So it looks like Cam Levins isn’t just that guy who kind of looks like your cousin anymore.

The Southern Utah senior shined brightest among a star-studded 10,000 meter final on the first day of the 2012 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

The race was touted as a matchup between Levins and Stanford’s Chris Derrick, both record-breaking seniors yet to claim NCAA championships.

Levins bided his time in the pack for more than 24 laps before making a decisive move with 300 meter to go, soon dropping Derrick and later Stephen Sambu of Arizona. Sambu went on to finish second and Derrick third. Levins was timed at 58.1 seconds for his final 400 meters.

With his first national title on Wednesday, the native of British Columbia, Canada has completed his leap from relative obscurity to NCAA world beater.

He started his 2011-12 season with fourth place finish at the NCAA Cross Country Championships. Levins then ran three NCAA automatic qualifying standards indoors including a third place finish in the 3000 meters at nationals.

Many thought these were breakout performances from the multiple-time Summit League champion, but the indoor efforts only signaled the start of a truly remarkable outdoor season.

Bouncing back from a mediocre 1500 meter race at the Stanford Invitational, Levins blasted a 13:18.47 5k at the Mt. Sac Relays to defeat Arizona star Lawi Lalang. The mark hit the Canadian ‘A+’ standard and all but qualified him for the Canadian Olympic team.

Levins returned to Stanford just a week after Mt. Sac to win the prestigious Payton Jordan 10,000 meters in 27:27.96, defeating the likes of Sam Chelanga, Derrick and Mo Ahmed and qualifying for a second event for London.

Levins will next contest the 5000 meter final on Friday against his old rival Lalang but after that will focus on the Canadian Olympic Trials and then the Olympics.

What does the future hold for Cam Levins? Conventional wisdom says he can’t hold his exponential rate of improvement. Others call his longevity into question given his extremely high mileage training.

His future may be unknown, but one this is for sure – Cam Levins has put on one hell of a show for all to witness in 2012.