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BYU Sports: How the Men’s Track team can win the NCAA Championship

By Adam Gibby

ATLANTA, GA - APRIL 05: A detail of giant NCAA logo is seen outside of the stadium on the practice day prior to the NCAA Men's Final Four at the Georgia Dome on April 5, 2013 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - APRIL 05: A detail of giant NCAA logo is seen outside of the stadium on the practice day prior to the NCAA Men's Final Four at the Georgia Dome on April 5, 2013 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Tony Feder/Getty Images)
Photo by Tony Feder/Getty Images) /

Men’s Sprints/Field Events

Historically, this is where the team has struggled. If the distance team was on pace to win or place in the top ten nationally at the NCAA Championships, the sprints brought the team back down. Although not as strong as the distance teams, if the sprinters are able to do what they have been doing all year, the Cougars could find themselves on the podium, perhaps even on top.

The decathlon is going to be key. Brian Matthews and Ben Barton are leading the Cougars to the best decathlon squad in the nation, however neither one of them are currently in the top 8 nationally. But with neither athlete likely to finish in the top eight in any individual event, they may find themselves in a weaker field. If they can pull off just five points combined in the decathlon, that score would be anywhere from likely 41-54. A 54 would give the Cougars a real shot at winning the national championship.

The only other hope for points in these events may be Cameron Bates in the javelin who is currently ranked No. 19 but with athletes not really having to strategize which events to compete in with throws, it would take an all-time best performance to even score a point.

Total Points: 41-56

A 56 would very possibly get an NCAA Championship for the team. Again track is really odd in that way in that nobody knows how many points each team will score in different events so there isn’t really any defense other than perhaps running another athlete in an odd race to keep a point from another team, which is rare.

But if the Cougars can take care of their end and score enough points, it could be a really special year for the team.

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