By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

The 58th edition of the NCAA Division 1 men’s indoor track and field championships are scheduled for March 10-11 at the Albuquerque Convention Center in New Mexico.

ENTRIES | START LISTS | DYESTAT DISCUSSIONS

Here are 10 male storylines to follow at the event, as the meet is held for the second time at the venue, following 2014. The event was also scheduled to be held in Albuquerque in 2020, but was canceled on the eve of the competition as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Washington ready to put mile depth on display

With six entries in the mile, Washington has an opportunity to produce the record for most scorers in a single event in Division 1 Indoor Championships history.

Florida holds the all-time mark with five athletes placing in the top six of the women’s weight throw final in 2003, accounting for 30 points for the Gators.

The most scorers by any men’s program in a single event at the NCAA indoor final is UCLA in the shot put, with four competitors making the podium in 1994.

The record in the mile for both the men and women is three scorers for a single team in the same Division 1 final.

Colorado matched the women’s record last season that was previously achieved by Oregon in 2011.

The Ducks had three competitors score in the men’s mile final in 2015.

Joe Waskom, Brian Fay, Nathan Green, Luke Houser, Aidan Ryan and Aaron Ahl have all run under 3:56 this season for Washington, with no other program having multiple entries among the field of 16 athletes in the mile.

Anass Essayi, a South Carolina sophomore representing Morocco, is the top seed at 3:50.46. Essayi ranks No. 2 in collegiate indoor history, trailing only the 3:50.39 performance achieved in 2021 by Oregon’s Cooper Teare.

Washington has never crowned a men’s mile champion, with the Huskies hoping their depth can produce a team podium finish for the first time in program history.

Pole vault encore performance in primetime

The best men’s collegiate pole vault competition during the regular season took place Feb. 4 at the New Mexico Collegiate Classic at the Albuquerque Convention Center involving reigning Division 1 indoor and outdoor champion Sondre Guttormsen of Princeton and Texas Tech’s Zach Bradford, a transfer from Kansas.

Guttormsen, the European Athletics Indoor gold medalist March 5 in Turkey, cleared a Norwegian record 19-4.25 (5.90m) in Albuquerque to hold off Bradford and his personal-best 19-1.50 (5.83m).

It marked the only time in collegiate indoor history that a pair of athletes both cleared at least 19-1.50 in the same competition.

There have been 30 combined indoor clearances of at least 19-1.50 achieved by 10 NCAA vaulters and Bradford is the only athlete not to win the competition with his performance.

Guttormsen cleared 18-10.25 (5.75m) to win his first Division 1 indoor crown last year at the CrossPlex in Birmingham and matched that effort in June at the NCAA outdoor final at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

Guttormsen is attempting to become the first male competitor to capture consecutive indoor pole vault championships since Arkansas’ Andrew Irwin in 2012-13.

Bradford, a six-time All-American and four-time Big 12 champion, is looking to become the first Texas Tech vaulter to capture an indoor crown. Bradford and Branson Ellis of Stephen F. Austin are the only qualifiers from the 2020 championship meet in New Mexico who returned to compete this year.

Kentucky’s Keaton Daniel took third at last year’s Division 1 outdoor final after placing second at the 2021 outdoor championship, but is still seeking his first podium finish at an NCAA indoor meet.

Hoping for more heptathlon heroics

One of the most exciting matchups in NCAA indoor history continues to be the heptathlon rivalry involving reigning Division 1 champion Ayden Owens-Delerme of Arkansas and Georgia’s Kyle Garland.

Owens-Delerme delivered one of the most thrilling moments of last year’s final at the Birmingham CrossPlex in Alabama, rallying from a 152-point deficit entering the final event by running 2:31.55 in the 1,000 meters to edge Garland by a 6,211 to 6,200 margin for the title.

Garland elevated to 6,415 points with his performance Jan. 26-27 at the Texas Tech Open and Multis, the No. 2 effort in collegiate history behind Oregon’s Ashton Eaton and his record 6,499 from the 2010 Division 1 final in Arkansas.

