The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Men's Track & Field preview: Big 12 Outdoor Championships
05.01.2013 | Track & Field / Cross Country m, Track & Field / Cross Country
Big 12 Championships Notes (PDF) | Big 12 Championships Central
May 1, 2013 (Updated: May 3, 1:00 AM CT)
Texas Looks for Indoor-Outdoor Sweep: The Texas men's track and field team, which is No. 8 in this week's USTFCCCA computer rankings, will head to the Big 12 Outdoor Championships in Waco, Texas, on Friday. The Longhorns are looking to sweep the league indoor and outdoor titles. Texas captured the indoor crown in February after leading from start to finish in the two-day event at Iowa State. Texas rolled up 135 points in winning its sixth Big 12 indoor title. Oklahoma was second with 108.50 points and Kansas State third (96). The Longhorns last won the league outdoor crown in 2006, which was the last year they made the indoor-outdoor sweep. They also swept in 1999.
Leading the Big 12: UT will head into the Big 12 meet with the top mark in a league-high seven events:
- 800 Meters - Kyle Thompson (1:48.48)
- 5,000 Meters - Ryan Dohner (13:45.25)
- 110-Meter Hurdles - Keiron Stewart (13.51w)
- 3,000-Meter Steeplechase - Austin Bussing (8:52.05)
- Shot Put - Ryan Crouser (67-0.50/20.43m)
- Discus - Ryan Crouser (194-6/59.28m)
- Decathlon - Isaac Murphy (7,758)
In addition, Zack Bilderback (46.41 - 400 meters), Patrick McGregor (1:49.57 - 800 meters) and Rory Tunningley (29:30.36 - 10,000 meters) rank second in their events. Dohner (29:34.34 - 10,000 meters), Victor Glaze II (6-11.75/2.13m - high jump), Reese Watson (17-5/5.31m) and Will Spence (61-5/18.72 - shot put; 188-8/57.52m - discus) are all third.
"The guys have worked hard," head coach Bubba Thornton said. "We are in a great position, but it is about us going to Waco and taking care of business that is what makes it special. You have to do it on these three days."
TCU leads the league in four events (100m, 4x100m relay, long jump and triple jump), while Kansas State has the top mark in three (200m, high jump and pole vault). Kansas (400m, 400mh), Oklahoma (1,500, javelin) and Oklahoma State (10,000m, hammer) all lead in two.
Meet Information: The Big 12 meet will be held at Hart-Patterson Track & Field Complex in Waco, Texas. All session tickets for the meet are priced at $20. Visit the Baylor Big 12 Championships Central page for more information.
- Schedule
- Heat Sheets
- Live Results
Note: The decathlon was scheduled to begin at noon Friday, but was changed to 1 p.m. The 100 meters is the first of five events.
Television Coverage: FOX Sports is producing a two-hour recap of the three-day meet which will air multiple times in various markets beginning Friday, May 10. FOX Sports Southwest will show it at the following times:
- Friday, May 10 - Noon CDT
- Friday, May 10 - 8 p.m.
- Thursday, May 16 - 10 a.m.
Click here to view the complete clearance list.
Texas Conference Meet History: The Texas men's track and field team has captured 48 outdoor conference titles (44 SWC/four Big 12) dating back to the first Southwest Conference meet in 1915. The Horns won the first Big 12 outdoor title in 1997 and followed up with wins in 1999, 2003 and 2006. UT's four Big 12 titles are second only to Nebraska's six for the most by any team in the conference. The Longhorns' most recent string of success came from 1992-99, when UT laid claim to seven of eight SWC crowns, including six in a row in 1992-97. Texas has won six consecutive conference crowns three additional times (1932-37; 1954-59; 1972-77). UT has finished outside of the top three at the conference meet just eight times in 95 years of league championships.
