matthew Maton’s health still unclear, the Ducks will have to look to their younger talent. Sam Prakel and Blake Haney are stronger veterans, but they haven’t shown the same kind of fitness that we saw from them in 2015. Freshmen like Cooper Teare and Reed Brown as well as the slew of sophomores above them are strong talents that give the Ducks a lot of depth. Still, is this group experienced enough to bring the Ducks a top three finish at Nationals? Obviously, there are other teams that should be given some attention as well. Virginia Tech doesn’t typically pursue the DMR, but they did last year with a “B” squad and STILL pulled out a 2nd place finish thanks to a 3:58 anchor from Vincent Ciattei. They return five men who have dipped under 1:50 in the 800 and now four guys who have either gone under four minutes in the mile or have a 1500 that converts to under four mile. If they wanted to, Virginia Tech could be the favorites to win it all. Indiana is another strong squad that is a little on the younger side, but they return everyone from last year’s national qualifying squad. Daniel Kuhn is an elite 800 leg while Kyle Mau never lost an anchor leg prior to NCAA’s. When you think of top-tier DMR teams, you don’t typically think of Indiana, but they have the all-stars and depth to form a scary good squad. Finally, let’s give some love to Georgetown. With Green and Carpenter set to compete this season, the Hoyas don’t need to worry about other open events as much. The DMR would be the perfect event to utilize the sub-four minute mile capabilities of graduate student Amos Bartelsmeyer. With two recruits entering the program who ran 1:49 in high school, as well as Joe White who owns a personal best of 1:45, the Hoyas could be a VERY dangerous squad for whoever they face. 2. The Battle for 800U As a resident of Pennsylvania, a lot of fans in the running community will tell you that Penn State deserves the title of 800U. And you know? It’s hard to argue against them. Not only do they currently have half-mile stars like Dom Perretta (1:47) and Isaiah Harris (1:44), but they have been producing top-tier athletes for years on end. Still, we can’t forget about Virginia Tech. As I just mentioned above, this squad has five men entering this winter track season with personal bests of 1:49 of faster. Drew Piazza and Patrick Joseph may be the best 1-2 punch in the 800 (ever?) as both individuals boast personal bests of 1:45 (Piazza) and 1:46 (Joseph). Not only does this team have depth, but they have the firepower to lead them past even the best teams in the nation (as evidenced by their 2017 Penn Relays 4x800 title). Another team that I mentioned in the DMR conversation is Georgetown. Obviously, the presence of Joe White checks off the requirement of having an elite half-mile on your squad. However, it’s the guys behind him that gives the Hoyas a case to be part of the 800U conversation. Kenneth Rowe, Charles Cooper, Spencer Brown, Rey Rivera, and Ruach Padhal have all, at one point in their racing careers, dipped under the 1:50 mark. If you add in Joe White, there is no program in the nation that has six or more individuals with personal bests under 1:50. Texas A&M is another program that a lot of people forget about mainly because they are known for their sprints and 400 runners. Yet, with the addition of star transfer Carlton Orange, the Aggies now have a squad filled with some outrageous firepower such as Devin Dixon (1:45), Carlton Orange (1:46), JaQwae Ellison (1:48), and Efrain Hernandez (1:48). Other programs like Indiana and Ole Miss have a great mix of depth and firepower, but the teams mentioned above are simply much more well known for their 800 development and have the history to back it up. 1. Brandt vs Corcoran How could we overlook such a great storyline? Robert Brandt narrows his college decision down to California and UCLA. He chooses California. While he’s at Cal, he develops into one of the best runners in the western portion of the country with personal bests of 7:58, 13:45, and 28:48. Then, all of the sudden, Brandt leaves to join arch rival UCLA. Why he transferred is still unclear, but it does make for an exciting headline. Could Brandt have left the Cal team on good terms with his coach and former teammates? Absolutely. Still, I’m willing to bet that every single one of his former teammates are focused on beating him as often as possible. Admittedly, Brandt simply has a stronger resume than most of the Cal team, but Garrett Corcoran was a name that I mentioned as a potential sleeper pick a few weeks ago. With personal bests of 3:59 and 7:52, Corcoran will most likely be gunning to take down Brandt in whatever event he can. A future matchup such as that could be extra motivation for Corcoran to step up his game and take down his old teammate now rival. #analysis #preview #gzatlin #ncaa #indoortrack

Yale Season Opener 800 Ackeen Colley of American International came out swinging this past weekend with an outstanding win in a time of 1:52. Not bad a freshman who ran 1:52 last week at the BU Season Opener. Mile American International continued to make a statement by taking the top two spots in the race. After running an 8:09 3k last week, Leakey Kipkosgei would drop down in distance for a mile result of 4:12. American International freshman Cameron Correia was runner-up in 4:13. It seems like there is a lot of exciting young talent on this American International team that we could see develop over the years. 3000 Manhattan's John Dove got the best of American International's Siem Mehretu and Kemani Hume with a time of 8:28 to take the win. Husky Indoor Invite 800 Franklin Pierce freshman Hugo Arlabosse runs 1:53 to cross the line in 1st. This comes just 10 days after Arlabosse completed the 600, 800, 3000, and 4x4 quadruple. We're only two weeks into the season, but this kid is already showing that he can handle a heavy workload and still get solid results. BYU December Invite 800 BYU's long distance stars may be taking a break, but we did get to see some of their other talented individuals step on the track this past weekend. David Graham was the victor in 1:51 while Talem Franco (Unattached-BYU) finished close behind with a 1:52. Mile Marcus Dickson has been known as one of BYU's more reliable mid-distance studs with an 800 PR of 1:48, but he was able to show some very impressive strength this past weekend with a 4:09 win (a personal best for him). What's even better is that he gets an altitude conversion of 4:04 to put him at 3rd overall in the NCAA for the mile. Could we see him make a move to the mile this winter rather than the 800? Utah Valley's Anthony Ocegueda finished the day with a 4:16 which received a conversion of 4:11. This is the second strong performance from him we've seen this season. Ocegueda earned a 3k conversion of 8:19 last week and now has a 4:11 to his name (all as a freshman) 3000 Connor Mantz of BYU has returned! In case you forgot about some of his accomplishments while he was out on a mission trip, Mantz was one of the premier high schoolers in the country two years ago with personal best times of 4:07, 8:52, and 14:32. This past weekend, he threw down aa 8:19 (unattached) which would most likely earn an altitude conversion of 8:09 if the NCAA recognized him as an attached athlete (based on other athletes in the race). Reveille Invite 1000 Texas A&M loaded up the 1k with some of the top middle distance talents on their squad. Their star transfer from Arkansas, Carlton Orange, ran unattached but he still got the win in a time of 2:25. Teammate JaQwae Ellison was runner-up in 2:27. It's unclear as to why Orange ran unattached, but it could suggest that Texas A&M is thinking about redshirting him. If that's the case, then this would give Orange time to adjust to the program and keep his winter eligibility for another season. Mile In a field that was filled with top-level pro athletes, Alex Riba held his own. Brazier dipped under 4 minutes while Leo Manzano finished 2nd in 4:03. It wouldn't be until the clock read 4:04 that Texas A&M's Alex Riba crossed the line. After missing out on NCAA's in cross country, I'm sure Riba is hungry to prove himself against some of the best in the NCAA. Running 4:04 is a great way to gain momentum for the rest of the season. Clemson Opener Mile For a school that is known for their mid-distances and sprints, the mile race was arguably the best race of the meet. The top collegiate in the race was Texas mile star Alex Rogers who threw down a strong 4:04 to finish 2nd overall. He was able to hold off Clemson's John Lewis who ran a HUGE personal best of 4:06 to place 3rd overall. For Rogers, this result isn't too surprising. But for Lewis? This a HUGE race. The Clemson junior now owns PR's of 47, 1:47, and 4:06. That is some seriously impressive range. 