Owens-Delerme is No. 3 in NCAA indoor history at 6,272 from last year’s Razorback Invitational. Owens-Delerme ended Georgia’s decade-long streak of heptathlon titles Feb. 24-25 at the Southeastern Conference Championships in Arkansas with 6,237 points, a competition that did not include Garland.

Owens-Delerme is attempting to become the first back-to-back NCAA champion in the heptathlon since Eaton in 2009-10.

The performances of Owens-Delerme and Yarriel Soto Torrado could be significant in Arkansas’ pursuit of its first men’s indoor team title since 2013.

There are seven athletes entered in the heptathlon who have surpassed 6,000 points. The record for most 6,000-point performances in the same Division 1 final is four last year in Alabama, with Texas’ Leo Neugebauer and Princeton’s Andrei Iosivas joining Owens-Delerme and Garland.

Potential for another dynamic distance double

By sweeping the 3,000- and 5,000-meter titles last year, Abdihamid Nur of Northern Arizona helped the Lumberjacks secure their first men’s indoor podium finish by placing fourth overall with 29 points.

Drew Bosley, a former teammate of the Nike professional Nur set the collegiate indoor 3,000 record at 7:36.42 with his Jan. 27 effort at the John Thomas Terrier Classic at Boston University.

Bosley has the potential to repeat the double for Northern Arizona, but Tennessee’s Dylan Jacobs, Stanford’s Ky Robinson, Oklahoma State’s Alex Maier and Brigham Young’s Casey Clinger also have the same opportunities.

Jacobs is No. 2 in NCAA indoor history at 7:36.89, with South Carolina’s Anass Essayi the No. 7 performer at 7:41.93 and Tennessee’s Yaseen Abdalla ranked No. 8 at 7:42.23.

Jacobs also ranks No. 3 all-time in the 5,000 at 13:11.01, with Robinson at No. 4 at 13:11.53, followed by Maier at No. 5 at 13:11.80 and Bosley at No. 6 at 13:13.26.

Northern Arizona’s Nico Young is the No. 9 all-time indoor competitor at 13:15.25, with Clinger ranked No. 12 at 13:17.36 and Harvard’s Graham Blanks at No. 15 at 13:18.45.

The last time that teammates swept the 3,000 and 5,000 championships in consecutive years was Oregon’s impressive run from 2014-17, with Edward Cheserek taking both titles in 2014, 2016 and 2017, with Eric Jenkins achieving the distance double for the Ducks in 2015.

Stanford’s Charles Hicks, the reigning Division 1 cross country champion, could play spoiler in the 5,000, with Oklahoma State’s Fouad Messaoudi and Ryan Schoppe, along with Abdalla and Essayi all leading contenders in the 3,000.

Arizona’s Lawi Lalang won the 3,000 and 5,000 in 2012 competing at 2,700 feet in Boise, Idaho, with Cheserek sweeping both championships at 5,300 feet elevation in 2014 in Albuquerque, the only two previous occasions the Division 1 indoor final has been held at altitude.

Determining Rhode Island royalty or crowning Kennesaw State’s new king

The men’s weight throw final Friday is not only a rematch of the Feb. 24 showdown involving Alabama’s Bobby Colantonio and freshman Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan of Ole Miss at the Southeastern Conference Championships, but also the first time this season that collegiate leader Isaiah Rogers will have an opportunity to square off against both competitors.

Colantonio, the reigning Division 1 champion, is from Barrington High and Robinson-O’Hagan – the best freshman performer in NCAA history – is a graduate of Woonsocket High, both showcasing the great tradition of elite throwers from Rhode Island.

Rogers, who attended Campbell High in Georgia and competed for Throw1Deep as a prep athlete, is adding to the legacy at Kennesaw State, which also features reigning U.S. indoor champion Daniel Haugh among its alumni.

