The Bowerman AwardsDec 16, 2015 by Meg Bellino
Breaking Down the 2015 Bowerman Award Nominees
Breaking Down the 2015 Bowerman Award Nominees
2015 Bowerman Awards, the Heisman Trophy of track and field's greatest men and women in the NCAA.
Tomorrow night is the 2015 Bowerman Awards, the Heisman Trophy of track and field's greatest men and women in the NCAA. With former winners such as Galen Rupp, Jenny Simpson and Ashton Eaton, it's not surprising to see the Bowerman winners go on to do great things in our sport. Four of the six finalists are already professional athletes and five competed for their respective countries at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing. Only two will be crowned victorious, however, and for that we look at the nominees.
The unfortunate detail in the Bowerman window is that it only includes the indoor and outdoor track season. That means no cross country and no international appearances. For second-time nominee Edward Cheserek, that means his second-consecutive NCAA XC title does not get taken into account when voting. So hereÂ’s what we have:
Cheserek won the indoor mile and anchored the winning DMR for Oregon in March. He then took the 5K and 10K titles at Hayward Field in June.
Cheserek’s only “flaws” in 2015 include finishing second to his own teammate in the NCAA Indoor 3K and losing to Jordy Williamsz in quite possibly the strangest, most fascinating 4xMile in Penn Relays history. He’s been nominated before after winning three NCAA track titles in his freshman year, so should he win the Bowerman after his nearly-perfect sophomore campaign? It’s unclear.
While Cheserek is arguably the most dominating athlete in the NCAA, he didnÂ’t record any record-breaking marks of even collegiate all-time bests in 2015 like his fellow nominees. Yes his dominance is unlike anything we have ever seen in recent years, but he had no major wins over compelling opponents like he did in 2014 with his battles against Lawi Lalang.
Perfect is one word to describe Marquis DendyÂ’s final seasons in the Florida Gator uniform. He won both the long jump and triple jump at the indoor AND outdoor championships. He went four-for-four and cemented himself as the most consistent jumper in the NCAA.
His indoor long jump mark of 8.28m is four spots outside the indoor all-time list and his indoor triple jump mark of 17.37m is No. 3 all-time. Both of these historic marks were recorded at the NCAA Championships. Talk about performing under pressure. (He also owns the No. 10 best jump in NCAA history with his 17.23m from this yearÂ’s Tyson Invitational.)
During the outdoor season, Dendy replicated his titles at Hayward Field. His long jump leap of 8.43m (+2.3) is the fifth-best wind-assisted mark of all-time and he recorded the third-best NCAA triple jump mark (17.50m) of all-time in Eugene, too. His 17.71m (+2.4) and 17.54m (+3.6) marks put him at the No. 3 and No. 5 spots on the outdoor wind-assisted marks, too.
What is there to consider against Dendy? His lifetime best long and triple jump marks were recorded at NCAA Championships in 2015 and he was nearly unbeatable in the process. Florida alum and World Champion Christian Taylor was a Bowerman finalist in 2011, so can Dendy be the first Gator to take home the trophy?
Shawn Barber of Akron is the first pole vaulter finalist on the menÂ’s side at the Bowerman Awards. After completing the indoor and outdoor championship sweep, Barber not only won two NCAA titles, he dominated them.
He won the NCAA Indoor vault in 5.91m, the best indoor NCAA jump of all-time. He now owns the No. 1, 2, 3, 6 and 9 best indoor jumps ever, all from 2015.
During his outdoor campaign, he recorded the No. 2 best jump in NCAA history with 5.91m at the Longhorn Invitational. He won the NCAA Championships in only 5.60m but that was all he needed. He owns the No. 2 and 3 best outdoor marks all-time.
It could be said that Barber is similar to Dendy in that both successfully won all of their NCAA Championships appearances and recorded historic marks in the process. But Barber is the only nominee with a collegiate record to his credit. Did we mention he went on to become a world champion and is just 21-years-old? That wonÂ’t be considered in the vote, but two-for-two plus a collegiate record makes Barber look real good come Thursday evening.
Demi Payne is not the first pole vault finalist for the Bowerman Award on the women’s side. Tina Sutej of Arkansas was a finalist in 2011 — she used to have the #BestJumpEver until the #YearOfTheVault happened in 2015. Payne’s reemergence into the NCAA in 2015 is really remarkable. After giving birth to her daughter Charlee in 2013, Payne transferred to Stephen F. Austin from Kansas, broke the indoor collegiate record and won the NCAA outdoor title.
