McLeod Holds Strong On Bowerman Watch List

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – For the second-consecutive release, sophomore Omar McLeod continues to hold a spot on the Bowerman Watch List as announced Wednesday afternoon. He closed out the indoor season with a collegiate record and his second NCAA title in the 60-meter hurdles. McLeod is the sixth Razorback to earn a spot on the Watch List.

McLeod successfully defended his national title in the 60-meter hurdles on day two of the NCAA Championships. Having posted the fastest qualifying time in the preliminary round, he clocked a collegiate-record time of 7.45 in the final to break the 18-year-old record set by Reggie Torian of Wisconsin in 1997. With his performance, McLeod also established a new NCAA meet and school record and had the largest margin of victory (0.24) in the event in meet history.

The Kingston, Jamaica, native first appeared on the Watch List after winning the 60-meter hurdles title at the SEC Indoor Championships in February. In that effort, he posted a winning time of 7.49 to record the then-No. 2 time in NCAA history. McLeod was undefeated in five hurdle event finals during the indoor season, improving upon his time in each race—from 7.76 at the Arkansas-Texas dual to 7.45 at the NCAA meet.

The Bowerman award, which debuted in 2009, is presented annually by the USTFCCCA to the most outstanding male and female collegiate track and field athletes in the nation. In total, the winners from the award’s first five years have won three Olympic medals, two World Championship titles and six World Championship medals overall. The next men’s Watch List will be released April 15.

The Razorbacks capped their indoor campaign with a third-place finish at the NCAA Indoor Championships at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville. With the result, Arkansas posted its fourth top-three national indoor finish under head coach Chris Bucknam including the program’s 41st NCAA team crown in 2013. The Razorbacks now turn their attention to the outdoor season which begins March 27-28 with the Arkansas Spring Invitational at John McDonnell Field.

A tape-delay broadcast of the NCAA Indoor Championship will air Monday, March 23, starting at 6 p.m. (CT) on ESPNU. Dwight Stones and Larry Rawson will handle the play-by-play and color commentary duties, respectively. Replays of the meet are currently available on ESPN3 and through the WatchESPN app.

For more information on Arkansas track and field including in-meet updates, follow @RazorbackTF on Twitter.