If there ever was a Pre-National meet for track, the Rod McCravy Memorial at the University of Kentucky would be that meet. Sprint powerhouses Florida, LSU, Texas, and Florida State will be joined by distance strongholds Oregon and Arkansas to provide the closest thing to an NCAA meet preview that we’ve ever seen. With only 16 spots available for each event in NCAA qualifying, expect the athletes to compete with a sense of urgency when the gun goes off on Friday. Click here for HEAT SHEETS.

WOMEN'S PREVIEW

 

Cheserek vs. Campbell (Saturday, 3:40pm)

The big name in this race is the biggest name in the NCAA. Edward Cheserek will make his 2015 debut in the 3k, and will most likely run a controlled effort to grab his NCAA qualifier. The Oregon men have two DMRs entered on Friday night, with the expectation that Ches will anchor the A team, so we don’t see King Ches running all out here if he doesn’t have to. Kemoy Campbell of Arkansas will make Cheserek at least work for the win, as the 5th year senior has a 7:46 PB from 2013. Fellow All-Americans Craig Lutz (Texas) and Johnny Gregorek (Oregon) join this field to make it the premiere distance race in Lexington. 

 

The 60m Dash (Saturday, 12:35pm)

If you’re looking for the next generation of US sprint stars, look no further than the 60m this Saturday in Kentucky. Fresh off his 6.58 performance last weekend, NCAA 100m champ Trayvon Bromell will face a number of the men he should expect to meet at the NCAA Championships in March. Florida’s Antwan Wright was 5th indoors last season, and boasts a 6.62 PB, while Florida State freshmen Trentavis Friday and Kendal Williams look to prove themselves at the collegiate ranks after dazzling high school careers. Remember, Williams is the same guy who beat Bromell to secure gold at World Juniors, so don’t be surprised if a young gun steals a victory at UK.

 

The 800m Run (Saturday, 3:00pm)

Missing from this field is two-time NCAA champion Brandon McBride, but other than that this race looks like an NCAA final. The fast section features three first team All-Americans: Ryan Schnulle (Florida), Patrick Rono (Arkansas), and Keffri Neal (Kentucky). Those three have all run 1:46.46 or faster, and have loads of experience in big races like this one. Two challengers to watch are Andres Arroyo (Florida) and Niki Franzmair (Oregon). Arroyo ran 1:47.79 in high school, while Franzmair is an Austrian frosh who ran 1:46.78 this past July. 

 

The Duck's 5k (Friday, 7:55pm)

Rumors have been swirling that Oregon is looking to have 3 men under 13:40 in this race, and that is not outside the realm of possibilities for this loaded Duck crew. Eric Jenkins should have no trouble dipping under that mark, as he has run 13:18 outdoors, but he’ll face a challenge from teammate Parker Stinson, who finished 3rd indoors in 2014. Former Dartmouth star Will Geoghegan is now with Oregon, and he’ll bump up in distance from his preferred mile/3k and try to stick with Jenkins and Stinson. Former Oregon Duck and current Nike athlete Trevor Dunbar will serve as the rabbit. 

 

The 4x400m Relay (Saturday, 4:25pm)

Yikes. Say goodbye to that 3:05.82 facility record because teams from LSU, Florida, and Arkansas will line up in the finale of this Grade-A meet. The boys from Baton Rouge are the NCAA defending champs (a slight fluke, considering A&M and Florida were DQ’d, but play along) and have Vernon Norwood (45.02 PB) as their anchor. The Gators ran 2:59.73 outdoors, and THEY RETURN EVERYONE! Scary, I know. Don’t sleep on Arkansas either, even if the Hogs lost two pieces from their 2014 3rd place team.