2022 NCAA DI Men’s Indoor Track & Field Rating Index – Week 1
NEW ORLEANS – We’ve dotted our i’s and crossed our t’s.
Here is the first installment of the NCAA Division I Men’s Indoor Track & Field National TFRI, as released on Monday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). No marks from previous seasons have been used, which means this objective list is compiled solely of current marks from the 2022 indoor track & field season.
NCAA Division I — Men's Indoor Track & Field
This Week's National Top Five
1
Texas
Texas
2
Kentucky
Kentucky
3
Texas Tech
Texas Tech
4
North Carolina A&T
North Carolina A&T
5
Northern Arizona
Northern Arizona
All TFRI Reports
The Eyes of Texas are upon the rest of the nation as the Longhorns sit No. 1 after the first few weeks of the season. Texas has turned in eight marks that reside among the top-10 nationally in their respective events, including three in the 800 alone from Crayton Carrozza (No. 3, 1:48.40), Yusef Bizimana (No. 5, 1:48.75) and Cole Lindhorst (No. 7, 1:48.86). Two of those athletes are also on the Longhorns’ top-ranked DMR (Carrozza and Lindhorst). Let’s not forget about Tripp Piperi, who cemented his spot at No. 2 in the shot put this past weekend at 20.99m (68-10½).
Kentucky sits No. 2 with six top-10 marks of its own. Kennedy Lightner had a heck of a weekend for the Wildcats at the Red Raider Open, as he notched the nation’s second-fastest mark in the 200 of 20.52 and anchored Kentucky’s 4×400 relay team to a thrilling win, which also sent that foursome to the top of the national chart. Dwight St. Hillaire, one of the four athletes also on that 4×400, clocked the nation’s second-fastest open 400 of the young season at 46.11.
Texas Tech, with two home meets under its belt, holds down the No. 3 spot thanks to seven top-10 marks. Four of those top-10 efforts reside in the sprints with Terrence Jones at No. 1 in the 60 at 6.45, Courtney Lindsey at No. 3 in the 200 at 20.56, and Jacolby Shelton among the top-10 in both the 60 (No. 7, 6.59) and 200 (No. 5, 20.70). Not to be outdone, Jalen Seals is up to No. 3 in the triple jump at 16.12m (52-10¼).
North Carolina A&T has been a mainstay in the top-5 for quite some time and is ranked fourth. The Aggies, led by The Bowerman Watch List member Randolph Ross Jr., has turned in six top-10 marks in 2022. Ross ripped a scintillating 400 of 45.37 to open the season, while Rasheem Brown (60H: No. 4, 7.70), Javonte’ Harding (200; No. 4, 20.71) and Daniel Stokes (400: No. 5, 46.71) also reside in the top-5 of their respective events.
Northern Arizona rounds out the top-5 on the shoulders of its distance corps. The Lumberjacks have registered five top-5 marks so far this season, which include four in the 5000 alone thanks to Abdihamid Nur (No. 2, 13:22.24), Nico Young (No. 3, 13:22.59), Drew Bosley (No. 6, 13:26.19) and George Kusche (No. 9, 13:28.95). Young also is currently ranked No. 1 nationally in the mile with his altitude-converted mark of 3:54.07 (He nearly became the first American to run a sub-4 mile at more than 6000 feet with his 4:02.89 effort in Flagstaff this past weekend).
Here are the rest of the top-10 teams in the first National TFRI of the 2022 season: No. 6 BYU, No. 7 Texas A&M, No. 8 Princeton, No. 9 Iowa and No. 10 Alabama. This is the best ranking in program history for the Tigers, who topped out at No. 17 back in 2008, the first year of the National TFRI.
Mark your calendars for March 11-12, because that’s when the 2022 NCAA DI Indoor Track & Field Championships will be held at the Birmingham CrossPlex in Birmingham, Alabama.
