The calendar has turned to February and we’ve already seen a crazy start to the DI men’s and women’s indoor track and field season. Records have fallen, world-leading marks have been set and there have been impressive performances around the country. But which performances were most exciting over the first month-ish?
Let’s find out, from both women and men.
Women’s performances
Arkansas’ Britton Wilson sets the 600 meter collegiate record
Before this season, we last saw Arkansas’ Britton Wilson winning a gold medal at the World Athletics Championships. Wilson returned to the collegiate level with an NCAA record in the 600 meters.
In Wilson’s first meet of the season, she finished the 600 meters in 1:25.16, breaking a record previously held by Athing Mu. It was the 10th fastest time in world history.
Britton Wilson (@brittonwilsonn) set a new COLLEGIATE RECORD in the 600M, finishing in 1:25.16.
Wilson now has the 10th fastest time in the World ever, breaking Athing Mu’s previous NCAA record of 1:25.80.
(🎥: @RazorbackTF)
pic.twitter.com/HvI2NCSeFL— Stan Becton (@stan_becton) January 13, 2023
Texas’ Julien Alfred sets the 60 meter collegiate record
The 60 meter record has fallen… again. And Texas star Julien Alfred broke the record… again. Alfred broke her own collegiate record at New Mexico’s Dr. MLK Jr. Invitational, dashing through the final.
Julien Alfred already owned the NCAA 60 meter record entering this year, but she broke it again at New Mexico’s Dr. MLK Jr. Invitational in 7.02 seconds. Alfred now owns the three fastest times over 60 meters run by any woman in NCAA history.
JULIEN ALFRED SETS THE NEW NCAA 60m RECORD AT 7.02 🔥🤘 pic.twitter.com/B3fNcmGBJ8
— Texas T&F/XC (@TexasTFXC) January 21, 2023
MORE: Texas’ Julien Alfred sets NCAA 60m record — again
Kentucky’s Masai Russell sets the 60 meter hurdles collegiate record
A day before Alfred, Kentucky’s Masai Russell set a collegiate record of her own in the 60 meter hurdles. Russell finished in 7.75 seconds to break a barrier that stood for a decade.
In what’s been called a golden age of collegiate hurdling, Russell sits at the top indoors with her record-breaking performance.
COLLEGIATE RECORD @masai_russell 7.75 in the 60m hurdles! #HurdleU 🚧 pic.twitter.com/pyZdPkId8m
— UK Track & Field (@KentuckyTrack) January 20, 2023
MORE: Kentucky’s Russell breaks NCAA 60 meter hurdles record
NC State’s Katelyn Tuohy sets the mile collegiate record
I promise this article won’t be all collegiate records. Yet, four different athletes setting collegiate records by February is impressive, no matter how repetitive it may seem.
Katelyn Tuohy was the latest woman to set a collegiate record when she ran 4:24.26 in the mile. Tuohy broke a 14-year-old record with her performance.
OMG🤯 @Wolfpack_TFXC’s Katelyn Tuohy ran 4:24.26 in the mile to break the @NCAATrackField record at the Dr. Sander Invitational 🔥
The record was last set in 2009
— Stan Becton (@stan_becton) January 28, 2023
MUST WATCH: The top indoor track and field meets to watch in 2022-23
Michigan has a comeback of the year candidate… and it was only January
During the first leg of Michigan’s 4×400 meter relay, Wolverine Sophie Isom fell. By the relay’s end, Michigan won the race.
You read that right.
Michigan ended up winning the race by eight seconds in 3:42.43. Check it out for yourself below.
Incredible 🤯🤯#NCAATF x 🎥 @UMichTrack
pic.twitter.com/4eY3HPZteL— NCAA Track & Field (@NCAATrackField) January 22, 2023
MORE: Michigan relay team’s remarkable comeback win after fall on track
Texas’ Ackelia Smith and Florida’s Jasmine Moore prove their leaps above the rest
We can’t conclude the article without highlighting field athletes. Texas’ Ackelia Smith and Florida’s Jasmine Moore have earned their way onto this most exciting list. Both make this list together as horizontal-jumping savants.
Why? Because when any athlete performs at a different level than their peers, it is exciting.
By now you may have forgotten, but Smith kicked the season off at a championship level all the way back in December. She jumped 6.73 meters on her first long jump… OF THE SEASON. That equates to more than 22 feet. Smith is the only woman to surpass the 22-foot mark this season.