3000 What we didn't mention above is that Clemson's James Quattlebaum ran 4:09. Later on? He threw down an 8:25 to take the 3k win. That is a strong double for this early in the season. Hoosier Open 500 Statement. Race. 1:46 man Daniel Kuhn erupted in his season opener with an incredible time of 1:01 in the 500 to earn a new facility record. Do not sleep on what this guy can do come February and March. 1000 The Indiana men have more than just Daniel Kuhn in the middle distance squad. Jordan Huntoon and freshman Teddy Browning finished 1-2 in this race with times of 2:25. Watch out for Jordan Huntoon to have a breakout season this winter. Mile Do not forget about Butler! This team has a lot of very underrated pieces and Daniel Garcia proved that this past weekend with a winning time of 4:09. He convincingly pulled away from Purdue's Bryan Hester who was 2nd in 4:16. 3000 In his 2nd year of competition, Indiana sophomore Kyle Mau is looking to establish himself as one of the nation's best. His season opener, at the very least, was a great start to that as he soloed a winning time of 8:07. 5000 In the eyes of many, this was the race of the weekend with Indiana freshman Ben Veatch pulling off a huge upset over an experienced field that included some of the nation top distance runners. Veatch was able to edge Jeff Thies of Portland 13:57 to 14:00. Multiple reports have indicated that Veatch's time of 13:57 is a US Junior record while others argue that Chris Derrick holds that title. Nonetheless, it's an impressive time for Veatch and it goes to show that he is the real deal. Admittedly, I was looking for a bit more from the rest of the field. No one dipped into the 13:40's (which has been done in years past) and only Veatch broke the 14 minute barrier. Still, the times were solid across the board as MTSU's Chemadi and Choge finished with times of 14:01 and 14:05 while Portland's Logan Orndorf rounded out the top five in 14:07. #weekendreview #gzatlin #ncaa #indoortrack #recap

We are back! This time it’s with another exciting race: the 800 meters. Last year, the half-mile was taken by storm by the UTEP freshmen Emmanuel Korir and Michael Saruni. Korir won the event, and then went pro this summer after he finished 1st at the Kenyan World Championships. Saruni, however, has stuck around to come back and redeem himself after last year’s disqualification. Let’s take a look at last year’s top 16 from NCAA’s: 1. Emmanuel Korir, 1:47.48 2. Drew Piazza, 1:47.62 3. Joseph White, 1:47.79 4. Isaiah Harris, 1:47.94 5. Robert Heppenstall, 1:47.98 6. Daniel Kuhn, 1:48.72 7. Blair Henderson, 1:49.69 8. Michael Saruni, DQ (heat time of 1:48.44) 9. Eliud Rutto, 1:48.41 10. Andres Arroyo, 1:48.57 11. Ryan Manahan, 1:48.79 12. Carter Lilly, 1:48.97 13. Abraham Alvarado, 1:49.25 14. Craig Engels, 1:49.26 15. Avery Bartlett, 1:49.58 16. Patrick Joseph, 1:59.76 Korir has recently gone pro and has left his teammates at UTEP giving another athlete a chance to win it all in 2018. Piazza, Henderson, Rutto, Arroyo, Manahan, Alvarado, and Engels will join Korir on the list of athletes who won’t be back for the 2017-2018 season. Let’s begin with the first returner on that list in Joe White (Georgetown). Last year, White ran 1:46.44 at the Iowa State Classic to put himself as one of the top ranked performers in the nation. White’s 800 PR times have all progressed since his freshman year. He continued his success during the outdoor season where he ran 1:45 and placed 3rd at NCAA’s. White is returning for his senior year and will look to finish atop the NCAA for the first time in his career. Harris ran 1:46.65 during last year’s indoor season and found himself at 7th in the national rankings. He would later go on to finish 4th at the national meet. Harris transitioned to the outdoor season and lower his PR to 1:45 and grab runner-up honors to Korir at NCAA's. He later competed at the USATF Championships where he ran 1:44 and saw himself move on to the IAAF World Championships to face some of the best middle distance runners in the world. Harris will no doubt be back towards the top of the leader boards once again this winter. An NCAA title is certainly within his grasp. Heppenstall ran his fastest time of the year at the ACC Championships last indoor season which means that he peaked at the right time. He proceeded to finish 5th at the national meet. His success continued in the spring as he lowered his 800 PR by .3 of a second and finished 4th in the nation. He also set PR’s in the mile (4:08) and the 1500 (3:43) during the two track seasons, another display that Heppnestall is more than capable of continuing his success. Kuhn clocked the 4th fastest time during indoor season last year. He also ran 1:15 for 600 meters this past weekend which is very impressive for any athlete. His fitness was on full display last winter as he recorded his PR of 1:46.42 which ultimately led him to finishing 6th at the national meet. Kuhn only competed in one outdoor meet last season which left us with questions about his health. Saruni was the other big name at UTEP. After being left off the Kenyan World roster (despite finishing 3rd), Saruni has returned for his sophomore year at UTEP where he looks to be one of the favorites. Despite being DQ’d at last year’s indoor championships, Saruni’s PR’s speak for themselves. He ran 1:46.90 during the indoor season and then followed that up with a 1:45.82 during the outdoor season where we also saw him run 45.69 for 400 meters. Carter Lilly is the next man on the list. The Iowa senior has basically replicated his 800 meter times over the last three seasons. His PR officially stands at 1:47.32 and he ran 1:47.33 during indoor last year and 1:47.51 during the outdoor season. This seems like the year where Lilly will break out and get through that 1:47 barrier. Bartlett is the most curious returner of the top 16 from last year. Bartlett has a PR of 1:47.32 that helped him get into the national meet, but he also boasts PR’s of 4:08 for the mile and 8:30 for 3000 meters. He also dabbled in the 5000 meters during outdoor season. What’s it all mean? It most likely means that Bartlett will build on that strength and get back on the national stage once again, but this time with a PR somewhere near 1:45-46 instead of 1:47. Bold? Yes. Unrealistic? No. Our last returner is Joseph. He posted the 2nd fastest time of the year last winter with his 1:46.23 at the ACC Championships where he bested Heppenstall. Unfortunately for him, the conference success didn’t follow suit at Nationals. While that’s mostly because of a trip causing him to stumble, it was a disappointment for Joseph without a doubt. Back for his senior year, Joseph will look to better his time from last year. He has a mile PR of 4:00 (flat track) and a 5k PR of 14:19 which speaks to his ability to combine both speed and strength. One of the biggest transfers of the summer was Carlton Orange who left Arkansas to join Texas A&M. The former Razorback was ranked 17th in the nation last year, but ended up as the first one out of Nationals during last year’s indoor season. His times of 1:47.78 and 4:11 in the mile were the main highlights of his strong winter campaign. However, Orange does have a PR of 1:46 from the 2016 outdoor season and qualified for the outdoor championships in 2017. Orange has a strong resume and could be someone who can make some noise in the coming months. Devin Dixon (Texas A&M) was only a freshman last year, and he missed out on the indoor championships last year despite clocking a 1:47.85. That, of course, didn’t stop him from running a 1:45 during the outdoor season to enable his qualification for the big dance. Dixon has wheels to burn as he has also run 47.99 during indoor. He was also a part of the Aggies national qualifying 4x400 team. Dixon only has room to improve as he has three more years on the collegiate circuit. We expect to see his name towards the top upcoming results. Robert Ford (USC) comes into his senior year looking to improve upon his PR that he set in 2016. He missed out on the indoor championships last year despite flirting with the 1:48 barrier. He qualified for the outdoor championships where he ran a season best of 1:47.58 in the second round of the prelims. Ford should make the jump to the top 16 during the indoor season. Myles Marshall (Harvard) had a strong sophomore season where he recorded his then PR of 1:48.17 that put him inside the top 25 on the national list. He then moved to the outdoor season and improved on that time by running 1:47.79. He also runs 1000 meters in under 2:30 showing us that he can maintain elite speed for more than just half-mile race length. Domenic Perretta (Penn State) joins the long list of 800 runners that keep coming through Penn State. His freshman year consisted of a 1:48.17 during indoors and then a 1:47.29 during the outdoor season that helped prime him for the outdoor championships and USATF’s. Expect Perretta to make the leap and break the 1:48 barrier and even flirt with the 