Individual Conference History: The UT men have captured 407 individual or relay conference crowns since the first Southwest Conference meet was held in 1915. Those titles range all the way from Ralph Frame's sweep of the 100- and 220-yard dashes in 1915 to Marquise Goodwin's victory in the long jump in 2011 and 2012. UT has won titles in a variety of events, but in the high jump and pole vault alone, the Longhorns boast 68 league crowns.
Feels Like Home: The Longhorns have claimed three of their four Big 12 outdoor titles at Baylor. In fact, Texas has won all three championships (1997, 1999, 2006) competed at what is now the Hart-Patterson Track & Field Complex.
Crouser Among the Best in the World: Sophomore Ryan Crouser impressed during the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays, tossing the implement a personal-best 67 1/2 (20.43m) to capture the University shot put (section A) title. That was Crouser's first competition since the 2012 NCAA Outdoor Championships due to ailments. His toss ranks No. 6 on the 2013 world's performer's list, No. 1 in the collegiate ranks and No. 5 on the Texas all-time performance chart. In fact, only one other collegiate performer since the beginning of the 2011 season has posted a better mark. Joe Kovacs of Penn State had a toss of 68-5 to win the 2012 Big Ten outdoor title. Crouser also posted the 12th-best discus mark in the nation - 194-6 (59.28m) - at the Texas Relays. That mark also leads the Big 12. Brian Robison (2006) was the last Longhorn to win both the shot put and discus at the league meet.
Spence in the Top 20 in Two Events: Along with Ryan Crouser, sophomore Will Spence is ranked among the best in the nation in two events. Spence had a personal-best toss of 61-5 (18.72m) in the shot put (No. 17 nationally) at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays. He posted what was then a personal-best toss of 187-4 (57.11m) in the discus at the Relays, but improved upon that at the Texas Invitational when he went 188-8 (57.52m). That mark is tied for 19th in the nation.
Did You Know?: Texas has two of the five athletes who rank among the top 20 nationally in both the shot put and discus. Ryan Crouser is first on the 2013 NCAA performers list in the shot put and 12th in the discus. Will Spence is 17th in the shot and tied for 19th in the discus. Danny Block of Purdue is ninth in the shot put and fourth in the discus, Stephen Mozia of Cornell is third in the shot put and eighth in the discus, and Kole Weldon of Texas Tech is second in the shot put and 16th in the discus.
Going the Distance: The Longhorns have some of the best times in the conference in the 800, 1,500 5,000 amd 10,000 meters. Kyle Thompson had a career-best 1:48.48 at the Texas Invitational. The sophomore qualified in the 800 at the 2012 NCAA Indoor Championships and should make the field for next month's NCAA West Preliminary round in Austin with a time that ranks No. 4 in the region. Patrick McGregor (1:49.57) has the second-fastest time in the league and Brady Turnbull is fourth (1:50.71). Kyle Merber, the lone entry in the 1,500m, ranks fourth (3:41.63) in that event in the Big 12. The Longhorns have a number of entries in the 5,000m and own the first and fifth-best times in the conference. Ryan Dohner was less than one second off the school record with his personal-best time of 13:45.25 at the Mt. SAC Relays. Craig Lutz posted a career-best 14:00.53 at the same meet. Texas also has five of the top eight times in the league in the 10,000m led by Rory Tunningley's personal-best 29:30.36 which was clocked at the Mt. SAC Relays. That time is second in the Big 12 while Dohner's 29:34.34 at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays is third. Lutz also had a PR of 29:39.22 at the same meet which ranks fourth in the conference. Daniel Vertiz (29:55.62) is sixth and Mark Pinales (30:08.09) is eighth.
Texas Tidbits:
- Keiron Stewart, a six-time All-American, will be seeking his first league title in the 110-meter hurdles. He has finished third twice (2010-11) and fourth once (2012). The senior, who has two league 60-meter titles on his resume, owns the fastest time (13.51w) in the Big 12 this season. That mark is also fifth in the nation.
