This should be a terrific meet. Only 7 teams entered - TTU, TAMU, Arizona State, Georgia, TCU, UTA and UTSA. The meet WILL be scored. Each team can enter as many as 4 athletes in each event and can enter more with approval from the meet director, but only 4 can score. Each school can enter 2 4x400 relays, but only the top relay can score. Georgia is very strong this year - ranked #3 in the nation for the women and #8 for the men. TAMU is ranked #11 on the men's side and #35 on the women's side. Tech is ranked #12 for the men and #64 for the women (all rankings are the preseason rankings and do not include last week's performances). Arizona State is ranked #65 on the men's side and #56 on the women's. TCU is really down this year (this should excite all the Horny Toad haters on this board) - ranked #100 on the men's side and unranked on the women's side. Both UTA and UTSA has decent teams.
Tech is entering a LOT of people - 34 men and 34 women - about as large a contingent as you will ever see Tech enter in a non-home indoor meet. In many of the events, Tech has entered the maximum 4 entries and 4 events the Red Raiders have more than the max (5 entered in the men's 800 and women's 200, plus 6 entered in the women's 60 and men's 60 hurdles). There are so many Tech entries, it is more interesting to see who is NOT entered:
WOMEN - Tech has not entered most of the freshman throwers (Taylor Carrington, Happiness Okeke, Tianna Rodgers), but that is common with freshman throwers, who have to learn how to throw the college weight throw. Most of the freshman distance runners also are not entered, but most of them are non-scholarship - the scholarship kids not entered are Denae Chapman and Bret Leigh Nance. The upperclass distance runner I am surprised to see not running is Hattie Schunk.
Far more surprising is that superstar jumper Brianna Johnson is not jumping for the 2nd week in a row to kick of the season. Is she injured? Or, might she be redshirting indoors this year altogether? Also surprised to see Raygen Smith not running again this week - she might be another redshirt prospect, since she ran indoors as a freshman last year. Also freshman hurdler Brooke Merrick appears to be a redshirt prospect, as she is not entered.
MEN - like the women, most of the freshmen distance runners are not competing (although freshmen Shea Whatley in the 3K and Matt Munoz in the mile ARE running). For the 2nd straight week, freshman sprinter Sebastian Hartless (from New Deal) is not running - I have to think he is a redshirt prospect. For the 2nd week in a row, transfer Duke Kicinski is not entered, but he is much better at the outdoor events (D-II national champ in the discus for WTAM last year) and may be sitting out indoors working on his outdoor events. Two key people who DID run last week are not entered at all this week - Michael Samuels (multis/jumps) and Darien Tennon (hurdles).
Most surprising to me is that JW Smith is not running again this week in the hurdles or in the 400. He was the outdoor Big 12 runnerup in the 400 hurdles and is a senior this year. Maybe he is slightly injured. And, the 2 Red Raider javelin throwers on the roster are not throwing, but I don't think they have ever come up with way to throw the javelin indoors - HA!! We will have to wait until March to see them in competition, plus hopefully see the midterm addition Werner Brouwer from South Africa, who should be enrolled in school by now.
I am hoping to see a bunch of terrific performances this weekend at College Station for the Red Raiders. Tech will literally have serious contenders for points in every single event in the meet (except the men's shot put, where we have no entries). I will be watching the results tomorrow and will highlight the good stuff as the day progresses.
Tech is entering a LOT of people - 34 men and 34 women - about as large a contingent as you will ever see Tech enter in a non-home indoor meet. In many of the events, Tech has entered the maximum 4 entries and 4 events the Red Raiders have more than the max (5 entered in the men's 800 and women's 200, plus 6 entered in the women's 60 and men's 60 hurdles). There are so many Tech entries, it is more interesting to see who is NOT entered:
WOMEN - Tech has not entered most of the freshman throwers (Taylor Carrington, Happiness Okeke, Tianna Rodgers), but that is common with freshman throwers, who have to learn how to throw the college weight throw. Most of the freshman distance runners also are not entered, but most of them are non-scholarship - the scholarship kids not entered are Denae Chapman and Bret Leigh Nance. The upperclass distance runner I am surprised to see not running is Hattie Schunk.
Far more surprising is that superstar jumper Brianna Johnson is not jumping for the 2nd week in a row to kick of the season. Is she injured? Or, might she be redshirting indoors this year altogether? Also surprised to see Raygen Smith not running again this week - she might be another redshirt prospect, since she ran indoors as a freshman last year. Also freshman hurdler Brooke Merrick appears to be a redshirt prospect, as she is not entered.
MEN - like the women, most of the freshmen distance runners are not competing (although freshmen Shea Whatley in the 3K and Matt Munoz in the mile ARE running). For the 2nd straight week, freshman sprinter Sebastian Hartless (from New Deal) is not running - I have to think he is a redshirt prospect. For the 2nd week in a row, transfer Duke Kicinski is not entered, but he is much better at the outdoor events (D-II national champ in the discus for WTAM last year) and may be sitting out indoors working on his outdoor events. Two key people who DID run last week are not entered at all this week - Michael Samuels (multis/jumps) and Darien Tennon (hurdles).
Most surprising to me is that JW Smith is not running again this week in the hurdles or in the 400. He was the outdoor Big 12 runnerup in the 400 hurdles and is a senior this year. Maybe he is slightly injured. And, the 2 Red Raider javelin throwers on the roster are not throwing, but I don't think they have ever come up with way to throw the javelin indoors - HA!! We will have to wait until March to see them in competition, plus hopefully see the midterm addition Werner Brouwer from South Africa, who should be enrolled in school by now.
I am hoping to see a bunch of terrific performances this weekend at College Station for the Red Raiders. Tech will literally have serious contenders for points in every single event in the meet (except the men's shot put, where we have no entries). I will be watching the results tomorrow and will highlight the good stuff as the day progresses.