1:47 mark during indoor season. Brennan Munley (Michigan) ran 1:48.24 during the 2017 indoor season. He didn’t quite reach that mark during the outdoor season but he was a part of a Michigan 4x800 team that ran 7:23 at the Penn Relays for the 4x800. In his final year, he’ll look to run under the 1:48 mark and qualify for the national meet this upcoming March. The Clemson trio of John Lewis, Terrell Jackson and Mpho Makofane came on strong last year with all three going under the 1:49 barrier last year. Lewis then ran 1:47 during the outdoor season and continues to progress very well with each track season of experience under his belt. Lewis’ teammate Jackson competed at the USATF Junior Championships where he placed 3rd overall to give him more big meet experience. Meanwhile, Makofane also broke the 1:48 barrier during the outdoor season giving the Tigers three returners who should turn some heads. Clay Lambourne (Utah State) broke out last year beginning with a 1:49.20 at his Conference meet. The success continued into the outdoor season where he shaved two seconds off of that and ran 1:47.09 to get him into the national meet. Despite being knocked out in the prelims of the 800, the time was quick enough to give him a shot at the USATF Championships where he gained some much needed experience. Charles Jones and Vincent Crisp (Texas Tech) are another pair of teammates who have the ability to take a leap forward this upcoming season. Jones ran 1:48 during indoor and then burst on the scene when he ran 1:46 in his first meet of the outdoor season. He also ran at the USATF Championships where he was eliminated in the first round, but again, earned some valuable experience. As for his teammate Crisp, he also ran 1:48 during the indoor season and saw success when he ran 1:47 at the same meet as Jones. JaQwae Ellison (Texas A&M) joins his teammate Dixon as an athlete with success on the horizon. While he’s not quite as fast as Dixon, he ran 1:48 on both the indoor and outdoor ovals. The consistency is nice, but this looks to be the prime year where he has a chance to dip under 1:48 and even take a bigger step. Dipping under the 1:49 mark is anticipated in order to be part of the conversation come March. However, in order to be in the big meet, times will be closer to low-1:48 or high 1:47’s. With strong returners, it’ll be interesting to see if any noise is made when March rolls around. We’ll be anticipating yet another strong showing for the 800 meters. #jcusick #preview #indoortrack #analysis #ncaa

The first weekend of the indoor track season held some solid performances across the board. Emmanuel Rotich dipped under 14 minutes with a 13:52 5k while Marc Reinas had a breakout performance with a 1:48 800. Yet, maybe one of the most under appreciated results of the weekend was Notre Dame's Jacob Dumford soloing a 2:21 1k at the Blue & Gold Opener. Most track fans familiar with the 1k will understand that 2:21 is flat-out good. Still, the real question is HOW good is 2:21? We're here to answer that question... The problem with the 1000 meters at the NCAA level is that there isn't a lot of easy data to access. Luckily, we were able to find results for indoor track 1000 meter times at the NCAA D1 level (since 2008) thanks to Athletic.net, a time database that has partnered with DyeStat. We will be using this database and the past 10 completed indoor track seasons for the purposes of this article. Jacob Dumford's official time this past weekend was a 2:21.45. Below, we have listed the top 30 times over the past 10 years and have attached some accolades next to the guys in the top 15. Here is how Dumford stacks up against some of the best 1k contenders in the NCAA over the past year. 30. De'Sean Turner / Senior / Indiana: (2:22.45) (2012) 29. Dey Tuach / Sophomore / Arkansas: (2:22.42) (2011) 28. Zach Beth / Junior / Wisconsin: (2:22.39) (2010) 27. Gavyn Nero / Senior / Arkansas: (2:22.39) (2011) 26. Aaron Dixon / Junior / Missouri: (2:22.38) (2010) ------------------------------------------------------------ 25. Chris Gowell / Senior / Baylor: (2:22.38) (2010) 24. Jonathan Moore / Senior / Albany: (2:22.36) (2010) 23. Mike Atchoo / Senior / Stanford: (2:22.32) (2014) 22. Duncan Phillips / Senior / Arkansas: (2:22.30) (2011) 21. Marco Bertolotti / Senior / Stanford: (2:22.17) (2014) ------------------------------------------------------------ 20. Izaic Yorks / Sophomore / Washington: (2:22.14) (2014) 19. Isaiah Harris / Sophomore / Penn State: (2:22.14) (2017) 18. Josh Thompson / Junior / Oklahoma State: (2:22.07) (2017) 17. Hayden McLaren / Junior / Providence: (2:22.05) (2009) 16. Owen Dawson / Junior / Penn State: (2:21.98) (2010) ------------------------------------------------------------ 15. Drew Piazza / Junior / New Hampshire: (2:21.97) (2016) <-- 1:45 800 & Multiple All-American 14. Joe White / Junior / Georgetown: (2:21.96) (2017) <-- 1:45 800 & Multiple All-American 13. Vincent Ciattei / Junior / Virginia Tech: (2:21.63) (2017) <-- 3:58 Anchor on All-American DMR 12. Dorian Ulrey / Senior / Arkansas: (2:21.56) (2010) <-- 3K National Champion & Multiple All-American 11. Noah Kappuila / Junior / Princeton: (2:21.52) (2017) <-- Ivy League 1K Champion ------------------------------------------------------------ 10. Jacob Dumford / Senior / Notre Dame: (2:21.45) (2018) 9. Erik van Ingen / Senior / Binghamton: (2:21.28) (2011) <-- 3:57 Mile & Multiple All-American 8. Chris O'Hare / Junior / Tulsa: (2:20.78) (2012) <-- 3:52 Mile & Mile National Champion 7. Peter Callahan / Junior / Princeton: (2:20.78) (2012) <-- 3:39 1500 & Multiple All-American 6. Jeff Moriarty / Senior / Columbia: (2:20.77) (2011) <-- 1:47 800 ------------------------------------------------------------ 5. Neil Gourley / Junior / Virginia Tech: (2:20.54) (2017) <-- 3:40 1500 & All-American 4. Ryan Foster / Senior / Penn State: (2:19.96) (2011) <-- 1:46 800 & Multiple All-American 3. Ryan Foster / Junior / Penn State: (2:19.60) (2010) <-- SAME AS ABOVE 2. Robby Creese / Freshman / Penn State: (2:19.53) (2012) <-- 3:39 1500, 7:50 3K, & Multiple All-American 1. Brannon Kidder / Senior / Penn State: (2:18.26) (2016) <-- 1:45 800, 3:38 1500, & Multiple All-American Dumford ran the 10th fastest 1k in the past 10 years. If you trim down Ryan Foster's double appearance to just one, then Dumford lands at the 9th spot overall. In order to earn a spot in the top 10, Dumford had to beat out current NCAA stars like Drew Piazza, Joe White, and Isaiah Harris. Did I mention that all three of those guys have run 1:45 and that one of them is a World Championship qualifier? Simply put, Dumford is not just with elite company, he is ahead of them. At the same time, we have to acknowledge that Dumford doesn't have the PR's or achievements that some of these other names do. He has never qualified for Nationals and holds modest personal bests of 1:51 and 4:02. For any collegiate, those are solid times, but they hardly stack up to the caliber that we've seen from Piazza, White, or Harris. Does a huge time like this signal a big breakout season for Dumford during the 2018 season? Based on the others around him, it sure seems that way. But how did the guys in the top 30 fare in the season that they recorded their 1k PR? If we take out Dumford (since we're still waiting to see how his season will play out) and Dey Tauch (who only ran the 1k that season) then we are left with 28 individuals to analyze. Of those 28 individuals, only four of them did not break a milestone mark of either sub-1:50, sub-4:00, or sub-8:00. So, based on historical averages and a sample size of 28 individuals, Dumford has an 85% chance to run sub-1:50, sub-4:00, or sub-8:00. It might also be important to note that no one in the past 10 years has ever run a 1k as fast and as early as Dumford has. De'Sean Turner is the only other person on this list who has run a top 30 time in December. The rest of the athletes on this list have run their times during January and February. What does that mean for the rest of his season? Honestly, I don't know, but it sounded interesting... Notre Dame hasn't seen a mid-distance star come out of their program since Jeremy Rae graduated in 2014. Could Dumford be the next South Bend star who puts the Fighting Irish back into the national spotlight? A breakout season for him this winter could give life to a Notre Dame team that is preparing to bring in some of the top distance high school recruits in the nation next year. #digits #gzatlin #analysis #ncaa #indoortrack