- Isaac Murphy ranks No. 5 nationally in the decathlon and is nearly assured a spot at the NCAA Championships so the senior will concentrate on individual events at the Big 12 meet. He is entered in the 100m, long jump and both relays. His time of 10.48w posted at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays ranks No. 6 in the Big 12. He has only competed in one long jump this season, but had a personal-best 23-11.50 (7.30m) at last year's Big 12 Outdoor meet during the decathlon.
- Six athletes have cleared 17 feet in the Big 12 this season and three of them are on the Texas roster. Reese Watson posted a personal-best clearance of 17-5 (5.31m) at the Longhorn Invitational. That mark ranks third in the Big 12 and fifth nationally among freshmen. Mark Thomas had a season-best vault 17-1 (5.21m) at the Longhorn Invite and Casey Wicker went 17-2 3/4 (5.25m) at the season-opening Texas State Elite Meet.
- Ryan Dohner is the only athlete in school history to rank in the top five on the performers list of both the 5,000 and 10,000 meters. Dohner's time of 13:45.25 at the Mt. SAC Relays was bettered only by Jeff Canada's school record 13:44.34 at the 1989 edition of the same meet. Dohner's time of 29:05.11 at the 2012 NCAA Championships (seventh place) ranks No. 5 on the UT performers chart.
- Zack Bilderback's time of 46.41 in the 400m, which was posted at the Jim Click Shootout, ranks fifth nationally among freshmen.
TEXAS ENTRIES- Big 12 Outdoor Championships (All Times Central)
Friday, May 3
- Decathlon (1 p.m.): Johannes Hock, Jake Wohlford
- Hammer (5 p.m.): Hayden Baillio , Clint Harris, Blake Jakobsson
- 10,000 Meters (9 p.m.): Rory Tunningley, Ryan Dohner, Craig Lutz, Daniel Vertiz, Mark Pinales
Saturday, May 4
- Decathlon (10 a.m.): Johannes Hock, Jake Wohlford
- 1,500 Meters Prelims (3:20 p.m.): Kyle Merber
- 110-Meter Hurdles Prelims (3:55 p.m.): Keiron Stewart
- 400 Meters Prelims (4:35 p.m.): Zack Bilderback
- Long Jump (5 p.m.): Basil Fares, Isaac Murphy, Emerson Sanders
- 100 Meters Prelims (5:10 p.m.): Isaac Murphy
- High Jump (5:30 p.m.): Victor Glaze II
- 800 Meters Prelims (5:50 p.m.): Patrick McGregor, Kyle Thompson, Brady Turnbull
- 400-Meter Hurdles Prelims (6:30 p.m.): Josh Brudnick
Sunday, May 5
- Javelin (11 a.m.): Johannes Hock, John Trucilla
- Triple Jump (2 p.m.): Jarard Bruner
- 400-Meter Relay (4:10 p.m.): Texas A (Basil Fares, Zack Bilderback, Emerson Sanders, Isaac Murphy
- 3,000-Meter Steeplechase (4:35 p.m.): Austin Bussing, Austin Roth, John McNamara, Trevor Van Ackeren
- 1,500 Meters Final (5:00 p.m.):
- Pole Vault (5 p.m.): Reese Watson, Casey Wicker, Mark Thomas
- Shot Put (5 p.m.): Ryan Crouser, Will Spence, Hayden Baillio, Blake Jakobsson, Clint Harris
- 110-Meter Hurdles Final (5:25 p.m.):
- 400 Meters Final (5:45 p.m.):
- 100 Meters Final (6:05 p.m.):
- 800 Meters Final (6:25 p.m.):
- 400-Meter Hurdles Final (6:45 p.m.):
- 5,000 Meters (7:35 p.m.): Ryan Dohner, Craig Lutz, Daniel Vertiz, Austin Bussing, Patrick McGregor, John McNamara, Kyle Merber, Mark Pinales, Austin Roth, Rory Tunningley, Brady Turnbull, Trevor Van Ackeren
- 4x400-Meter (8:05 p.m.): Texas A (Zack Bilderback, Josh Brudnick, Isaac Murphy, Kyle Thompson)