The Bowerman: 2023 Men’s Semifinalists

NEW ORLEANS – From thousands to 41.

From 41 to ten.

From ten to eventually three.

Here are the ten athletes who have been deemed Men’s Semifinalists for The Bowerman in 2023 by The Bowerman Watch List Committee: Mykolas Alekna of California, Kyle Garland of Georgia, Jordan Geist of Arizona, Sondre Guttormsen of Princeton, Jaydon Hibbert of Arkansas, Courtney Lindsey of Texas Tech, Carey McLeod of Arkansas, Leo Neugebauer of Texas, Ky Robinson of Stanford and Kenneth Rooks of BYU. Three finalists will be selected from this group and announced on Tuesday, June 27.

The Bowerman – collegiate track & field’s highest individual honor – will be awarded in December at the USTFCCCA Convention in Denver, Colorado. Only marks from the 2023 indoor or outdoor collegiate track & field seasons are to be considered for the award.

Alekna, who hails from Vilnius, Lithuania, rewrote the record book just about every time he stepped inside the cage. Despite a third-place finish at the NCAA DI Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Alekna entered the meet as the prohibitive favorite after posting eight of the top-10 farthest marks in collegiate history this season, including the 71.00m (232-11) CR that he launched in late April at The Big Meet. Alekna added the No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 marks on the all-time ledger two weeks later at the Pac-12 Outdoor Championships. This is the second time that Alekna has been a semifinalist for The Bowerman.

Garland, who hails from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, starred in the combined events this year. He won the heptathlon crown at the NCAA DI Indoor Championships with a near world record 6639 points and demolished the collegiate record in the process. Outdoors, Garland amassed two of the top-4 decathlon scores in collegiate history: the first coming at the SEC Outdoor Championships where he tallied 8589 points; the second in a runner-up effort at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships where he one-upped himself with 8630 points. This is the second time that Garland has been a semifinalist for The Bowerman.

Geist, who hails from Saxonburg, Pennsylvania, went two-for-two on shot put titles this year with victories at both NCAA Championships. He also finished third in the hammer at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships with a 75.97m (249-3) PR that put him into the lead in Round 1. Geist is the first male athlete from Arizona named a semifinalist for The Bowerman since Lawi Lalang in 2013 and 2014.

Guttormsen, who hails from Ski, Norway, won nine of the 11 finals he contested this year, including a podium-topping effort at the NCAA DI Indoor Championships. It was in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where Guttormsen tied the collegiate record with his title-winning 6.00m (19-8¼) clearance. Guttormsen tied for sixth at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships. This is the second time that Guttormsen has been a semifinalist for The Bowerman.

Hibbert, who hails from Kingston, Jamaica, is the undisputed King of the Triple Jump in collegiate history. The Arkansas freshman phenom recently completed the NCAA title sweep with a victory at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships. Hibbert only needed 12 jumps to win all six of his collegiate competitions this year and unified the indoor and outdoor collegiate records with a 17.54m (57-6½) effort indoors followed by a majestic 17.87m (58-7½) outdoors. This is the fourth year in a row that a first-year freshman has been a semifinalist for The Bowerman.

Lindsey, who hails from Rock Island, Illinois, sprinted into the record books at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships. The Texas Tech star won a world-class 100-meter final with the fourth-best performance in collegiate history at 9.89 (+1.8) and then doubled back to finish runner-up in the 200 meters at 19.86 (+0.9) to crack the all-time top-10. Lindsey didn’t qualify for the final of the 200 at the NCAA DI Indoor Championships, but swept those conference titles in 2023 and set a 60-meter PR of 6.58 in the prelims of the Big 12 Indoor Championships. This is the third time in program history that a male athlete has been named a semifinalist for The Bowerman.

McLeod, who hails from Kingston, Jamaica, doubled up on long jump crowns at the NCAA Championships this year. The Arkansas standout spanned 8.40m (27-6¾) to win the indoor title and move up to No. 5 in collegiate history in that venue. McLeod also contested the triple jump at both NCAA Championships this year, finishing sixth indoors and 11^th outdoors. This is the first time that McLeod has been a semifinalist for The Bowerman.

Neugebauer, who hails from Leinfeldene-Echterdingen, Germany, orchestrated a masterclass performance in the decathlon at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships. It was on his home track in Austin, Texas, where Neugebauer amassed 8836 points to obliterate the collegiate record, set a German national record and climb all the way to No. 8 in world history. A few weeks earlier, Neugebauer finished top-8 at the Big 12 Outdoor Championships in both the discus and long jump. To start the outdoor season, Neugebauer scored 8478 points in the decathlon at the Texas Relays in his debut for the eighth-best total in collegiate history. Under a roof, Neugebauer finished third in the heptathlon at the NCAA DI Indoor Championships. He is the fourth athlete in program history to be named a men’s semifinalist for The Bowerman.

Robinson, who hails from Brisbane, Australia, became the first athlete to complete the distance double at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships since Edward Cheserek in 2016. He opened the indoor season with a 13:11.53 clocking over 5000 meters at the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener that cemented his status as the fourth-fastest performer in collegiate history. Robinson is the first men’s semifinalist in program history from Stanford.

Rooks, who hails from Walla Walla, Washington, capped a strong season in the steeplechase with an NCAA title. Back in early May, Rooks became the second-fastest performer in collegiate history in the event with his 8:17.62 effort at the Sound Running Track Fest (Rooks is now No. 3 behind the legendary Henry Rono and eventual NCAA runner-up Duncan Hamilton). He is the first male athlete to be named a semifinalist for The Bowerman.

Finalists for The Bowerman will be announced on Tuesday, June 27.