Vanderbilt Opener Mile The MTSU duo of Kigen Chemadi and Jacob Choge headlined the event and walked away with a 1-2 finish. Chemadi pulled out the win in a 4:03 while Choge was 4:05. It's interesting to see this group come off of a strong cross country season and not pursue a race like the 3k or 5k which pairs well with their recent training in the fall. Nonetheless, this is still a solid opener and it could be some speed work prep for a longer race in the future. GVSU Holiday Opener 800 On his home track, Grand Valley State freshman Dennis Mbuta walked away with a big win and excellent time of 1:51. If a freshman is able to do this in the first race of the season two days into December, imagine what he could do in February. This could be a Division 2 star in the making... 5000 It was a battle of the D2 titans as Tiffin's James Ngandu fought off a GVSU contingent of Bryce Bradley, Zach Panning, and Chris May. In the end, Ngandu would walk away with the win and a strong time of 13:57. However, Bradley wasn't far behind as he also dipped under the 14-minute barrier with a time of 13:59. Panning and May rounded out the top group with times of 14:01 and 14:05, respectively. Fastrack Metro Season Opener Mile The Columbia men stacked this race with some of their top middle distance runners. Yet, only Sam Ritz would capture the attention of track nerds like ourselves after soloing a time of 4:08. Teammate Alek Sauer was the next closest in 4:15. Ritz has dealt with a few injuries in his career, but this seems to be a statement race to let everyone know that he's fit and ready to make some noise this indoor season. Weber State Winter Opener 3000 Freshman Anthony Ocegueda of Utah Valley took the win over a relatively mild field with a time of 8:36.79. However, Ocegueda received a flat-track and altitude conversion to bring his time down to 8:19.31. With that time, he now leads the NCAA in the 3000 meters. Blue & Gold Opener 1000 Maybe the most impressive race of the entire weekend had only one recorded finisher. Notre Dame senior Jacob Dumford unleashed a huge time of 2:21.45 to break the school record and take the win...then again, he was the only finisher in the field. Teammate Elijah Silva was a DNF, so it may be safe to say that he was the rabbit for the race. Still, rabbit or no rabbit, the fact that Dumford ran this time all alone is incredibly impressive. That is a heck of a time and could indicate some big PR's in the 800 or Mile are coming soon. 3000 Notre Dame's Parker Jones, Conner Sheryak, and Peter Monahan took the top three spots with times of 8:22, 8:26, and 8:27, respectively. BU Season Opener 800 If Dumford's 2:21 1k wasn't the most impressive performance of the weekend, then Marc Reinas' 1:48 definitely was. The Northeastern junior came out of nowhere to drop a 1:48.85 and take the win by nearly two seconds. With 3:59 miler Paul Duffey now gone, the Huskies are now looking for a new star to lead their team over the next few seasons and Reinas looks like he could possibly be that guy. We should also note that UCONN freshman Tyler Gleen threw down a 1:50 in his season debut as well. 1000 Harvard's freshman Ryan Thrush was the winner in a time of 2:25 while Northeastern sophomore Cameron Kunde was 2nd with a time of 2:26. Mile D2 miler Evan Verbal (Colorado Christian) took the win with a huge PR of 4:05. Sophomore Nick Carelo of Providence was a close 2nd in 4:06. What was surprising was seeing Boston U star Alex Seal drop so far off the lead pack and fall to a time of 4:21. It's the first race of winter track so it's understandable that some athletes are still adjusting. I think many people just expected a lot more of the 4:01 miler. 3000 This was one of the more underrated fields that held solid times for a season debut. Leakey Kipkosgei of American International (D2) grabbed the win in 8:09. The next collegiate across the line was Evan Verbal, the winner of the mile, who finished with a time of 8:18. That is a really solid double for this guy and his fitness has clearly jumped into another tier. Trevor Guerrera of Sacred Heart was the first D1 finisher to cross the line in a time of 8:21. Guerrera is definitely someone to keep an eye out for this season. The Sacred Heart senior owns times of 1:48, 2:24 (1k), and 4:09. He could be a big sleeper pick this winter. 5000 New Balance pro and Providence alum Julian Oakley dominated the field with an impressive time of 13:49. Three seconds later, Tulane's Emmanuel Rotich found the finish line with a time of 13:52 for 2nd. That time would have put Rotich at 24th in the NCAA last year. He'll need to run faster if he wants to secure a spot to Nationals, but for now, this is a great time and something to use as momentum moving forward. After a pair of international and unattached athletes crossed the line, Pittsburgh's Nick Wolk and Missouri's Thomas George crossed the line in 14:14 which is a solid opener for both of these guys. They both had respectable cross country seasons and can now walk away with PR's on the track. Keep an eye on the performances that these two have throughout this season. #weekendreview #ncaa #indoortrack #gzatlin #recap

We’ve covered the 3k and the mile so far and each one of those looks to be like a thriller. With that in mind, let’s take a look at another race that is just as exciting and has no real favorite coming into this season. Edward Cheserek won it last year (like most of the races he entered) but of course, he has graduated and exhausted all eligibility. Let’s look at the top 16 from last year and see what we have. 1. Edward Cheserek, 13:41.20 2. Marc Scott, 13:43.83 3. Amon Terer, 13:47.01 4. John Dressel, 13:47.87 5. Alfred Chelanga, 13:48.36 6. Erik Peterson, 13:49.83 7. MJ Erb, 13:51.73 8. Tyler Day, 13:53.93 9. Grant Fischer, 13:55.37 10. Jerrell Mock, 13:56.74 11. Rory Linkletter, 13:57.62 12. Zach Herriot, 13:59.99 13. Jonathan Green, 14:00.95 14. Matthew Baxter, 14:08.28 15. Colby Gilbert, 14:20.58 16. Alex Short, 14:23.26 There you have it. More than worthy names participated last year, and half of that field will look to come back and be a part of the 16 qualifiers once again. Scott, Terer, Peterson, Erb, Mock, Herriot, and Short join Cheserek in being out of eligibility for the indoor season. As I mentioned before, eight will return. The first on the list is John Dressel. He finished 4th last year and brought in a 13:42 PR that he partnered with a 7:51 3k time. Dressel’s health has been in question this year as he didn’t participate with the Buffaloes this past fall. If he’s healthy, we more than expect Dressel to be in the mix. Chelanga is part of the three Alabama men that were thought to give the field a run for their money during the cross country championships. While the other two held their end of the bargain, it didn’t go as well for Chelanga after finishing 37th overall. Despite the sub-par finish to the fall, Chelanga is expected to be back in the mix for the 5k title in the winter. While he didn’t run as fast during indoor last year as a sophomore, he did set a PR in the 10,000 meters during outdoor track with a time of 28:04. The strength training will still be there despite the finish in cross and Chelanga will most likely be back in the fold. His teammates, Vincent Kiprop and Gilbert Kigen, are two transfer students who will be more than ready to compete come indoor season. Kiprop brings in a PR of 13:42 from last year (which would have put him 5th on the leaderboard in D1). After a strong showing during cross country this past year and a successful outdoor season, Kiprop is ready to prove that he is a Division 1 talent. Meanwhile, his teammate Gilbert Kigen brings in a 5k PR of 13:53 (which is good enough for 26th on the D1 leaderboard). He finished 4th at XC Nationals and will look to build upon that success going into the indoor season. The trio of Alabama will be out to make a name for themselves at the highest level of collegiate athletes. Let’s tackle both Tyler Day and Matthew Baxter here. The Northern Arizona most recently made headlines after they broke the race wide open at cross nationals. Baxter has a PR of 13:44 while Day has a PR of 13:49. Both of those PR’s were set last year. Their 2-3 finish at Nationals shows that they are in fantastic shape and it should carry over into the indoor season. We’re sure they will try their luck in the 3000 meters too, but expect both Baxter and Day to be in the podium conversation come March. Fischer, the lesser known one, looks to continue his success at Colorado State. Him and his teammate Mock participated last year where they went 9-10 at the big dance. This year Fischer is back and looks to make sure people know who he is. Fischer set PR’s in the mile, 3k, and the 5k last indoor season. He will look to improve upon those marks this year. Linkletter is the man everyone is curious about. He had a killer cross country season with a win over Dillon Maggard, a Pre-Nats title, and a solid postseason. Linkletter had everyone talking about him and the BYU team leading up to Nationals. That meet didn’t go as planned, but that doesn’t mean that Linkletter is out of shape. He ran 13:49 and 7:58 during last indoor season and he even set a 10,000 meter PR during the outdoor season that was followed by a silver medal at NCAA’s. Yet, if one thing is for certain, it’s