There is no doubt about it; the Ducks are stacked in the distance running field. The top men in the country – Edward Cheserek, Eric Jenkins, Will Geoghegan and Johnny Gregoreck — make Oregon an unstoppable distance force. The main competition for the title is Florida, best known for its strength in the sprints, relays and jumps.
The computer rankings have Florida over Oregon for this reason. But one thing the computer rankings don’t include is the potential for Oregon to win the Distance Medley Relay (DMR). With the strength and depth Oregon has in the distance team, the Ducks could pull together one of the best collegiate DMRs ever. The DMR is structured as follows:
1st leg: 1200m
2nd leg: 400m
3rd leg: 800m
4th leg: 1600m
Oregon Track & Field athletes.
For the first leg, Gregorek, who ran a 3:57 mile a couple weeks ago at Milrose, would put the Ducks up at the front of the pack.
For the second leg, Marcus Chambers, who dropped a 46.88 quarter last year, would try to pull away or at least maintain the lead.
For the third leg, the baton would be handed to international freshman recruit Nikolaus Franzmair. This year, he ran a blazing fast 1:48 800m, and during his high school prep he ran 1:46, so he is capable of this again.
On the final leg, the baton would be passed on to the undisputed fastest man in the NCAA, Cheserek. The most recent race for him was at Milrose where he ran 3:56.
Let us simulate a hypothetical race. Villanova currently holds the fastest DMR time of 9:27, but if Oregon performs at a high level, the time could potentially be 9:23, breaking the NCAA record of 9:25 set by Texas.
1st leg: Gregorek 2:51
2nd leg: Chambers :47
3rd leg: Franzmair 1:47
4th leg: Cheserek 3:58
Best of luck to our speedy men in green and yellow.
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Isaac Gibson was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas when he decided to make his way up north to be a Duck. A former track and field athlete, he decided he wanted to live in Tracktown USA and attend school at The University of Oregon. He has always had a passion for sports and is looking to get more involved as well as refining his craft in writing.
His main focus is to bring the exciting sport of track and field further into the public eye, and what better team to cover than one of the current best in the nation and one so rich in history as the Ducks.
Isaac is a freshman in the school of journalism with as well as in the Pre-Law program at the U of O.