Similarly to the 4 X Mile Preview we'll be breaking down the top teams entered in the 4 X 800 at Penn Relays. We'll do our best to figure out who will be running (or at least should be running on paper) and give you a brief synopsis on what we feel will go down. The teams that seem to be the most relevant to compete in this race will be highlighted.
If you are not going to watch this race and meet LIVE on Flotrack, why are you even here reading this article?
Penn State- Brannon Kidder (1:46.87), Robby Creese (1:48.64), Za'Von Watkins (1:48.11), Ryan Brennan (1:49.28)
Villanova- Samuel Ellison (1:47.62), Dusty Solis (1:49.24), Chris Fitzsimons (1:48.83), Ben Malone (1:49.94), Jordy Williamsz (1:47.34)
Georgia Tech- Brandon Lasater (1:47.19), Shawn Roberts (1:47.66), Zack Fanelty (1:48.75), Jeremy Greenwald (1:49.97)
Stanford- Luke Lefebure (1:48.79), Tyler Stutzman (1:49.87), Scott Buttinger (1:49.38), Marco Bertolotti (1:50.93), Michael Atchoo (1:50.50)
Georgetown- Billy Ledder (1:47.89), Ahmed Bile (1:49.09), Ryan Manahan (1:49.03), Amos Bartelsmeyer (1:50.50), Cole Williams (1:49.89)
Columbia- Harry McFann (1:47.91), Connor Claflin (1:48.68), Brendon Fish (1:48.64), Sam Miner (1:51.36), Denzel Woode (1:51.41)
Wake Forest- Kyle Graves (1:49.94), Thomas Bojanowski (1:49.59), Simon Holden (1:50.22), Kyle Eager (1:50.67),
Brown- Henry Tufnell (1:50.29), Tyler Benster (1:51.40), Ned Willig (1:50.04), Matt Bevil (1:50.11), Colin Savage (1:51.21)
Princeton- Bradley Paternostro (1:49.20), Luke Brahm (1:50.82), Michael Williams (1:49.53), Jamie Fehrnstrom (1:54.03)
Texas A&M- Hector Hernandez (1:48.42), Josh Hernandez (1:49.15), Gaines Kinsey (1:51.38), Cameron Thornton (1:49.64), Cameron Cardwell (1:52.61)
Texas Tech- Nick Rivera (1:49.55), Tommy Brinn (1:48.87), Alex Foster (1:51.96), Kendall McVey (1:51.06)
Mississippi State- Brandon McBride (1:45.35), Patrick Monaghan (1:51.53), Steve Shoto (1:51.28), Juan Sanchez (1:51.97), Damian Roszko (1:49.92)
When looking at the entries before seeing the PRs, I think the general consensus of running fans would take Penn State in a heart beat. After looking over the PRs and judging off of who has run the best recently, I would think a little harder about choosing Penn State in a runaway.
Georgia Tech is a team that has really come around as of late and in fact, could challenge Penn State and Villanova for the 4 X 800 title. Brandon Lasater and Shawn Roberts have been running out of their heads the past few years and especially early this outdoor season running 1:47s a piece. Barring a disaster with exchanges Georgia Tech and Penn State should be in a tight battle the majority of the race.
Don't forget about Mississippi State and anchor Brandon McBride whose PR is so good that he could single handedly win this thing if he gets the stick within any kind of range of the other teams.
I still think Penn State will win with Kidder anchoring the Nittany Lions home for the win, but it will be quite the race.