that Linkletter will be looking to rebound from a disappointing end to his cross country season. Green is potentially the dark horse of this group. Green finished 10th at cross country nationals and no one seemingly is talking about him. He ran 13:45 during indoors last year which constitutes him as a threat. He has a 4:04 mile PR from his sophomore year and 29:06 for 10,000 meters outdoors. Two years ago, he finished 5th at XC Nationals and will look to return to form in the coming months. The last returner we have is Colby Gilbert of Washington. He had the 2nd fastest 5k time in the country last year to go along with his 3k time that led the nation. However, Nationals didn’t go as planned for him as he walked away with only one All-American finish (6th in the 3k). Last winter, Gilbert set personal bests in the mile (3:58), the 3k (7:45) and the 5k (13:34). Each of those times put him in the top 20 on the NCAA leaderboards which gives us the belief that he’ll be back in top form this winter. Time to talk outsiders / sleepers! All of the following men listed below are sub-14:00 5k runners. These won’t be the only men that will be approaching the top 16, but based off of last year’s times and leaderboards, you will at least need a sub-14 to even be near the qualifying conversation. Stop me if you heard this before, but Justyn Knight looks to be the biggest challenger to all the returners at this point in time. I know we keep talking about him, but it’s clear that Knight is potentially the strongest candidate for the 5k race as well. He ran 13:17 outdoors and already has PR’s of 7:47 and 3:56. With the strength gained from cross country, it’d be no surprise to see him in the top 16 come March. The only question is if he’ll actually pursue the event. Knight’s teammate, Illiass Aouani, has a lifetime PR of 13:55 in the 5k which is when he was on the Lamar University roster. Since transferring to Syracuse, Aouani has run 7:57 and 13:57. He’ll join Knight as a potential challenger in the 5k field. Clayton Young and Jonathan Harper, both of BYU, could potentially join their teammate Linkletter in the national championships. Young finished last indoor season with the 10th best time in the nation with a 13:45 while Harper put down a 13:54 of his own. Young has run 7:49 for a 3k and was a key reason why the Cougars saw success this past fall. Harper has run 7:59 and has a very respectable 10k PR of 29:05. He also has a sub-8:00 3k to his name. All three BYU athletes should be considered viable options for the top 16. Tanner Anderson (Oregon) was just a redshirt freshman last year, but that didn’t stop him from producing fast times. Anderson ran 8:02 and 13:52 during the 2016 indoor season and added a 29:21 10k time during outdoors. He placed 41st at the NCAA’s this past fall and looks to add even more accomplishments to the historic Oregon program. Fred Huxham (Washington) didn’t compete during the outdoor season or this past fall for the Huskies. While we are not sure if this is due to a redshirt or health issues, he someone who should post one of the top times in the nation. He ran 8:05 and 13:51 during indoors and even owns a PR of 13:44 from his redshirt sophomore season of outdoor track. Huxham has a plenty of untapped potential and with Colby Gilbert training next to him, Huxham could be one of the next breakout stars of this indoor season (assuming he’s healthy). Amon Kemboi (Campbell) will try and fill the shoes of Amon Terer who finished 3rd last year. Just a sophomore, Kemboi finished 29th at Cross Country Nationals this year which garnered him All-American honors. His teammate, Lawrence Kipkoech, was 20 spots ahead of Kemboi in 9th place. Despite a poor showing last year, it looks as if Kipkoech is rounding back into form and is capable of repeating his PR’s of 13:53 and 29:11. Expect this Campbell duo to be towards the top of the qualifying list. Chase Weaverling and Brent Demarest (Virginia) finished 26th and 29th on the leaderboard last year and could be two individuals to watch out for. Weaverling has notched times of 8:11 and 13:54 (PR) during the indoor season and followed that up with a 29:29 10k during the outdoor season. Meanwhile, his teammate Brent Demarest has also run 8:11 for 3k and posted a 13:56 during the indoor season. He set his 10k PR last outdoor season with a 29:07. These two have very similar times and training together will only help them find a spot atop the leaderboards. Joe Klecker and Ryan Forsyth (Colorado) are back for their junior years of competition. Klecker has run 7:51 and 4:01 (at altitude) to complement his 13:42 PR (outdoor). Despite the poor finish at Cross Country NCAA’s, we’d be wrong if we didn’t think he’d be back in the mix during indoors. Forsyth, who owns a PR of 13:57, was the 2nd man to finish for the Buffaloes at Nationals this past. While he may not have necessary speed, he more than makes up for that with his 10k PR of 29:32. Watch out for this junior to build off of a strong fall season of cross country. Jacob Bilvado (Air Force) was another sophomore that turned some heads last year with a quick 5k on the track. He ran 13:56 during the indoor season and then followed it up with a PR of 13:54 during the outdoor season. His finish to the cross country season wasn’t favorable, but he’ll look to bounce back during indoors after a rough finish. Jaret Carpenter (Purdue) is just a sophomore this year, but he joins the company of Kemboi and Anderson as individuals who had very good freshmen years. Carpenter ran 4:07, 8:07 and 13:57 during last indoor season. He added an impressive 29:49 to his resume last year during outdoor track which gives him some impressive range from the 800 to the 10k. Despite not making the national meet, Carpenter’s potential could be on full display during the next few months. Obsa Ali (Minnesota) has PR’s of 4:07, 13:53 (outdoor), and an 8:45 steeplechase to his name. He ran 13:57 last indoor season before improving it by four seconds during outdoors. Despite not qualifying for NCAA’s this past fall, Ali is still coming off a strong cross country season and will look to create success this winter. Lastly, I want to talk about the Portland Pilots. They just finished 2nd as a team at Nationals which is a pretty good indicator that they are ready to roll during the indoor season. Emmanuel Roudolff-Levisse led the Pilots at Nationals with an 11th place finish and has clocked times of 8:05 (outdoor 3k), 14:04, and 29:08. This will be his first year of NCAA indoor track for the Pilots, so our expectations are tempered due to his lack of experience. Jeff Thies has a PR of 14:04, but we fully expect him to break that sub-14 barrier and throw his name towards the top after a breakout cross country season. Nick Hauger has a 14:03 lifetime PR and his performance at Nationals would have been a PR at 10,000 meters. This Portland trio is ready to put their names at the top of the NCAA leaderboard come March. Now the question is whether or not Portland will focus on the indoor season or look to get their guys ready for outdoors. The final name that we have to mention is Morgan McDonald. There have been rumors that, in addition to this past fall, he will also be redshirting this indoor track season. If McDonald does come out for the indoor season, his times of 3:57, 7:51 and 13:15 (non-NCAA) are very respectable. If he competes this winter, we would expect McDonald to return to top form and be a part of this crazy mix. The 5k is potentially the deepest race of the all the previews we will be doing. So many guys are ready to put down quick times this winter. Expect the top 16 leaderboard to dip below 13:45 come March. Regardless of who we see, it’s going to be one tough race that will show the country who has the most guts. #ncaa #jcusick #preview #analysis #indoortrack

