Tyson Invitational features 20 teams, collection of Olympians among pro entries

FAYETTEVILLE – This year’s installment of the Tyson Invitational features a field of 20 teams, 10 of which are currently ranked among the top 25, along with an assortment of professional athletes, including a crew of Arkansas alums, competing in Randal Tyson Track Center on Friday and Saturday.

Arkansas, ranked No. 12 in this week’s USTFCCCA national rating index, will also have a group of distance runners race at the Husky Classic hosted by the University of Washington on Friday.

Masks are REQUIRED upon entry for ages 12+ as well as inside indoor areas where six feet of social distancing is not possible. Additional fan information is available here: Fan Information at Randal Tyson Track Center

The first 100 students and kids each day of the meet will receive a Razorback track and field arm sleeve. Tickets are $5 for adults, and only available at the ticket office, while kids 18 and younger are free.

A live stream is available through SEC Network + on Friday (3:55 pm): es.pn/3oB8qjv and Saturday (12:45 pm): es.pn/3B6ZOGk. Live results are also available: https://results.flashresults.com/2022_02-11_TysonInvite/index.htm

“On a lot of different levels this meet is important,” stated Arkansas men’s head coach Chris Bucknam. “At the top of the list are the elite athletes and qualifying times as they try to get into the field of 16 for the NCAA Championships. This is not our last chance, but it’s a big chance for us to get into those top 16 fields.

“There will also be great competition among our younger kids just trying to make our conference championship team. We can only bring 27 athletes to Texas A&M for the SEC Championships, and we have a team of 50 guys. That’s why this weekend is really important on a lot of different levels. It’s a huge meet for us.”

In addition to the Razorbacks, nine other teams in the men’s field are ranked among the top 25 while Barton County is No. 6 among the junior college rankings. The ranked schools also include No. 7 Princeton, No. 8 Iowa, No. 9 Florida, No. 10 Tennessee, No. 11 Nebraska, No. 14 Alabama, No. 19 Arizona State, No. 20 Florida State, and No. 23 Missouri.

The field of teams also includes Academy of Art, Drake, Duke, Kansas State, LSU, Minnesota, North Carolina State, Oklahoma City, Ole Miss, and Tennessee.

“Across the board it’s a phenomenal track meet,” noted Bucknam. “We’re bringing a few of our athletes out to Washington to run a couple distance races. We’ll see how we match up, that’s the name of the game at this stage of the season. We’ll be looking at team implications, trying to get an idea of what these other conference schools have and just focus on our individual development as well.”

The strong collection of collegiate talent includes Florida State’s Trey Cunningham (7.47 60m hurdles) and Florida’s 4×400 (3:03.21) as current NCAA leaders this season.

In the 400m, five of the top eight times recorded this season will be racing. Iowa’s Jenoah McKiver leads the group with a 45.78 that ranks second, followed by Florida’s Jacory Patterson (45.98), Arizona State’s Justin Robinson (46.06), Razorback James Benson II (46.21), and Florida’s Ryan Willie (46.23).

Challenging Cunningham in the 60m hurdles are LSU’s Eric Edwards (7.65) and Nebraska’s Darius Luff (7.70) along with Arkansas’ squad that includes Phillip Lemonious, Tre’Bien Gilbert, and Brevin Sims.

Arkansas alums scheduled to compete include Andrew Irwin (pole vault), Jarrion Lawson (long jump), Kemar Mowatt (400m), Laquan Nairn (long jump), and Marqueze Washington (60, 200m).

Also, among the field of pro athletes entered are a trio of Jamaicans which includes Ronald Levy, the bronze medalist in the 110m hurdles at the Tokyo Olympics; Tajay Gayle, the 2019 World Champion in the long jump who was an Olympic finalist in Tokyo; and O’Dayne Richards, a shot put bronze medalist at the 2015 World Championships who finished eighth in Tokyo.

Joining Irwin in the pole vault are a pair of brothers from Princeton, Sondre Guttormsen (18-10.25) and Simen Guttormsen (18-2.75), who currently rank second and third in the NCAA.

The Invitational long jump, with alums Lawson and Nairn, will include current Razorbacks Ryan Brown (25-8) and John Baker (25-4) along with Tennessee’s duo of Carey McLeod (26-1.5) and Wayne Pinnock (26-0), who rank third and fourth among collegians this season.

The Razorback crew competing at the Husky Classic on Friday evening includes Andrew Kibet and Elias Schreml in the 3,000m along with Emmanuel Cheboson, Amon Kemboi, Patrick Kiprop, and Myles Richter in the 5,000m.

USTFCCCA National Team Rating Index

Men (Bold teams at Tyson Inv): 1. Texas, 2. North Carolina A&T, 3. Texas Tech, 4. Georgia, 5. Northern Arizona, 6. Kentucky, 7. Princeton, 8. Iowa, 9. Florida, 10. Tennessee, 11. Nebraska, 12. Arkansas, 13. Virginia Tech, 14. Alabama, 15. Miami, 16. Texas A&M, 17. TCU, 18. Oregon, 19. Arizona State, 20. Florida State, 21. USC, 22. Grand Canyon, 23. Missouri, 24. Washington, 25. Notre Dame