Crazy Eight(s): Trying to Sort Out the 800m Field

I’m sure my Breaking Bad fans will get the “Crazy Eight” reference. Or you can just tell yourself it’s a reference to the card game. Whatever works really…let’s move on.

If there was ever a race I hated the most, it was definitely the 800m. It’s short enough for it to be a little under a sprint, and long enough to make your lungs completely depleted of oxygen. In brief, it’s a brutal event.

Well don’t tell that to the Georgetown Hoyas. The Georgetown Hoyas have five men already under 1:50. Yes, you read that right. FIVE men under 1:50. It also doesn’t hurt to mention that number six is at 1:50.37. I can’t necessarily remember a time that any team had depth like this especially this early. It’s hard not to think of the relay potential they have. It’s actually scary to think about. But I’m getting ahead of myself. We can discuss that later. It’ll be interesting to see what else Georgetown has in store for us leading up to the third of March (the deadline for national championship qualifying). I would like to see what they can do in the DMR. The six Hoyas are listed below.

Billy Ledder- 1:48.46

Joseph White- 1:48.71

Cole Williams- 1:49.00

Ryan Manahan- 1:49.17

Ahmed Bile- 1:49.98

Amos Bartelsmyer- 1:50.37

This isn’t just about Georgetown though. Penn State has a nice duo themselves in Brandon Kidder and Zavon Watkins. Kidder should be in the talks for a title but may have to consider team points and relay duties. As for Watkins, I watched him quite a bit throughout my high school days as he often raced my high school teammate Ned Willig, so I have a bit of a bias. Watkins did place seventh at NCAA’s last year so I’m confident he can be competitive in what is sure to be a stacked field.

It would be ignorant not to mention the star of the show Brandon McBride. McBride went undefeated all of 2014. Although, his streak is all but secure with the entire 800m field from last year’s outdoor championship returning. Rono of Arkansas and Edward Kemboi of Iowa State will most likely continue their push to beat out McBride. Kemboi and Rono make up some of the most consistent competitors in the NCAA. Outdoor silver and bronze medalists Ryan Schulle (Florida) and Keffri Neal (Kentucky) may step to the line this winter. Although Neal already has a solid win under his belt just this past weekend, he was basically nonexistent at indoor NCAA’s last year (unsure why). If anyone is going to take down McBride, I feel that it’s going to be Schulle who has put together some great races. Even with his third place at Rod McCravy this past weekend (behind Neal and McAsey), Schulle will be hungry to grab a title and make it interesting up front.

Thanks for reading! Please let me know if I made an error or maybe missed a major name. My background on the NCAA should continue to get better as time goes by. Mile preview up next!

Run on,

Garrett