Cross country is over. After months of giving our attention to all of the long-distance stars that the NCAA has to offer, it's time to transition to a season that has a much wider range of competition. It's been quite a while since we last discussed some of the biggest and brightest names on the track. However, there are also plenty of talented individuals and teams that may not be on your radar...even though they should be. Here are our "Seven Sleepers" for the upcoming indoor track season. 7. Diego Leon / Rs. Junior / Montana State It happens every year. Once indoor track begins and fast times are run, people begin to question the validity of flat-track and altitude conversions. Many will argue that the conversions are too generous while others will argue that, for the most part, they've been relatively accurate. For Diego Leon, the conversion debate centered around him in 2016 after a 4:07 mile in a tri-meet against Idaho State and Weber State was given both flat-track and altitude conversions to bring the time down to 3:59.13. Leon would finish with the 21st fastest time in the nation and, after scratches, end up as the 2nd individual out of NCAA's for the mile. However, he would have most likely been the 1st person out of NCAA's due to Colby Gilbert (2016 NCAA mile rank #20) presumably scratching. Leon would later go on to place 25th at the Husky Classic with a 4:o4 mile. There was no conversion associated with that time. The 2017-2018 season will be validation as to whether or not Leon's fitness is actually on par with a sub-four mile. Could we see another Cristian Soratos or Pat Casey emerge from this Montana State program? With another year of training under his belt, Leon could be the next big-name miler to take the nation by storm. 6. Brennan Munley / Senior / Michigan The 800 meter is such a tough deep and talented event. Every year, it always seems to get even better with so many elite individuals cycling in and out of the NCAA system. Emmanuel Korir just went pro and signed with Nike while Isaiah Harris just became a World Championship qualifier. Yet, every once in a while, there is an under-appreciated talent that continues to put up solid and impressive performances. Brennan Munley is just one of those consistent performers who gives Michigan a reliable mid-distance talent in almost any meet. Since the start of his collegiate career in 2015, Munley has dipped under the 1:50 barrier 20 times. He owns a personal best of 1:48.24 from last indoor season where he finished 24th overall in the nation. This winter, Munley returns as the 15th best returner in the 800. He has the consistency down and he knows how to race against some of the top competition in the nation. Now, he just needs to get past that 1:48 mark and give himself a shot at qualifying for Nationals. 1:47 high (and maybe faster) is certainly within his grasp. 5. Georgetown Hoyas Their cross country season was a bit of a wash. The inexperience got the best of the Hoyas and they simply didn't have enough reliable depth. With the longer distances, Georgetown needs to make some improvements. But on the track? Don't expect more of the same. This group is another year older and has plenty of talented names in their arsenal. Joe White returns to the indoor oval for another run at the NCAA title and the resume he boasts is super impressive. He's taken down Isaiah Harris in a 1k with a time of 2:21, finished 3rd at both the Indoor and Outdoor NCAA Championships, and broke the 1:46 barrier this past spring with a personal best of 1:45.73. He may be one of the most dangerous weapons in the NCAA. Jonathan Green is another big name. After returning back to his peak fitness from 2015, Green looks like a guy that could easily qualify for NCAA's in both the 3k and 5k. Last indoor season, he ran a PR of 13:45 in the 5k, and that was after a non-existent cross country season. Imagine what he could do with few months of productive training and racing prior to the start of the winter season. Oh and did we forget to mention that Scott Carpenter and Amos Bartelsmeyer have returned to the Georgetown program as a graduate students? Carpenter will be one of the top names in the 3000 meters this winter with a PR of 7:51. He also has some nice range in the mile with an indoor best of 4:03. Bartlesmeyer, of course, has been one of Georgetown's staple milers for the best few years. With a PR of 3:58, Bartlesmeyer could help bring a competitive Georgetown DMR back into NCAA. You also can't forget about the development of 2nd year stars like Jack Van Scoter, Eion Nohilly, and Matthew Bouthillette who handled a heavy workload as just freshmen incredibly well in their first year of competition. Don't be surprised if one of these guys is able to have a breakout season. They will most likely be joined by key recruits like Ty Brownlow (NXN All-American) as well as two 1:49 high schoolers (Rey Rivera and Ruach Padhal). Senior leadership, elite talent returning to the track, development of young stars, and top-tier recruits make the Georgetown Hoyas a very exciting team to watch. Do not sleep on the potential fireworks that they could display this winter. 4. Garrett Corcoran / Senior / California Is it fair to classify a 7:52 3k guy as a "sleeper"? One of the most undermentioned and underrated names in the NCAA is California senior Garrett Corcoran. The Cal Golden Bear has done some serious work on the track and has grown up around some recent Cal stars such as Chris Walden, Thomas Joyce, and even teammate Trent Brendel. With a personal best of 3:59 in the mile and 13:57 in the 5k, Corcoran has the perfect combination of speed and endurance to become one of the more dominant 3000 meter runners in the nation. Admittedly, his times and finishes are a bit scattered and he has yet to walk away with an individual win. Still, if his consistency improves, then Corcoran could position himself as a podium favorite by March. 3. Indiana Hoosiers Much like the Hoyas, it's easy to forget about all of the hidden weapons and depth that Indiana could potentially flex this indoor season. Their biggest star, Daniel Kuhn, is one guy that many people will easily overlook. He's been one of the best 800 runners in the nation for the past years, but it wasn't until last winter when he ran an incredible 1:46.42 to tie for the 4th fastest time in the NCAA. He would go on to place 6th at the Indoor NCAA Championships to become an All-American for the first time in his collegiate career. Yet, Kuhn wasn't the only Hoosier to dip under the 1:50. Both Jordan Huntoon (junior) and Cooper Williams (freshman) were able to record 1:49's last winter. They'll return for the 2017-2018 and continue to give Indiana plenty of depth in the middle distances. A pair of runners that should be on your watch list are Kyle Mau and Bryce Millar. Mau has wrecked havoc at the mile / 3k distance while Millar has found more success at the longer distances (3k & 5k). As just a freshman, Mau progressed down from a 4:08 to a 4:02 to a 4:00 PR. He earned wins in all three of those races and later went on to anchor his DMR to a 9:28 at Alex Wilson to secure the win as well as a spot to NCAA's. It also helped that he popped off an 8:07 3k midway through the season. Bryce Millar, on the other hand, opened up his season with a 13:59 5k and followed that up an 8:02 3k a month and a half later (in January). He was able to add in a 4:05 PR for good measure. As just freshmen, these two did an outstanding job. They may not have broken the four-minute mile barrier or the eight-minute mark, but those times seem very realistic with another year of experience under their belt. And what about Joseph Murphy? While the two Hoosier freshmen were catching all of the attention, the sophomore was quietly piecing together a very solid season with personal bests of 1:50, 2:28 (1k), and 4:02. Murphy brought even more depth to a team that was littered with young and budding talent. Yet, it wasn't until the outdoor season where Murphy began to show his true potential by clicking off a mind-blowing 8:47 steeplechase PR. This kid has some serious range, so don't be surprised if you see even more of him in the coming months. In all of this madness, discussion of future stars, and praise of depth, there is one individual that may be easy for many to forget: Ben Veatch. The rising ace is coming off of a monster cross country season where he qualified for NCAA's as an individual after to back-to-back 4th place finishes at both BIG 10's and Great Lakes. He has yet to run a season of collegiate track, but with his progression on the grass and high school PR's of 4:08 and 8:53, it is safe to say that this redshirt freshman could be a dynamo individual with the ability to battle some of the best in the NCAA this winter. 2. Avery Bartlett / Junior / Georgia Tech Much like Corcoran, it may be a little unfair to classify Bartlett as a sleeper pick. Still, when you consider how deep and talented the 800 field has been over the past few years, it's very possible that a 1:47 guy may go under appreciated. Bartlett began his 2016-2017 indoor track season with minor success. He slowly began to drop his mile time from 4:11 to 4:08 and fulfilled his duties on multiple relays. It wouldn't be until the middle of February that we would see Bartlett make his debut in the 800 at the Music City Challenge where he ran 1:49. Fast forward to ACC's and Bartlett pulled off a huge 1:47.32 PR. However, he was 4th in that race behind a trio of elite half-milers and, for the most part, would go largely unnoticed despite ranking 11th in the nation. Bartlett would go on to run another 1:47 and a 3:46 during outdoor track. As he enters the ranks of being an upperclassmen, Bartlett will now have the necessary experience and confidence to be one of the top contenders in the nation. When you think about it, he's only .33 seconds away from becoming a 1:46 guy. 1. Ole Miss Milers It's a new era for the Ole Miss men. Craig Engels has turned pro while Manahan, Domanic, and Gilley only have outdoor track eligibility left. Still, there are plenty of high-level talents on this squad that could do some serious damage in the Mile this winter. Sean Tobin, the face of this Rebels team, has a PR of 3:59 from his freshman year, consistently produces solid DMR legs, and put up exciting results from the 800 to the 3k. However, as Tobin prepares to graduate, Parker Scott will look to take his role. As a freshman, Scott redshirted his indoor season, but toed the line during outdoors where he earned personal bests of 1:50 and 3:44. With times like that, don't be surprised if you see the 2nd-year Rebel make an impact during indoor track. Outside of those two, are left with one of the biggest question marks of this season in Robert Domanic. According to TFRRS, he was a junior last year, even though he has competed in four seasons of indoor track. IF Domanic has eligibility for this winter, then he could be one of the most dangerous athletes in the nation. Why? Because at the Adrian Martinez last summer, Domanic ripped open a HUGE 3:54 mile and qualified for the USA Championships in the 1500 (thanks to the conversion). With PR's of 1:49 in the 800 and 7:54 in the 3k, his range could prove to be especially useful in all kinds of tactical races. Again, this is only if Domanic has eligibility. He is listed as a senior on the Ole Miss track roster for the 2017-2018 year, so it's very possible that he'll be an active competitor throughout the next few months. #analysis #indoortrack #ncaa #gzatlin #preview

Cross country is now over and it’s rather clear that it’s (typically) not made for the men who decide to take on the task of running the mile. As a miler, the fall season is usually dedicated to building strength and game planning for a sub-4:00 mile attempt in February and continue the pursuit of a national title. A look at last year’s top 16 finishers with their PR: 1. Josh Kerr, 3:59.90 2. Edward Cheserek, 3:52.01 3. Sampson Laari, 3:58.71 4. Neil Gourley, 3:59.58 5. Adam Palamar, 3:57.39 6. Joshua Thompson, 3:56.89 7. Liam Dee, 3:58.19 8. Ben Saarel, 4:00.39 9. Matthew Maton, 3:58.34 10. Thomas Joyce, 3:58.47 11. Jonah Koech, 4:00.82 12. Tim Gorman, 3:58.78 13. Dillon Maggard, 4:01.25 14. Matthew Fayers, 3:58.53 15. Zach Perrin, 3:59.00 16. Ned Willig, 3:58.09 Cheserek, Laari, Palamar, Thompson, Saarel, Joyce, Gorman, and Willig no longer have indoor eligibility. The first man that comes to mind is Josh Kerr from New Mexico. Kerr shocked the world when he upset Cheserek in the final of the mile last March. Kerr continued his success during outdoors when he ran 3:35. His 3:59.90 was the second fastest during the preliminary rounds and he clearly had more when he upset The King just a day later. He’ll look to improve upon that 3:59 while trying to retain his title. Gourley (Virginia Tech), Dee (Iona), and Maton (Oregon) were the only other non-seniors in the finals last year. Dee ran for Iona this past fall and was a part of their National Championship squad. He also ran 8:02 last year at 3000 meters which is more than respectable. He’ll look to bring more success to the track during his junior year and improve his 3:58. Maton didn’t run cross-country this fall. It has yet to be seen if he will compete on the track this winter. We’ll learn more about him in the coming weeks, we’re sure. That leaves us with Koech (UTEP), Maggard (Utah State), Fayers (Oklahoma State) and Perrin (Colorado) who could return for their senior year of indoor eligibility. We talked about Maggard in the 3000m preview and how he finished 6th at NCAA’s this past fall and also ran 4:11 in blue jeans. He’s clearly in shape and ready to make some noise as the winter season starts to roll around. Koech (UTEP) last participated in cross country at the Mountain Region Championships, but has a PR of 1:46.53 in the 800 during the outdoor scene which clearly showcases that he has speed to burn. We should expect him to break through the 4:00 barrier during indoor and potentially double up with the 800 at Nationals. Still, will we see the Jonah Koech who was an All-American as a freshman or the one who has struggled during the past two track seasons? Fayers didn’t have a strong cross country season, but that doesn’t mean he won’t be ready for competition. OSU always has someone who’s there to compete for a national title in either the 1500 or mile. Last year it was both Fayers and Thompson. This year, Fayers could be aiming for the title despite failure to make the final last year. His 2:23 1000m PR show’s that he is more than capable of competing at the highest level. Perrin is the last of the 2017 competitors who brings in his 3:59 PR from 2016. Of course, he has showcased that he has wheels that can potentially be deadly. He has run 1:49 outdoors and 7:55 in the 3000 last year. Perrin was a part of the CU team that underperformed at the National meet in cross country, but coach Mark Wetmore usually has his runners bounce back when it matters most. Now that we have covered all of last year’s competitors, who does that leave us with for newcomers come 2018? Obviously, there is Justyn Knight. He ran 3:59.54 last year and is currently in wicked shape. The question is whether or not he will hone in on a single race, or try and pair the 3000 with the 5000 instead. His teammate Aidan Tooker ran 4:02 last year as a freshman and will look to build upon a strong cross country season. Diego Leon of Montana State finished with the 21st fastest time in the country after he ran 4:07 and received a big conversion. However, we wouldn’t be surprised if Leon finds his way under 4:00 this upcoming year. With recent success from Cristian Soratos, it’s no surprise to see another Bobcat towards the top of the rankings. Indiana boasts two runners who have the potential to improve upon their mile times from last year. Both sophomore Kyle Mau and junior Joseph Murphy competed for their cross country squad giving them a strong base headed into the beginning meets of the year. Mau finished last year with a mile time of 4:00.37. Alongside his 1:51 and 3:44 PR outdoor marks, it’s more than plausible that Mau could make the jump into elite territory. Meanwhile, his teammate Murphy clicked off a 4:02.01 mile last indoor season, posted a faster time in the 800 (1:50), and an equal time in the 1500 (3:44). Together, these two could create a duo to be reckoned with come late February and early March. Austin Tamagno and Blake Haney could join their teammate Maton (if he runs) as a part of this list when it comes down to it. Tamagno ran 4:01 last year as a freshman and Haney has a PR of 3:56 from his sophomore year. If both are in shape, they could be a part of another loaded Oregon distance field. Stanford hosts a quartet of runners in Jack Keelan, Thomas Ratcliffe, Grant Fisher, and Sean McGorty who could all be a part of the national elite. Ratcliffe may show promise in the 3000 meters, but Keelan posts a 3:59 mile as well as a 7:51 for 3000 meters. He is very well-rounded and falls in the same boat as Ratcliffe when it comes to competition. We all know what Fisher can do as his range can go anywhere from 1500 to the 10,000 meters. A strong season of cross country should have him geared up ready to run fast. With no marks for an indoor season, his 3:42 1500 and 13:30 5k times are certainly an indicator of what could come for him. McGorty is back for his 5th year of competition and brings a Mile PR of 3:53 into the mix of competitors. He, like Fisher, can range all the way up to 10,000 meters. If healthy, McGorty could possess the best ability of the four, and will look to return to his 2016 form. Connor Mora (Michigan), Sean Tobin (Ole Miss), Jack Bruce (Arkansas), Andy Trouard (Northern Arizona) and Justine Kiprotich (Michigan State), if he is healthy, could all throw their names in the mix too. Mora finished last year’s indoor season as the 25th fastest time in the country. In addition to his 3:59 Mile, he has an 8:06 PR from his sophomore season. He also has an 8:45 steeplechase to his name. Tobin has been a household name ever since Craig Engels and MJ Erb helped put Ole Miss on the map. His Mile PR (3:59.91) is from his freshman year, but has been consistent during his sophomore and junior seasons. His PR of 7:58 obviously helps here as well, and with this being his last go-round, expect Tobin to be towards the top. Bruce is on a tear since the beginning of indoor season last year. He PR’d in the mile (4:00), 3000m (7:58), and added two more personal bests during the outdoor season. Coming off a strong cross country season where he finished 13th, he’s a strong bet to come into the indoor season ready to roll. Trouard seems to get lost after the performance of Peter Lomong a couple weeks ago, but he’s not to be forgotten when it comes to the track. His 4:00 mile and 8:20 3k confirm that he has more than enough talent to thrive. Under the tutelage of the Lumberjacks’ coach Michael Smith, it’s almost certain that he’ll dip under the 4:00 barrier. Lastly, we have Kiprotich. He is more of a wild card than anything at this point as his health can’t be confirmed. When healthy though, Kiprotich has the ability to be a contender at the highest level. His mile PR is only 4:06 from his freshman year after sophomore year appeared to be riddled with injuries during the winter. He PR’d in both the 800 (1:49) and 1500 (3:42) meter and looks to come into this year hungry for success. Outside of Kerr, the household names aren’t necessarily there. We do know for certain that this will be one of the deepest fields throughout the season. It’s becoming harder and harder to determine who classifies themselves as just a middle-distance runner these days and there will always be a fair share of athletes who either step up or step down in order to give the Mile a shot. And who knows? One of those athletes might find their name atop of the leaderboards with a decision to make. #preview #ncaa #jcusick #analysis #indoortrack

