Bates, Holloway Make The Bowerman Watch List Again

Holloway is one of two freshmen on The Bowerman Watch List.

Bates, Holloway Make The Bowerman Watch List Again

Thursday, April 20, 2017 | Track and Field

Holloway once again did something only previously achieved by two-time Olympic gold medalist Ashton Eaton, and Bates is proving his national recognition indoors was no one-off

By: Zach Dirlam

NEW ORLEANS – Florida jumper KeAndre Bates as well as hurdler, jumper, and sprinter Grant Holloway were both named to the latest edition of The Bowerman Men's Watch List, the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association announced Thursday (April 20).

This is Holloway's fourth consecutive appearance, and Bates' third in a row.

The Bowerman Award is presented annually to the most outstanding male and female collegiate track and field athletes in the nation. It is the sport's equivalent of the Heisman Trophy. A list of 10 semifinalists will be revealed after June's NCAA Outdoor Championships, followed by the announcement of three finalists roughly two weeks later.

Here is a look at what kept Bates on the list for a third consecutive release:

Only Division I man ranked in the top 10 of both horizontal jumps this outdoor season
No. 2-ranked long jumper in the country (8.13 meters / 26 feet, 8.25 inches; wind-aided)
Tied for No. 3 nationally in triple jump (16.31 meters / 53 feet, 6.25 inches)

No. 2?? long jump mark in ???? (8.13m)

3??rd SEC long jumper in last 5 seasons over 8.05m before NCAA Prelims@ijump_524 = @SEC Field AOTW pic.twitter.com/dbkUIQMzpQ
— Gators T & F and XC (@GatorsTF) April 18, 2017

Indoor Season

USTFCCCA National Indoor Field Athlete of the Year
SEC Indoor Field Athlete of the Year
Fourth Division I man since 2006 to log top-2 finishes in both horizontal jumps at NCAA Indoor Championships
NCAA long jump champion—third title in school history (Marquis Dendy, 2013, 2015)
11th man in history to sweep indoor SEC long jump and triple jump titles
Owned four of the 10 farthest long jump marks for the indoor season
Boasted three of the 10 farthest triple jump marks for the indoor season
Posted No. 4-ranked triple jump mark on UF's All-Time Indoor Top 10 (16.81 meters / 55 feet, 2 inches)
Tied No. 4-ranked long jump mark on UF's All-Time Indoor Top 10 (8.04 meters / 26 feet, 4.5 inches)

If you heard a loud roar across campus, this was why...

What. A. Finish. #FLRelays17 #GoGators pic.twitter.com/qxshFeIchU
— Gators T & F and XC (@GatorsTF) April 2, 2017

And here is a look at what allowed Holloway, the SEC Indoor Freshman Runner of the Year, to stay on the list a fourth straight time:

Joined two-time Olympic decathlon gold medalist Ashton Eaton as the only other collegian since 2002 to long jump over 8.00 meters and break 13.55 seconds in the 110 hurdles—and he posted both within an hour
Ran a 44.1-second split on UF's No. 2-ranked 4x400 relay team (3:03.08)
Ran on the No. 3-ranked 4x100 relay team in the nation (38.73)
Ranks third nationally in both the long jump (8.04 meters / 26 feet, 4.5 inches) and 110 hurdles (13.51w)
Fifth Division I freshman since 2002 to wind-legally long jump over 8.00 meters
Ninth Division I freshman since 2002 to break 13.53 seconds

Indoor Season

Second freshman since 1999 to win the NCAA 60-meter hurdles title—Omar McLeod, Arkansas (2014)
- Holloway was one of two Division I freshmen to win an individual national title this year
Won the second 60 hurdles national title in school history—Eddie Lovett (2013)
Ran a 44.81-second split, the fastest by any man in the competition, for UF's NCAA runner-up 4x400 relay—which ran the 11th-fastest time in collegiate history and No. 4-ranked time in school history (3:03.52)
Second freshman since 2000 to win the SEC 60 hurdles title—Lovett (2011)
First man since at least 2001 to score in both the 60 hurdles and long jump (fifth place) at SEC Indoors
Ran a sub-45-second split for UF's SEC runner-up 4x400 relay—which clocked the second-fastest oversized track time in collegiate history and broke the school record (3:02.73)
Joined three-time world indoor heptathlon champion Ashton Eaton as the only other man in the world since 1999 to indoor long jump 8.05-plus meters and break 7.75 seconds in the 60 hurdles
Tied the second-fastest time by a Division I true freshman since 2002 in the 60 hurdles (7.58)
- Only Arkansas' Omar McLeod, the collegiate record holder, ran faster as a true freshman (7.57 and 7.58 at 2014 NCAA Indoors)
Sixth Division I true freshman (and fourth Gators freshman) since 2002 to indoor long jump farther than 8.00 meters—boasts the fourth-longest jump in that group

GATORS' THE BOWERMAN MEN'S WATCH LIST HISTORICAL NOTES

13 Gators have appeared on The Bowerman Watch List since its inception in 2010, more than any program in the nation
- Only Texas A&M (10) can claim more than six
Florida's 85 total watch list appearances lead all programs, and are 31 more appearances than the next-closest program, Oregon, which is the only other program with more than 39 total appearances

The Gators' distance corps continues their outdoor season at this weekend's Virginia Challenge (April 21-22), while the rest of the squad resumes their campaign when UF hosts the Tom Jones Memorial next Friday (April 28).

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