Rogers is the No. 8 competitor in NCAA indoor history at 79-11.50 (24.37m), with Colantonio at No. 9 with his 79-2.75 (24.15m) performance last year and Robinson-O’Hagan at No. 23 with a 77-6 (23.62m) effort at the SEC final in Arkansas, surpassing the 2017 mark of 76-11 (23.44m) achieved by Kansas’ Gleb Dudarev for the best all-time throw by a collegiate freshman.

Colantonio is looking to become the first male athlete to secure back-to-back weight throw titles since Wisconsin’s Michael Lihrman in 2014-15. Victories by Rogers or Robinson-O’Hagan would be the first men’s weight throw championship for their respective programs.

Delightful DMR showcase

Although the men’s distance medley relay final Friday is highlighted by the anticipated rematch involving Oklahoma State and Washington, the two fastest lineups not only in collegiate history but also the world, the quest for the title isn’t just limited to the Cowboys and Huskies.

Oklahoma State edged Washington by a 9:16.40 to 9:16.65 margin Feb. 17 at the Arkansas Qualifier at Randal Tyson Track Center, with Ryan Schoppe holding off Kieran Lumb on the anchor leg as both programs eclipsed the previous collegiate and world all-time best of 9:19.42 established by Oregon in 2021 in Arkansas.

The following day at the Alex Wilson Invitational in Notre Dame, the five fastest collegiate performances ever achieved on an oversized track were highlighted by North Carolina and Wisconsin both running 9:19.99 in separate races.

Villanova ran 9:20.44, Michigan clocked 9:20.83 and Brigham Young posted a 9:21.18 effort.

Ole Miss (9:21.89), Indiana (9:22.16), Tennessee (9:22.65) and Texas (9:22.74) also qualified with their performances from the Alex Wilson Invitational.

Arkansas clocked 9:22.13 on its home track to elevate to the No. 5 school on a 200-meter banked track in collegiate history and qualify among the 12 schools set to square off in Albuquerque.

Texas won the DMR title last year at the Birmingham CrossPlex in Alabama, contributing to the men’s team championship.

Oklahoma State and Washington are both seeking their first men’s DMR titles.

Pac-12 powerhouses seek shot put supremacy

Arizona’s Jordan Geist and Arizona State’s Turner Washington both have opportunities to make history Saturday in the men’s shot put final in one of the deepest fields at the Division 1 final.

Washington, the collegiate indoor record holder at 71-8.25 (21.85m), is attempting to become the second Sun Devils star to win three consecutive NCAA indoor championships, joining Ryan Whiting in 2008-10.

Whiting is one of three athletes in Division 1 indoor history to win at least three in a row, along with Kansas’ Karl Salb in 1969-71 and UTEP’s Hans Hogland in 1973-75.

Michael Carter of SMU won four career indoor championships, but achieved the feat in 1980-81 and 1983-84.

Geist, the collegiate leader this season at 70-5.75 (21.48m), has elevated to No. 10 in NCAA indoor history.

Geist, a six-time All-American, is pursuing the first men’s indoor shot put title in program history.

The Wildcats have crowned three women’s indoor shot put champions in Meg Ritchie in 1983, Carla Garrett in 1989 and Julie Labonte in 2011.

Nebraska’s Jonah Wilson, a transfer from Washington who has a personal-best mark of 68-5 (20.85m) from the Big Ten Conference final, could become the program’s first indoor champion since Carl Myerscough in 2002-03 and the third athlete in school history, along with Kevin Coleman in 1992-93.

Godwin has eyes on more gold

Georgia’s Elija Godwin earned a gold medal as the leadoff leg for the United States lineup in the 4x400-meter relay in July at the World Athletics Outdoor Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

Godwin, who qualified for the 2020 indoor championship meet in New Mexico, has returned to the Albuquerque Convention Center in search of his first NCAA Division 1 title in the 400.

Godwin ascended to the No. 5 all-time collegiate indoor competitor by clocking a world-leading 44.75 seconds Feb. 25 in the Southeastern Conference final in Arkansas.

