“Bullet Bob” Hayes Wins Lone Shot At NCAAs
Bob Hayes might have only appeared once at the NCAA Track & Field Outdoor Championships, but he certainly made that opportunity count 56 years ago.
Hayes, who competed for Florida A&M, toed the starting line of the 200 meters alongside seven men who had grandeur visions of taking down the World’s Fastest Man. That’s not a typo: Hayes was the only man in world history to that point to run 100 yards in 9.1 (He actually did so four times, with one mark ratified as the world record).
Fast running began in the semifinals with 20.3 wins from both Hayes and Edwin Roberts from North Carolina Central, who edged 1962 winner Harry Jerome from host Oregon. The times were wind-aided but second only under any conditions to the world record (20.2).
Hayes took immediate control of the final, running “the curve faster, probably, than it has ever been run as he went all out to open a 3-yard lead,” wrote Cordner Nelson, co-founder of Track & Field News. Despite the lead, Hayes nearly got caught as Roberts closed exceptionally well.
Hayes and Roberts were both credited with finishing times of 20.4w, but the former earned the victory by a whisker. It was the fifth time in the past six years that the final was too close to call.
“I made a mistake,” Hayes explained afterwards. “I lost two tenths looking at the wrong line. I dove at the tape and actually it wasn’t even a tape.”
Later that year, Hayes won a pair of gold medals at the Tokyo Olympics, cementing his place among historians as perhaps the best sprinter ever. He tied the world record of 10.06 in his 100-meter victory and then anchored the Americans to victory in the 4×100 relay with a scintillating hand-timed split between 8.5-8.9 seconds.
His future thereafter was in football, where he starred with the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys from 1965-1974 – winning a Super Bowl with them in 1971 – and then with the San Francisco 49ers in 1975. He caught 371 passes for 7,414 yards and 71 touchdowns and was finally inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2009.
Hayes’ prowess in football and track & field is unmatched, as the only athlete with both an Olympic gold medal and a Super Bowl ring, while he and Jim Thorpe are the only Pro Football Hall of Fame members with an Olympic gold medal.
The NCAA and collegiate track & field will mark a momentous milestone in the spring of 2021 -- the 100th anniversary of the NCAA Championships and with that, the NCAA Track & Field Championships. In June 1921, the University of Chicago hosted the first track & field championships in NCAA history.
This point can’t be emphasized enough: Not only was the event the first for NCAA track & field, but the first championships for any sport under the sponsorship of the NCAA.
To celebrate, over each of the next 365 days, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) will celebrate moments, student-athletes, and coaches that have made a century’s worth of championships special. From humble beginnings to important historical milestones to the modern-day, collegiate track & field has evolved with the American society.
The 2021 edition of the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships begin with preliminary round action on May 27-29 in Jacksonville, Fla., and College Station, Texas. The championships final site and culmination of the celebration is slated for June 9-12, 2021 at the newly rebuilt Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.
SIU’s Roggy Dominated The Javelin In 1978
Bob Roggy won the javelin title at the 1978 NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships by more than 20 feet. Roggy qualified first for the final with a MR heave of 89.30m (293‑0).
Makusha Made History In Bowerman Year Of 2011
Ngoni Makusha became just the fourth man in meet history to win individual titles in both the 100 and LJ. It was his 3rd career LJ crown and he set a CR in the 100 of 9.89.
George Mason’s Gage Shocked The NCAA LJ In 1988
Nena Gage won the long jump at the 1988 NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships in a shocking upset over Gail Devers.
Texas’ Thompson Marveled In NCAA Distance Events
Jerry Thompson won three career distance titles at the NCAA Outdoor T&F Championships. His first came in 1943. Then he won again in 1947 & 1948 after serving in World War II.
Grinnell’s Paulu Sprinted To NCAA History
Leonard Paulu was the first athlete to complete the 100-200 double in NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships history in 1922. That also made him the 1st to win back-to-back 100 titles, too.
Scott Won Back-To-Back NCAA Hammer Titles
Candice Scott won back-to-back hammer throw titles at the NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships in 2003 & 2004. Scott set a meet record of 69.77m (228-11) in that first year.
Drouin Soared To The Bowerman In 2013
Derek Drouin won two career HJ titles at the NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships. When Drouin won in 2013, he was only the fourth man to clear 2.34m (7-8) in meet history.
Watts Made Quick Work Of NCAA 400
Quincy Watts set a meet record in the 400 of 44.00 at the 1992 NCAA DI Outdoor Track & Field Championships. It lasted 25 years until 2017.
Iowa State’s Koll Rolled To 5K-10K Crowns
Lisa Koll won three career titles at the NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships in dominant fashion. Her average margin of victory in those 5K & 10K races was 37.73 seconds.
LSU’s Hardin Completed Unique 440-220H Double Twice
The nearly unheard of 440-220H double was so nice that Glenn Hardin did it twice! Hardin became the first to do so in meet history in 1933 and then swept them again in 1934.