The Bowerman: 2025 Men’s Mid-Indoor Watch List
NEW ORLEANS – The Bowerman is still up for grabs!
No matter what you hear to the contrary, collegiate track & field’s highest individual honor is bestowed in December at the annual USTFCCCA Convention, not in early February. There is a lot of jumping, running and throwing to do between now and the end of the outdoor season.
A record-breaking 22 athletes received votes for the Men’s Mid-Indoor Watch List, but only ten can land on the prestigious chart at a time. Here are those ten athletes: Mykolas Alekna of California, Johnny Brackins Jr. of Southern California, Trey Knight of CSUN, Wanya McCoy of Florida, Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan of Ole Miss, Habtom Samuel of New Mexico, Ethan Strand of North Carolina, Ja’Kobe Tharp of Auburn, Sam Whitmarsh of Texas A&M and Parker Wolfe of North Carolina.
The Bowerman Men’s Watch List
2025 Update #1 — February 6
| Year | Team | Events | Hometown | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mykolas Alekna | RS JR | California | Discus | Vilnius, Lithuania |
| Johnny Brackins, Jr. | SR | Southern California | Hurdles/Jumps | Kansas City, Mo. |
| Trey Knight | SR | CSUN | Throws | Ridgefield, Wash. |
| Wanya McCoy | SR | Florida | Sprints | Berry Island, Bahamas |
| Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan | JR | Ole Miss | Throws | Woonsocket, R.I. |
| Habtom Samuel | SO | New Mexico | Distance | Keren, Eritrea |
| Ethan Strand | SR | North Carolina | Mid-Distance/Distance | Vestavia, Ala. |
| Ja’Kobe Tharp | SO | Auburn | Hurdles | Murfreesboro, Tenn. |
| Sam Whitmarsh | SR | Texas A&M | Mid-Distance | Lake Jackson, Texas |
| Parker Wolfe | SR | North Carolina | Distance | Denver, Colo. |
ALSO RECEIVING VOTES: Favour Ashe, Oregon (Sprints); Graham Blanks*, Harvard (Distance); Nathaniel Ezekiel, Baylor (Sprints/Hurdles); Eli Kosiba, Grand Valley State (Jumps); Abdullahi Hassan, Mississippi State (Mid-Distance); Chinecherem Nnamdi, Baylor (Javelin); Samuel Ogazi, Alabama (Sprints); Tarsis Orogot, Alabama (Sprints); Jonathan Seremes, Missouri (Jumps); Aleksandr Solovev, Texas A&M (Pole Vault); JC Stevenson, Southern California (Sprints/Jumps); Keyshawn Strachan, Nebraska (Javelin)
NEXT WATCH LIST: Thursday, March 6
If there is a clubhouse leader through the first two months of the year, it’s Strand. The North Carolina star, who hails from Vestavia, Alabama, nuked his second collegiate record of the season this past weekend at the John Thomas Terrier Classic. Strand clocked a mile PR 3:48.32 to demolish Cooper Teare’s four-year-old standard and become the third fastest man in world history to ever run the distance indoors behind Yomif Kejelcha and Yared Nuguse. Then nearly two months ago to the day, Strand obliterated the 3000-meter CR with his PR 7:30.15 on the same track in Boston with teammate Wolfe hot on his heels at 7:30.23. It is believed that Strand is the first male athlete in collegiate history to hold CRs in both the mile and 3000 at the same time.
Strand is one of five collegiate leaders on the Mid-Indoor Watch List: Brackins Jr., Knight, McCoy and Robinson-O’Hagan are the others. Of those, only Knight etched his name on the all-time list with his collegiate-leading mark when he launched the weight 24.87m (81-7¼) at the Nevada Invitational & Multi. The CSUN standout, who hails from Ridgefield, Washington, threw the weight farther than anybody in collegiate history not named Michael Lihrman and Kibwe Johnson. Brackins, a Southern California standout who hails from Kansas City, Missouri, tops the seasonal chart in the 60-meter hurdles at 7.49 from his run at the Spokane Sports Showcase in mid-January. McCoy, a Florida standout who hails from Berry Island, Bahamas, took over the national lead in the 200 meters with his 20.45 effort at the Razorback Invitational. Robinson-O’Hagan, an Ole Miss standout who hails from Woonsocket, Rhode Island, cemented his spot atop the shot list with a 21.02m (68-11¾) bomb at the Razorback Invitational and also ranks fourth in the weight throw with his PR 23.99m (78-8½).
Samuel made quick work of 5000 meters this past weekend at the John Thomas Terrier Classic. He traversed 25 laps in 13:04.92 to become the fourth fastest man in collegiate history. Just one week earlier, the New Mexico standout who hails from Keren, Eritrea, registered his second career sub-4 minute mile at altitude, going 3:59.59 at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Invitational.
Both Tharp and Whitmarsh recently opened their seasons. The former, an Auburn standout who hails from Basking Ridge, New Jersey, notched a 60H PR of 7.60, while the latter, a Texas A&M standout who hails from Lake Jackson, Texas, went PR 1:16.90 over 600 meters.
Alekna has yet to compete, but you better believe the world – and The Bowerman Watch List Committee – will be watching. The California standout, who hails from Vilinius, Lithuania, shattered the longest standing world record on the books last year with his otherworldly discus throw of 74.35m (243-11) at the Oklahoma Throws Series World Invitational. Remember that Alekna still holds the collegiate record from his 71.00m (232-11) effort in 2023. This is Alekna’s 17th career appearance on the Watch List, making him the seventh most voted upon male athlete in award history.
Twelve other athletes received votes from The Bowerman Watch List Committee, but not enough to land on this prestigious index: Hassan Abdullahi of Mississippi State, Favour Ashe of Oregon, Graham Blanks of Harvard, Nathaniel Ezekiel of Baylor, Eli Kosiba of Grand Valley State, Samuel Orgazi of Alabama, Tarsis Orogot of Alabama, Chinecherem Prosper Nnamdi of Baylor, Jonathan Seremes of Missouri, Aleksandr Solovev of Texas A&M, JC Stevenson of Southern California and Keyshawn Strachan of Nebraska.
The next Men’s Watch List will be released on Thursday, March 6.
