No. 5 Razorbacks Ready For National Clash
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The No. 5 Arkansas men’s track and field team returns to the Randal Tyson Track Center this weekend as they host the 2017 Razorback Invitational. The two-day meeting will appear as a prelude to the impending championship season, providing fans with a glimpse of what is to come at the Southeastern Conference and NCAA indoor competitions.
The only regular season collegiate track and field meet to be broadcast on live television in the history of the sport, the Razorback Invitational will feature 10 SEC powers including No. 1 Florida, No. 3 LSU, No. 4 Georgia, No. 14 Texas A&M, No. 15 Tennessee, No. 19 South Carolina, Auburn, Mississippi State, Missouri and Ole Miss. Additionally, 10th-ranked Southern California, 17th-ranked Oklahoma State and Wake Forest will also be making the trip this weekend to Northwest Arkansas.
Date/Time: Friday, Jan. 27, 6 p.m. CT | Saturday, Jan. 28, 12 p.m. CT
Venue: Randal Tyson Track Center
Tickets: $5 for Adults, 17 and under free
Important Links: Meet Schedule / Entries / Live Results / WatchESPN
Events to Watch
• Every Sprints Race: Yes, every single one. The 60-meter dash will see Great Britain Olympian Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake (LSU) line-up against All-American sprint specialist Kenzo Cotton (Arkansas) who placed seventh at the national meet in 2016. Cotton will also face off against U.S. Olympian Christian Coleman (Tennessee) in the 200 as the duo who finished third and first, respectively, last year at NCAAs. Not to be forgotten, the 400 invitational promises just as much excitement in a field that includes 2016 SEC champion Kahmari Montgomery (Missouri), NCAA indoor bronze medalist Michael Cherry (LSU), current world leader Mylik Kerley (Texas A&M) and two young and upcoming sophomores in Kunle Fasasi (Florida) and Obi Igbokwe (Arkansas).
• 800: First team indoor All-Americans during their freshman year, Robert Heppenstall (Wake Forest) and Carlton Orange (Arkansas) will contend against Puerto Rican Olympian Andres Arroyo in the invitational section of the four lap race.
• Mile: Cross country All-American Jack Bruce proved he has speed to go along with his endurance, running the third-fastest time this season in the event. Bruce will race his second mile of the year in field which includes 1,500 All-American Robert Domanic (Ole Miss).
• Horizontal Jumps: Jamaican Olympian Clive Pullen (Arkansas) looks to leap toward a new triple jump PR matched up against dual-threat jumper KeAndre Bates (Florida) who placed inside the NCAA outdoor top-three in both the long and triple jumps last season. Bates will also see two top Razorback jumpers in the long jump in Oregon transfer Travonn White and Danish prodigy Andreas Trajkovski.
Additional Promising Match-Ups
The 3,000 invitational will see 2016 NCAA outdoor steeplechase runner-up Frankline Tonui open his 2017 indoor campaign, contesting the event with teammate Andrew Ronoh and conference rival MJ Erb (Ole Miss).
Both the distance medley and 1,600 relays will also be events to watch, with the latter boasting the current NCAA No. 1 in Texas A&M.
Arkansas will open up competition at 11:30 a.m. CT on Friday with the men’s heptathlon 60-meter dash. Fans can join the conversation on social media by using the hashtag #RazorbackInvite.
Saturday’s live broadcast on the SEC network will open up with the men’s 400 invitational at 1:02 p.m. CT.
Tickets are available by contacting the Razorback Athletics Ticket Center via phone at 800-982-4647 or in person at the Razorback Athletics Ticket Center located at 1295 S. Razorback Road, just east of Baum Stadium.
For more information on Arkansas track and field including in-meet updates, follow @RazorbackTF on Twitter.