Godwin will have to contend with the Nos. 3 and 4 athletes in the world this year, with Arkansas’ Chris Bailey (45.09) and Florida’s Ryan Willie (45.15) also scheduled to compete. Bailey and Willie are also the Nos. 16 and 17 performers in collegiate indoor history.

Arizona State’s Justin Robinson won the U.S. indoor title Feb. 18 by clocking 45.40 at the Albuquerque Convention Center.

Godwin is looking to become the first indoor 400 champion for Georgia since Torrin Lawrence in 2010.

The past five Division 1 indoor winners have all produced sub-45 performances, but the fastest effort ever achieved at the Albuquerque Convention Center is 45.18 by Fred Kerley at the 2018 USATF Indoor Championships.

Arkansas looks to rule runway again

The last time Arkansas swept both horizontal jumps titles in the same year was 2016, with Jarrion Lawson capturing the long jump crown and Clive Pullen taking home the triple jump championship.

The Razorbacks have the potential to achieve the feat again, relying heavily on the Jamaican trio of Jaydon Hibbert, Carey McLeod and Wayne Pinnock to contribute to a potential men’s team title for Arkansas for the first time since 2013.

Pinnock and McLeod took the top two spots in the long jump last season for Tennessee at the Birmingham CrossPlex in Alabama, before transferring to Arkansas this year.

Hibbert arrived in Fayetteville after winning the World Under-20 outdoor gold medal in August in Colombia.

Hibbert captured the Southeastern Conference title Feb. 25 with a 56-1.25 (17.10m) effort, ascending to the No. 14 all-time collegiate indoor competitor.

The biggest threats to a Razorbacks sweep are present in the long jump, with Mississippi State’s Cameron Crump elevating to the No. 5 performer in NCAA indoor history with his 27-6.50 (8.39m) performance Feb. 24 at the SEC final in Arkansas. Pinnock improved to No. 9 all-time at the SEC championship with a 27-3.25 (8.31m) effort.

Florida State’s Jeremiah Davis has already experienced success on the runway Feb. 10 at the Albuquerque Convention Center with his leap of 27-2 (8.28m) at the Don Kirby Elite Invitational to elevate to the No. 11 all-time collegiate indoor competitor.

Alabama’s Christian Edwards and LSU’s Apalos Edwards are among the top challengers to Hibbert in his NCAA finals debut.

Texas Tech trying to produce memorable sprint sweep

Although TCU’s Kim Collins, Houston’s Elijah Hall and former Tennessee stars Christian Coleman and Justin Gatlin have all secured the 60-meter dash and 200-meter titles in the same year at the Division 1 indoor final, no teammates have ever swept both events at the same championship meet.

Terrence Jones and Courtney Lindsey of Texas Tech are the top seeds in the 60 and 200, respectively, looking to provide a big boost for the Red Raiders in their pursuit of the first men’s podium finish in program history at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

Jones is the collegiate record holder in the 60 and 6.45 and boasts two of the five fastest performances in NCAA history. He ran 6.46 in the Feb. 24 in the Big 12 Conference semifinals at the Sports Performance Center at Texas Tech, followed by 6.48 in the final.

Lindsey elevated to the No. 5 all-time collegiate indoor competitor in the 200 by clocking 20.13 to win the Big 12 Conference title Feb. 25 in Lubbock.

Divine Oduduru won the 2019 indoor crown in the 200 for Texas Tech, which is still searching for its first 60-meter championship.

Lindsey will have to contend with two former 200-meter indoor champions in Georgia’s Matthew Boling from 2021 and last year’s winner Javonte Harding at Tennessee, a transfer from North Carolina A&T.

Louisville’s Cameron Miller, Alabama’s Tarsis Orogat and Florida’s Jacory Patterson have all run under 20.30, and the trio are all among the top 15 all-time collegiate indoor performers.

Florida State’s Ismael Kone and Auburn’s Favour Ashe are tied for the No. 13 competitors in Division 1 indoor history in the 60 at 6.51.