Excitement in the Air: Gators Back at Practice, Welcoming Newcomers, Focused on Improvement
Friday, September 25, 2015 | Track and Field
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The 2016 season may still be a little over three months away, but there's no shortage of excitement surrounding the Florida track and field program right now.
Nearing their fourth week of fall training, the horror stories of punishing, arduous workouts—which returning athletes gladly exaggerate when recounting past practices for the newcomers—have been dispelled. Routines are being established. These aren't casual training sessions either.
Thoughtfully dissecting every drill from the bleachers of James G. Pressly Stadium, Florida head coach Mike Holloway, entering his 21st season in Gainesville, provides a profound presence, ensuring everything the Gators do is with purpose and intensity.
“The big thing I've seen is there's an excitement, there's a focus, there's a dedication that's greatly needed if we are going to be successful this year,” says Holloway.
If this group does indeed maintain their current level of devotion and hunger, these Gators have a chance to be special.
The men and women each return 10 USTFCCCA All-Americans, with a combined 101 honors between them. A total of eight national champions are back, including the entire women's 4x100-meter relay and 4x400-meter relay teams that took home titles at the 2015 NCAA Outdoor Championships. At the conference level, Florida returns 13 SEC Champions that boast a total of 19 individual league titles. The last two USTFCCCA South Region Indoor Athletes of the Year, Najee Glass and Arman Hall, are back as well.
Some of those returnees built on their collegiate success with strong showings in national and international competition this past summer.
Rising sophomore KeAndre Bates, a two-time All-American as a true freshman, was the USATF Junior Outdoor Championships gold medalist and Pan American Junior Championships bronze medalist in the long jump. Fellow rising sophomore Lloydricia Cameron took silver in the discus and bronze in the shot put at the USATF Junior Outdoor Championships. A third rising sophomore, Darrielle McQueen, also a two-time All-American in her first year as a Gator, recorded top-five finishes in both horizontal jumps at the American championships.
Two of the summer's top performances came from rising senior sprinter Kyra Jefferson. The Detroit native broke the 200 meters record (22.50) and helped the United States break the 4x100 relay record (42.24) at the NACAC Senior Championships, collecting two gold medals.
But what's really piqued Holloway's enthusiasm thus far are the potential contributions the newcomers can provide.
“We have a lot of high-quality veterans returning from last year,” says Holloway, before noting the strength of the newest Gators. “Ryan Clark, Kunle Fasasi, Anders Eriksson … we are very excited about that trio. (We're) also very excited about Sharrika Barnett and some of the female distance runners we brought in. We have a quality transfer in Taylor Sharpe.”
“What I've seen from all the newcomers in all the event areas … I feel like everybody that's come in is capable of contributing right away.”
As far as who Holloway expects to lead all the fresh faces, there's a program mantra he leans on.
“Anyone that puts a Gator uniform on is expected to be a leader, someone that we can count on,” Holloway said. “But when you look at the men's side, you have to look at guys like Arman Hall, Najee Glass; I'm really expecting TJ Holmes, Eric Futch and Yanick Hart to step up this year; Ryan Schnulle … and his partner in crime, Andres Arroyo. I'm also looking forward to Eddie Garcia and Jimmy Clark continuing to develop.
“On the women's side, you take our core group of young ladies that won the two relays last year. They have to step up and be leaders. It's time for them to make this their team … and lead in a way that can lead us to be champions.”
HEARING OUT HOLLOWAY
Below are additional quotes from GatorZone.com's recent interview with Holloway.
On what he's looking for over the next month of fall training: “I just want to see constant progression, I want to see focus. Sometimes we get in that mindset that, 'Well, it's no big deal, it's only September or October. I've got until March to be ready.' Then you wake up in January and realize you're not even close to being ready. (It's about) understanding it's a process, and you have to be committed to it daily in order to be great. You can't just wake up the day before the first track meet and decide to get serious. The work that we do now is what produces championship results in the spring.”
On why the bulk of this year's newcomers are distance runners: “When we've been successful, especially on the women's side, we've been strong in the distances and field events. For us to be successful at the conference and national levels as we have in the past, we have to keep those groups going. That was the big charge in getting the distance runners here.”
On watching several former Gators compete and collect three golds and a silver medal at the IAAF World Championships in August: “The big thing for me being there was just seeing the alumni, seeing the success they have, seeing how they talk and converse, and the comradery they share. It wasn't just about winning medals. They were supporting each other. They were family.
“That's the big thing for me: seeing they still have friendships beyond when they were here. There's a lot of them that were from different eras. Christian Taylor and Novlene Williams-Mills, who weren't even here at the same time, they have a great relationship. Watching them laugh and joke together, watching Kerron (Clement) interact with Novlene. It was great stuff.”
Note: The returning national champion women's relay teams are as follows: 4x100 – Destinee Gause, Kyra Jefferson, Robin Reynolds, Shayla Sanders; 4x400 – Claudia Francis, Gause, Jefferson, Reynolds.