With cross country National Championships concluding, it’s never too early to look forward to the indoor track and field season. Specifically, the distance events. For the first time in four years it feels wide open. This year, the title favorites look like Justyn Knight of Syracuse, Rory Linkletter of BYU and Grant Fisher of Stanford just to name a few. Of course, those aren’t the only three individuals to watch. Colby Gilbert of Washington, who led the nation last with a 7:45, is back for his senior year and will be looking for revenge on the track after failing to match expectations last indoor season. The state of Colorado will also have its favorites in Buffaloes John Dressel (if he’s healthy) and Joe Klecker (Colorado) as well as Jerrell Mock, Cole Rockhold, Grant Fischer of Colorado State who are looking to build off of their strong cross-country seasons. With Regionals and Nationals having been separated by eight days, it’s likely that we won’t see any of these guys debut before winter break comes. Until then, let’s take a look back at last year’s top finishers in the 3000m (at NCAA’s): 1. Edward Cheserek: 7:55.91 2. Justyn Knight: 7:56.21 3. Marc Scott: 7:57.19 4. Joe Klecker: 7:58.90 5. Colby Gilbert: 7:59.41 6. Cole Rockhold: 7.59.89 7. Brian Barraza: 8:00.69 8. John Dressel: 8:01.93 9. Clayton Young: 8:02.11 10. Scott Carpenter: 8:06.34 11. Jack Keelan: 8:10.03 12. Amon Terer: 8:12.28 13. Erik Peterson: 8:16.46 14. Garrett Corcoran: 8:20.31 15. Ben Saarel: 8:21.01 16. Matthew Maton: 8:21.45 The aforementioned Cheserek, Scott, Barraza, Terer, Peterson, and Saarel have all finished their indoor track eligibility and will leave us with 10 runners who are more than capable of coming back and competing once again. So, what does that leave us with? One heck of a race that will be seen nationally come March. Obviously, this is a rough idea of who we could potentially see when the Indoor Championships roll around, but it’s a start. It’s also very possible that a lot of these men will double up and/or run the 5k during the championship meet as well. Knight looks to be the strongest out of this group as he didn’t lose a cross-country race all season. He’ll look to build off the strength that he has gained from his 10k training and use it to improve upon his 7:47 PR. While Knight remains the favorite, it’s easy to forget about Philo Germano (8:03) and Aidan Tooker (4:02 Mile) who could potentially post faster marks come February and March. Fisher didn’t compete for Stanford last year during the indoor season, but with his 3:42 and 13:30 PR’s from outdoor, he would seem like a fit for someone trying to run fast for 3000 meters. We expect Fisher to throw his name in the hat. Steven Fahy returns after finishing 17th at XC Nationals and running 8:03 last year along with teammates Thomas who ran 7:50 unattached last indoor season and Alex Ostberg who finished one place ahead of Fahy at Nationals and has run 4:05 and 14:06. Jack Keelan wasn’t mentioned at cross country Nationals but ran at the regional race. He ran 3:59 and 7:51 last year and looks to be heading back to similar times. Northern Arizona captured their second straight XC national title behind strong performances from Tyler Day, Matthew Baxter, and Peter Lomong. Both Day and Baxter have seen success at longer distances when it comes the track which could potentially mean we’ll see them in the 5k and beyond. Meanwhile, Lomong, who began his career as a 400/800 runner, has recently switched gears after a breakout finish at the National Championship and has clipped off decent times in both the 3k and 5k. His surprise finish speaks to his fitness and shows potential for a strong candidate at 3000 meters. Linkletter isn’t the only runner from BYU who could create headlines during indoor season. Clayton Young returns after a 7:49 PR last season that saw him qualify. Despite a poor finish at cross country Nationals, we should see Young bounce back for track season. Joining Linkletter and Young will be junior Connor McMillan. Casey Clinger could have a been a big name to keep an eye on, but his mission trip is set to begin in January. He will most likely be prepping for that throughout December. Alabama garnered national attention when they announced the transfers of Gilbert Kigen and Vincent Kiprop this summer. Both were studs at the JUCO and Division 2 levels and were expected to bring that level of dominance to the Crimson Tide. After a strong cross country season, and a 4th and 7th place finish at NCAA’s, it would be hard pressed to leave them out of the conversation of being 3K contenders. Kiprop brings in PR’s of 7:57 and 13:42 while Kigen posts PR’s of 8:20 and 13:53. Not to be forgotten is Alfred Chelanga who may have been the Tide’s third runner, but is more than capable of being in the national title conversation. Kigen Chemadi and Jacob Choge from Middle Tennessee State are two more names that could find themselves competing in March. Both sophomores are coming off of stellar freshmen-year campaigns where they both went sub-14 in the 5k. Dillon Maggard impressed this year with a 6th finish at Nationals and improved his placing by one spot from Regionals. He boasts PR’s of 4:01 and 8:21 along with a 3:42 1500 PR coming during outdoor season. Maggard finished 12th at last year’s cross-country championships and it led to PRs across the board. The same thing could be brewing this year as Maggard dropped 47 seconds off his 10k and has recently made news by running 4:11 in blue jeans, for what it’s worth. We would also be hard pressed to forget about the Furman Paladins. Their depth has put them in the forefront of most cross-country discussions. Whether or not the 10k strength will translate to indoors, it is a near certainty we will see more of the Paladins during the outdoor season. Matthew Maton did not run cross country for the Ducks this past fall, but if he competes, he will be someone worth noting. He ran 7:52 and 3:58 last year and found himself in both the final of the 3000 meters and Mile races at Nationals. Garrett Corcoran finished 130th at the National Championships, but looks to regain his form from last year where he ran 7:52 and 13:57 (outdoors). He’s yet another name to look for during the 2017-2018 season. Once the season gets under way we will have a better impression on what to expect from these athletes. The 3k is one of the best races to watch during indoor season due to its perfect mix of tactics and variability. We can’t guarantee who will qualify, but we do know that there’s going to be a fast race between 16 athletes come March. #jcusick #preview #indoortrack #ncaa #analysis

It was an exciting season of cross country. There were plenty of surprises, a lot to discuss, and the winner on both the team and individual side wasn't easy to choose. In my opinion, it was one of the better seasons of competition that we've had in a while. Nonetheless, it's time to transition away from an exciting fall season and begin our talks about winter track! So what's the plan for The Stride Report over the next couple of weeks? We've got a few things in store... - Event previews for all distance events are coming your way! That means discussion on the 800 to the 5k and yes, even the DMR. - The addition of new writers! We've got a couple of new guys waiting to put out some new material... - More featured stories like our Trust The Process and Stanford's Change of Pace - A potential change from the KOLAS page. We're unsure what exactly that page will be in the future, so send in those suggestions. We've got a lot of new things planned for the future, so stay patient with us as we make our transition from XC to track! Great content is coming your way. Until then, feel free to look back at our article archives! Our first event preview is coming tomorrow! Stay tuned! Best, The Stride Report Crew #gzatlin