Her indoor leap of 4.75m (altitude) is .09m better than ArkansasÂ’ Sandi Morris, who traded collegiate records indoor and outdoor with Payne all year. After her record, Payne shares the No. 2 and 3 best marks with Morris, and owns the No. 6 and 7 all-time marks by herself.
Morris won the indoor championship and Payne failed to record a height, a huge factor in her 2015 story that may cost her the Bowerman. The outdoor season saw Payne come out on top in Eugene over Morris, but Morris owns the outdoor record.
PayneÂ’s outdoor best of 4.71m is the second-best jump in NCAA history, and she also recorded the No. 3, 4, 5, and 9 marks all-time. She rightfully deserves to be a Bowerman finalist after her massive jump improvements from 4.25m in 2013 to 4.75m in 2015.
Nobody in the NCAA scored more points at the indoor and outdoor championships than OregonÂ’s Jenna Prandini.
She captured the indoor long jump title, finished runner-up in the 200m and fourth in the 60m. Outdoors she won the 100m title and finished runner-up in the 200m and long jump. ThatÂ’s 49 points, people!
She recorded the No. 9 all-time mark in the indoor 200m, running 22.52 in the prelims. In the outdoor season she became the No. 2 100m performer all-time with her blazing 10.92 at the Mt. SAC Relays. She also recorded the No. 4 200m mark all-time with her 22.21.
She helped the women of Oregon to a runner-up performance at the NCAA Indoor Championships and take home the victory at the outdoor championships. Her outdoor performances are remarkable when you consider the fact that she handled the new outdoor championship schedule nearly perfect. After turning pro this summer, sheÂ’ll be missed on the Oregon squad, and if she wins the Bowerman, the Ducks will be the first school to have back-to-back womenÂ’s winners after Laura Roesler won in 2014.
KentuckyÂ’s Kendra Harrison had quite the 2015.
During her indoor campaign, she recorded the No. 5 all-time mark in the 60m hurdles, 7.87, en route to winning the NCAA Championship. What is even more impressive is that Harrison had only just opened up her season two weeks prior at the SEC Championships after resting a majority of the winter with an injury.
She didnÂ’t stop there. Her outdoor campaign was highlighted with an NCAA Championship in the 100m hurdles and a runner-up showing in the 400m hurdles. She holds the No. 4 and 5 all-time best 100mH marks, 12.50 and 12.55, and the No. 5 best 400mH mark, 54.09. Her 400mH hurdle NCAA loss was to the future U.S. Gold and World Silver Medalist Shamier Little, so nothing to beat yourself up about. But had she taken the double hurdle victory, her performances would have closely mimicked that of former Bowerman Award winner Queen Harrison.
The case for Edward Cheserek
The unfortunate detail in the Bowerman window is that it only includes the indoor and outdoor track season. That means no cross country and no international appearances. For second-time nominee Edward Cheserek, that means his second-consecutive NCAA XC title does not get taken into account when voting. So hereÂ’s what we have:
Cheserek won the indoor mile and anchored the winning DMR for Oregon in March. He then took the 5K and 10K titles at Hayward Field in June.
Cheserek’s only “flaws” in 2015 include finishing second to his own teammate in the NCAA Indoor 3K and losing to Jordy Williamsz in quite possibly the strangest, most fascinating 4xMile in Penn Relays history. He’s been nominated before after winning three NCAA track titles in his freshman year, so should he win the Bowerman after his nearly-perfect sophomore campaign? It’s unclear.
While Cheserek is arguably the most dominating athlete in the NCAA, he didnÂ’t record any record-breaking marks of even collegiate all-time bests in 2015 like his fellow nominees. Yes his dominance is unlike anything we have ever seen in recent years, but he had no major wins over compelling opponents like he did in 2014 with his battles against Lawi Lalang.
The case for Marquis Dendy
Perfect is one word to describe Marquis DendyÂ’s final seasons in the Florida Gator uniform. He won both the long jump and triple jump at the indoor AND outdoor championships. He went four-for-four and cemented himself as the most consistent jumper in the NCAA.
His indoor long jump mark of 8.28m is four spots outside the indoor all-time list and his indoor triple jump mark of 17.37m is No. 3 all-time. Both of these historic marks were recorded at the NCAA Championships. Talk about performing under pressure. (He also owns the No. 10 best jump in NCAA history with his 17.23m from this yearÂ’s Tyson Invitational.)
During the outdoor season, Dendy replicated his titles at Hayward Field. His long jump leap of 8.43m (+2.3) is the fifth-best wind-assisted mark of all-time and he recorded the third-best NCAA triple jump mark (17.50m) of all-time in Eugene, too. His 17.71m (+2.4) and 17.54m (+3.6) marks put him at the No. 3 and No. 5 spots on the outdoor wind-assisted marks, too.
