The New Standard
Great performances can come from any school
Freshman are putting up bigger and more impressive marks, and truthfully we are learning that great performances can come from any school.
The new standard has risen the standard.
I can’t stop thinking about the rising level of performances since COVID. New standards of what is good and great has changed immensely in our sport. What used to be really fast isn’t necessarily that fast anymore. A big jump (HJ, TJ, LJ) today is different than 5 years ago, and throws is similar for sure. Freshman are putting up bigger and more impressive marks, and truthfully we are learning that great performances can come from any school.
That really became evident when Coastal Carolina sensation Melissa Jefferson became America’s best (USA Champion in the 60m & 100m, 2022). Coastal what? Coastal who? A lot of people didn’t even know the school, and certainly didn’t expect the mid major school to produce one of America’s best short sprinters.
So far in the 2025 indoor season the fastest women’s 60m has come from a freshman at TCU (Mayberry, Indya FR-1 TCU 7.13 @ the Corky Classic). Goodness gracious!
Three things that stand out to me right now.
1. The 60’s are fast. Period.
2. Arkansas’s women’s group has changed the 400m (for the better), and they are already stacked amongst the top.
3. Hurdles. Both genders are off the charts.
In the men’s 60m dash, there’s just a new level of fast. If you are not ~6.50 or better, you’re not that fast. A 6.59 does not guarantee a spot at the NCAA Championships anymore…and it used too. Already, NCAA DI has 7 men under 6.59 with four at 6.55 and faster. There will be some 6.59s that don’t make the championship list again.
On the women’s side, there’s not another Julien Alfred, but we do have nine women at 7.25 and faster. And a freshman sitting at #1 and #4 respectfully on that list… Sheeesh… It took 7.22 to go to the big show last season…will it be even faster in 2025? It’s looking that way!
Arkansas’s 400m women’s squad made history last season. They did something we have never seen before. Indoors they dropped the top 4 times in the country and then swept a 1-2-3 finish at the Indoor NCAA Championships. Then the Razorback women dominated the outdoor championships by taking 1st through 4th (48.89, 49.13, 49.59, and 49.72). That’s never even almost been done. And it may never be done again. Regardless, they have set a new standard. And that standard is that 51 and 52 seconds is no longer that fast. If you want to be in the hunt, you better be at 50 seconds minimum, with a chance to go 49. If you’re not that, your fightin in the back! Standard raised.
The hurdles are fast. The depth of high-end hurdlers in the NCAA is mind boggling. Getting to the NCAA national meets certainly forces the athletes to be world class, and to win you simply have to be one of the world’s best. In 2018, breaking 8.10 would guarantee a woman a spot at the NCAA Championships. Last season that would put you on the bubble, and I predict it won’t guarantee anything this season. I also predict there will be several women breaking the 8.00 barrier. Not one, or two, or three…more like 5 or 6. Watch.
Going off memory the men’s 4x400s have already put down FAST times. Teams are preparing for a 4x400 showdown. It’s going to be crazy to see who beats who when it matters.
Side note on the BIG 10 Conference (which is more like the BIG20 conference). Some people might think that the “original” BIG10 conference schools have no chance at a championship trophy but I disagree. Teams like Wisconsin and Nebraska have major athletes in almost all event areas. Some former SEC schools can’t say the same. Regardless, the new arrangement in conferences is only going to create more twists and unexpected surprises.
The truth is, with TFRRS, World Athletics, and the internet in general people can SEE how fast athletes are running. And they know they have to do better than ever before to make it to the big meets. The sport is only progressing and that’s incredible to see. The playing field is wider—you don’t have to go to a "legacy” school to be a national champion anymore.
Next time on SIC Newsletter:
HURDLE TECH 101: