Red Raiders go after the T&F NC!!

RRTracklover · Mar 7, 2019

Indoor nationals finally arrives and as PrevostRaider has put it on a different thread, this meet is the Red Raiders to lose. It is both really cool and really scary to see the Red Raiders be the top-ranked team in the nation for virtually the entire season. Now, we get to see what the Red Raiders are really made of!

Indoor nationals has a very different feel than outdoors. This meet is only 2 days and the challenge to double up in multiple events is great. Tech will be very dependent on our athletes who are doubling or tripling up on events: Divine Oduduru (60, 200, 4x400 relay); Andrew Hudson (60, 200, 4x400 relay); Vincent Crisp (800, 4x400 relay); Odaine Lewis (LJ, TJ); and Jah-Nhai Perinchief (HJ, TJ).

In looking at the events, it is important to see when the event transpires -- almost all of the running events are Friday prelims and Saturday finals (only the 5K and the distance medley relay are the only running finals on Friday and Tech does not have an entry in either event). Here is what we as Red Raider fans need to watch for to see if Tech can pull off the NC:

FRIDAY

Tech needs to get everyone into the finals from the Friday prelims -- Divine and Andrew Hudson in the 60 AND 200; and both Vincent Crisp and Jonah Koech in the 800. I think we all know how dominant Divine looked at the Big 12. Andrew ran a fantastic prelim in the 200, but 3 days of running fever caught up with him on Saturday. Jonah looked terrific at the Big 12 meet in winning the 1000 yard run (a race not contested at nationals). VC did not look good getting 4th in the 600 yard run, but he has been running fever for 3-4 days and was far from being 100%. If all 4 get into the finals of each race, the fight is on.
Odaine Lewis and Charles Brown are ranked 4th and 6th in this event and both are capable of winning it all. Tech needs to get 7 points out of this event, BUT, if both Odaine and CB get rolling and we get 10 or more points out of the event, the NC looks that much closer.
Drew McMichael is ranked #10 in the vault, but he is vaulting better right now than anytime in his Tech career. If Drew picks up any points at all, it will be bonus points for the Red Raiders.
Axel Hubert will actually be the first Red Raider to compete at the championships -- competing in the first day of the heptathlon. BUT, because the hep is a 2 day event, he can't score any points until Saturday.
It will be important NOT to panic if Tech is well behind after day 1. The only place Tech can score on Day 1 is in the LJ and PV. If we are in the single digits after the first day, it is not panic time. If we are in the double digits after day 1, then things are going Tech's way!

SATURDAY

Jah-Nhai Perinchief will have a big day on Day 2 and it begins with the HJ at 1 p.m. The HJ has become a premier event for the NCAA. It could well take 7-4 or 7-5 to even place. Jah-Nhai is ranked #9, so if he can slip in for even 2-3 points, it is a big boost for Tech.
The men's heptathlon is scheduled to finish somewhere around 4 p.m. But, the hep is notoriously unpredictable in its timing -- it may finish at 4 or it may finish at 6 -- it is largely dependent on how long the heptathlon pole vault is contested. If Jah-Nhai has scored well in the HJ and if Axel Hubert has scored well in the hep, Tech could enter the running finals with a lot of momentum.
At 5 p.m., the TJ gets started with Jah-Nhai Perinchief (ranked #5) and Odaine Lewis (ranked #7) jumping. If they hold those positions, then Tech will score a solid 6 points. But, Jah-Nhai will be coming out of the HJ from earlier in the afternoon and may be really hyped up (if he did well in the HJ). I have a lot of confidence in Odaine -- the guy always goes big-time on the big stage. The 60 finals will be at the same time as the TJ and if Tech does well in the 60, expect to see Odaine get amped up. I could definitely see Tech scoring 10-12 points in this event. This event should finish just as they are hitting the 4x400 relay and it would be cool to see the triple jumpers put Tech in the running for the NC and then hand it off to the 4x400 relay to get the job done.
At 5:20, the 60 finals run and Divine and Andrew should do well, if they had good Friday prelim runs.
At 5:40, the 800 finals occur and Tech really needs VC and JK to be in the finals. I don't that anyone heads of the Aggie - Devin Dixon - this year. But if Tech can pick up 6-8 total points, we could be sittin' pretty.
At 6:00, the most important race in the meet for Tech occurs -- the 200, where Tech is ranked #1 and #2 in the country. If we go 1-2 and pick up 18 points, then Tech will be hitting on all cylinders!
At 6:55, the 4x400 will be run in 3 sections of 4 teams each -- no prelims and the seed times are based on each team's best times this year. Tech is ranked #8, so the Red Raiders will run in the 2nd section with Iowa, Baylor and LSU. The fast section has Houston, Florida (the other school that has a really good chance to win the NC), the Aggies and Western Kentucky (WHO?) Tech will have up to 3 athletes who would have already run on Saturday -- Divine, Andrew and VC. If any of these three are unable to go, then the subs are half-miler Sven Cepus and sprinter Derrius Rodgers. If it comes down to this race (and it very well could), then I expect to see Tyreek Mathis join Divine, Andrew and VC in trying to bring the championship to Tech!

Tech has a real chance to win this thing. Tech even has a little cushion -- 1-2 people could have a bad meet and Tech could still win it, but if 3-4 Tech athletes under-perform, then you could see Florida, LSU or even TAMU slip into the championship. There is NOT a lot of room for error. But, it will be very cool to watch the Red Raiders go for it!!

Raider96&99 · Mar 7, 2019