What is there to consider against Dendy? His lifetime best long and triple jump marks were recorded at NCAA Championships in 2015 and he was nearly unbeatable in the process. Florida alum and World Champion Christian Taylor was a Bowerman finalist in 2011, so can Dendy be the first Gator to take home the trophy?
The case for Shawn Barber
Shawn Barber of Akron is the first pole vaulter finalist on the menÂ’s side at the Bowerman Awards. After completing the indoor and outdoor championship sweep, Barber not only won two NCAA titles, he dominated them.
He won the NCAA Indoor vault in 5.91m, the best indoor NCAA jump of all-time. He now owns the No. 1, 2, 3, 6 and 9 best indoor jumps ever, all from 2015.
During his outdoor campaign, he recorded the No. 2 best jump in NCAA history with 5.91m at the Longhorn Invitational. He won the NCAA Championships in only 5.60m but that was all he needed. He owns the No. 2 and 3 best outdoor marks all-time.
It could be said that Barber is similar to Dendy in that both successfully won all of their NCAA Championships appearances and recorded historic marks in the process. But Barber is the only nominee with a collegiate record to his credit. Did we mention he went on to become a world champion and is just 21-years-old? That wonÂ’t be considered in the vote, but two-for-two plus a collegiate record makes Barber look real good come Thursday evening.
The case for Demi Payne
Demi Payne is not the first pole vault finalist for the Bowerman Award on the women’s side. Tina Sutej of Arkansas was a finalist in 2011 — she used to have the #BestJumpEver until the #YearOfTheVault happened in 2015. Payne’s reemergence into the NCAA in 2015 is really remarkable. After giving birth to her daughter Charlee in 2013, Payne transferred to Stephen F. Austin from Kansas, broke the indoor collegiate record and won the NCAA outdoor title.
Her indoor leap of 4.75m (altitude) is .09m better than ArkansasÂ’ Sandi Morris, who traded collegiate records indoor and outdoor with Payne all year. After her record, Payne shares the No. 2 and 3 best marks with Morris, and owns the No. 6 and 7 all-time marks by herself.
Morris won the indoor championship and Payne failed to record a height, a huge factor in her 2015 story that may cost her the Bowerman. The outdoor season saw Payne come out on top in Eugene over Morris, but Morris owns the outdoor record.
PayneÂ’s outdoor best of 4.71m is the second-best jump in NCAA history, and she also recorded the No. 3, 4, 5, and 9 marks all-time. She rightfully deserves to be a Bowerman finalist after her massive jump improvements from 4.25m in 2013 to 4.75m in 2015.
The case for Jenna Prandini
Nobody in the NCAA scored more points at the indoor and outdoor championships than OregonÂ’s Jenna Prandini.
She captured the indoor long jump title, finished runner-up in the 200m and fourth in the 60m. Outdoors she won the 100m title and finished runner-up in the 200m and long jump. ThatÂ’s 49 points, people!
She recorded the No. 9 all-time mark in the indoor 200m, running 22.52 in the prelims. In the outdoor season she became the No. 2 100m performer all-time with her blazing 10.92 at the Mt. SAC Relays. She also recorded the No. 4 200m mark all-time with her 22.21.
She helped the women of Oregon to a runner-up performance at the NCAA Indoor Championships and take home the victory at the outdoor championships. Her outdoor performances are remarkable when you consider the fact that she handled the new outdoor championship schedule nearly perfect. After turning pro this summer, sheÂ’ll be missed on the Oregon squad, and if she wins the Bowerman, the Ducks will be the first school to have back-to-back womenÂ’s winners after Laura Roesler won in 2014.
The case for Kendra Harrison
KentuckyÂ’s Kendra Harrison had quite the 2015.
During her indoor campaign, she recorded the No. 5 all-time mark in the 60m hurdles, 7.87, en route to winning the NCAA Championship. What is even more impressive is that Harrison had only just opened up her season two weeks prior at the SEC Championships after resting a majority of the winter with an injury.
She didnÂ’t stop there. Her outdoor campaign was highlighted with an NCAA Championship in the 100m hurdles and a runner-up showing in the 400m hurdles. She holds the No. 4 and 5 all-time best 100mH marks, 12.50 and 12.55, and the No. 5 best 400mH mark, 54.09. Her 400mH hurdle NCAA loss was to the future U.S. Gold and World Silver Medalist Shamier Little, so nothing to beat yourself up about. But had she taken the double hurdle victory, her performances would have closely mimicked that of former Bowerman Award winner Queen Harrison.