Sheesh Ackelia Smith 👀
6.73m (22-1.00) on her first jump of the season 🤘 That’s the second-best jump in Texas history behind @tar___ruh! pic.twitter.com/DlIGdNcfWl
— Texas T&F/XC (@TexasTFXC) December 3, 2022
The horizontal-jumping brilliance continued with Jasmine Moore in January. Moore entered her 2023 season off arguably the greatest horizontal-jumping season ever and lived up to the returning hype.
On Moore’s first triple jump — OF THE SEASON — she jumped 14.44 meters. That jump was the fourth-farthest indoor triple jump in NCAA history. How’d Moore follow that up? By jumping five more times over 14 meters, including the fifth, eighth and ninth-furthest distances in NCAA history.
To put Moore’s opening performance in perspective, no other woman has passed 14 meters this year.
What can’t Jasmine Moore do? #GoGators 🐊 pic.twitter.com/408nQ8Gjc2
— Gators Track and Field & Cross Country (@GatorsTF) January 14, 2023
WATCHLIST: The 2023 Bowerman watch list for men’s and women’s NCAA track and field
Men’s performances
NAU’s Drew Bosley sets the 3000 meter collegiate record
Can a collegiate record fly under the radar? Northern Arizona star Drew Bosley’s collegiate record just might have, depending on who you came to watch at the John Thomas Terrier Classic.
Bosley set an NCAA record in the 3000 meters with his 7:36.42 finish. In the same race, former Notre Dame star Yared Nuguse broke the American 3K record. With two records set, Bosley’s race was exciting from start to finish.
CONTENDERS: The top challengers for all 15 returning indoor NCAA track and field champions in 2022-23
Texas’ Brian Herron starts the season with an American record
The Texas Longhorns opened the season with the Commonwealth College Opener in December. Brian Herron made a statement in his first race of the season with a 59.87-second finish in the 500 meters, setting an NCAA record and American record. Herron’s finish is the second-fastest in World History.
HISTORY MADE! @BrianHerron400m takes down the American & Collegiate 500m record in the season opener at 59.87 seconds 🤘🔥 pic.twitter.com/BA4T2YQiD8
— Texas T&F/XC (@TexasTFXC) December 3, 2022
TRANSFERS: 30 impact transfers to watch in the 2022-23 track and field season
Georgia’s Kyle Garland almost sets the heptathlon collegiate record
Kyle Garland had the entire track and field world on not just collegiate record watch entering Day 2 of his heptathlon at Texas Tech Multis, but also World record watch. Garland was ahead of the world-record pace by 78 points after scoring 3,732 points on day one.
When it was all said and done, Garland finished with 6,415 points, just 84 points behind the collegiate record. While Garland didn’t break the NCAA record, his six personal-best marks provided excitement across two days.
Want to 👀 (& 👂❗️) what Garland’s latest personal best in pole vault looks like??
Here is the 🚂 over at 5m/16-4.75…
Garland stands at 5,664 pts, collegiate record is 6,499 with 1000m to go!#GoDawgs pic.twitter.com/7DMl6xDcL7
— Georgia Track&Field (@UGATrack) January 27, 2023
MORE: Complete history of The Bowerman award
Washington dominates the mile
Back in 2010, NBA great LeBron James said, “Not 1, Not 2, Not 3 and so on.”
Fast-forward to 2023, and the Washington Huskies mile team said, “Not 7” with eight Huskies running a sub-four-minute mile. Joe Waskom led the way with a 3:51.90 second finish and the “slowest” (I used that word lightly) Husky finished in 3:59.55.
6 Huskies ran sub-3:56.6, the most ever in the same race from the same team in NCAA history.
Not 1, not 2….
8 @UWTrack Huskies go sub-4!
Joe Waskom’s 3:51.90 takes down Yomif Kejelcha’s Dempsey record!
Brian Fay 3:52.03
Nathan Green 3:52.76
Kieran Lumb 3:53.83
Sam Ellis 3:53.84
Luke Houser 3:55.98
Aaron Ahl 3:57.94
Aidan Ryan 3:59.55@NCAATrackField | @USTFCCCA pic.twitter.com/t0JtSHyoep— RunnerSpace (@runnerspace) January 28, 2023
🏆: Here are the DI track and field teams with most NCAA championships
Florida State’s Jeremiah Davis resets the NCAA lead twice in the same meet
Florida State’s Jeremiah Davis already owned the NCAA-leading long jump entering the Razorback Invitational. That didn’t stop him from pushing his lead even higher.
Davis jumped 8.21 meters on his first and third jumps of the meet to add four centimeters to his NCAA lead. No one else has surpassed 8.10 meters this season, but every time Davis jumps, passing 8.10 meters is within reach.