The battle for the NCAA Division I outdoor track & field title looks like it will be as close as the recent indoor championship; only a point separated LSU and TCU at Fayetteville, and those teams open the outdoor season tied at No. 1 in the first Trackwire 25 poll for men.
TCU, which appeared to have its first NCAA indoor title well in hand before a dropped baton in the meet's final event, opens its outdoor season Sat., March 24 in Waco at the Baylor Early Bird Invitational.
"I think it's time to compete," said Stratton. "Outdoor track is a separate entity. This is a fresh start for us. It's time to move on and put the indoor season behind us.
"The Baylor meet is the first opportunity to qualify for the nationals and an opportunity to get better as we prepare for the conference meet," continued Stratton. "Weather is always a factor in the early part of the outdoor season. Hopefully it will be a good day Saturday in Waco."
The Frogs are expected to once again be very strong in the sprints and in the relay events. The outdoor season adds, among other events, the 4x100 meter relay, traditionally a TCU stronghold. Three of the four runners, Lindel Frater, Darvis Patton and Kim Collins, return from last year's quartet that produced several of the nation's fastest times. All three qualified for the finals of the 60-meter dash during at the 2001 NCAA Indoor Meet. Collins is the defending indoor champion at 60 and 200 meters.
Other ranked WAC schools include SMU in sixth with 32 points and UTEP in 11th with 25 points. In Fayetteville, SMU placed sixth, while UTEP tied for 44th.
On the womens side, SMU garned the highest ranking in the conference. The Mustangs are tied for 15th with Cal, a point ahead of UTEP, who is tied with Indiana for 17th with 15 points.
Top 11 Trackwire 25 for Men Poll:
1. TCU 46
LSU 46
3. Arkansas 38
Tennessee 38
5. Auburn 35
6. SMU 32
7. Stanford 30
8. USC 28
Florida 28
Baylor 28
11. UTEP 25
Top 10 Trackwire 25 for Women Poll:
1. UCLA 78
2. USC 70
3. Arkansas 43
4. Arizona 40
South Carolina 40
6. BYU 39
7. Texas 25
8. LSU 24
9. Clemson 23
Colorado 23
15. SMU 16
17. UTEP 15