Florida's Omar Craddock Named to 2013 The Bowerman Preseason Watch List
Wednesday, January 9, 2013 | Track and Field
Florida's Omar Craddock (Killeen, Texas) has been named to The Bowerman Watch List for 2013. The two-time NCAA and SEC Champion in the triple jump, Craddock had a phenomenal junior campaign which saw him finish just short of making the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team, finishing fourth at the Olympic Trials in Eugene, Ore.
On the national stage, Craddock captured both the indoor and outdoor national titles, leaping an indoors-best 16.75m/54-11.50 (third all-time in UF history) in Nampa, Idaho at the 2012 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships. The mark made him the top collegian and the fifth-best American of 2012. Outdoors, the junior bound to an all-conditions best of 16.92m/55-6.25 in Des Moines at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Both individual titles contributed to the Gators' sweep of the 2012 NCAA Indoor and Outdoor team titles.
Craddock captured both the indoor and outdoor triple jump titles at the SEC Championships, jumping 16.44m/53-11.25 in Lexington, Ky. at SEC Indoors and 16.68m/54-8.75 at SEC Outdoors in Baton Rouge, La. The SEC is well-represented on the list, as Auburn's senior sprinter Harry Adams joins Craddock on the watch list and sophomore pole vaulter Andrew Irwin from Arkansas is also receiving mention.
Craddock joins former Gator NCAA Champions and 2012 Olympians Will Claye, Jeff Demps, Tony McQuay and Christian Taylor as preseason selections to The Bowerman Watch List. Claye (2011), Demps (2010) and Taylor (2010) were semifinalists for the award and McQuay (2012) and Taylor (2011) were finalists. The Gators continue to lead the nation in multiple Bowerman semifinalist appearances with five. The SEC leads the all-time semifinalist appearances list with nine.
The No. 2 Florida men and No. 5 Florida women open the 2013 indoor season at the Crimson Tide Indoor Opener in Birmingham, Ala. on January 12th before returning home to host the Gator Invite on January 17th.
For all of the latest information on Florida track and field, please log on to www.GatorZone.com/trackfield or, for up-to-the-minute updates, follow Florida track and field on Twitter at @GZTrackField or www.twitter.com/GZTrackField. You can also find the Gators on Facebook.
| 2013 THE BOWERMAN MEN'S WATCH LIST | |||
| NAME | EVENT | YEAR | SCHOOL |
| Harry Adams | Sprints | SR | Auburn |
| Curtis Beach | Multis | RS JR | Duke |
| Jordan Clarke | Throws | RS SR | Arizona State |
| Omar Craddock | Jumps | SR | Florida |
| Derek Drouin | Hurdles/High Jump | RS JR | Indiana |
| Tim Glover | Throws | SR | Illinois State |
| Kennedy Kithuka | Distance | JR | Texas Tech |
| Erik Kynard | Jumps | SR | Kansas State |
| Lawi Lalang | Distance | JR | Arizona |
| Alexander Ziegler | Throws | SR | Virginia Tech |
| ALSO RECEIVING MENTION | |||
| NAME | EVENT | YEAR | SCHOOL |
| Andrew Bayer | Distance | RS JR | Indiana |
| Mike Berry | Sprints | JR | Oregon |
| Diego Estrada | Distance | JR | Northern Arizona |
| Andrew Irwin | Pole Vault | SO | Arkansas |
| Jack Whitt | Pole Vault | SR | Oral Roberts |
| Chad Wright | Throws | JR | Nebraska |
ABOUT THE BOWERMAN
The Bowerman, which debuted in 2009, is presented annually by the USTFCCCA to the most outstanding male and female collegiate track & field athletes in the nation.
Southern Utah's Cam Levins and LSU's Kimberlyn Duncan are the reigning winners of The Bowerman, which is named for legendary Oregon track & field and cross country coach Bill Bowerman.
Past winners include Olympic gold medalist and decathlon world-record holder Ashton Eaton (2010), 10,000-meter Olympic silver medalist Galen Rupp (2009), and 2011 IAAF World Champion at 1500 meters, Jenny Simpson (2009).
Bowerman served the sport of track and field in numerous ways. His leadership in the USTFCCCA's predecessor organization, the National Collegiate Track Coaches Association, and his contributions to NCAA track and field and the running community as a whole are among his many lasting legacies.
For more information on The Bowerman, the award, the trophy and Bill Bowerman himself, visit TheBowerman.org.
ABOUT THE USTFCCCA
The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) is a non-profit professional organization representing cross country and track & field coaches of all levels. The organization represents over 8,000 coaching members encompassing 94% of all NCAA track & field programs (DI, DII, and DIII) and includes members representing the NAIA as well as a number of state high school coaches associations. The USTFCCCA serves as an advocate for cross country and track & field coaches, providing a leadership structure to assist the needs of a diverse membership, serving as a lobbyist for coaches' interests, and working as a liaison between the various stakeholders in the sports of cross country and track & field.
