BATON ROUGE – The Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas, will be the focus of the collegiate track and field calendar this weekend as LSU joins many of the nation’s top teams at the annual Razorback Invitational running Friday and Saturday in what is sure to be the most competitive meet to-date this season.
Friday’s action will feature live streaming video on the SEC Network+ from 6-8 p.m. CT with Saturday’s finale at the Razorback Invitational being broadcast live on the SEC Network from 1-4:30 p.m.
Early events on Friday feature the start of the women’s pentathlon at 11:30 a.m. followed by the afternoon field events beginning with the men’s weight throw at 3:30 p.m. and the men’s distance medley relay kicking off the events on the track at 6 p.m. Saturday’s action gets going at 10:15 a.m. with early sections on the track and will run through the 4×400-meter relays ending at approximately 5 p.m.
Fans can receive live updates of the athletes competing in the Razorback Invitational by following @LSUTrackField on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lsutrackfield and Instagram at http://instagram.com/lsutrackfield and also by liking the team’s Facebook page at http://facebook.com/lsutrackfield.
This marks the first of two trips for LSU’s teams to the Randal Tyson Track Center this indoor season as they are also scheduled to compete at the Tyson Invitational in two weeks with the meet running Feb. 10-11.
SEC Indoor Preview?
Friday and Saturday at the Razorback Invitational are sure to provide a preview of what is to come at the Southeastern Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships in late February as LSU is among 11 SEC programs in the field this weekend. Also scheduled to compete along with host Arkansas are Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi State, Missouri, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas A&M.
Rounding out a loaded field at the Randal Tyson Track Center will be Southern California from the Pac-12 Conference, Oklahoma State from the Big XII Conference and Wake Forest from the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Men’s Rankings
The Tigers are a national championship contender this indoor season as they continue to claim a No. 3 national ranking in the latest power rankings released Monday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. Four of the top-five men’s teams are set to compete this weekend as the Tigers compete alongside No. 1 Florida, No. 4 Georgia and No. 5 Arkansas.
Nine nationally-ranked teams make up the men’s field at the Razorback Invitational as No. 10 Southern California, No. 14 Texas A&M, No. 15 Tennessee, No. 17 Oklahoma State and No. 19 South Carolina headline what is sure to be the most competitive meet of the indoor season to-date. Auburn, Mississippi State, Missouri, Ole Miss and Wake Forest are outside the Top 25 of the national rankings this week.
Women’s Rankings
The Lady Tigers are also among five top-10 and nine top-25 teams in the women’s field competing at the University of Arkansas this weekend as they maintain a No. 7 national ranking according to the USTFCCCA. No. 2 Arkansas, No. 3 Georgia, No. 4 Southern California and No. 5 Florida highlight the women’s events, while No. 14 Oklahoma State, No. 16 Ole Miss, No. 17 Tennessee and No. 24 South Carolina will also arrive at the meet with national rankings to their credit this week.
Auburn, Mississippi State, Missouri, Texas A&M and Wake Forest round out a stellar women’s field as they look to return to the national rankings with their performance in Fayetteville this weekend.
NCAA Event Leaders
LSU’s Johnnie Jackson is among 14 NCAA event leaders competing at the Razorback Invitational as he is just one week removed from opening his senior season with a seven-foot personal best of 77 feet, 3 ¾ inches for the weight throw title at the Auburn Indoor Invitational. That mark is nearly four feet farther than the No. 2-ranked performer in the NCAA rankings in 2017.
The SEC recognized Jackson for his performance on Tuesday as he was named the SEC Men’s Co-Field Athlete of the Week along with Florida freshman Grant Holloway, who is also scheduled to compete this weekend as the national leader on the men’s side in both the 60-meter hurdles and long jump.
Other NCAA leaders entered in the men’s events with the next two days include Tennessee’s Christian Coleman in the 60 meters, Texas A&M’s Mylik Kerley in the 400 meters, Florida’s Clayton Brown in the high jump, Arkansas’ Clive Pullen in the triple jump and Texas A&M’s 4×400-meter relay. Coleman (200 meters), Pullen (triple jump) and LSU’s 4×400-meter relay are also reigning NCAA Indoor Champions from 2016.
Seven women in the Razorback Invitational field enter the weekend as the national leaders in their events, including Missouri’s Karissa Schweizer in the 5,000 meters, Georgia teammates Madeline Fagan and Tatianna Gusin in the high jump, Arkansas’ Tori Weeks in the pole vault, Georgia’s Keturah Orji in the triple jump, Ole Miss’ Raven Saunders in the shot put and Southern Cal’s 4×400-meter relay.
Orji is among four 2016 NCAA Indoor Champions on the women’s side with Kayla Edwards of Oklahoma State in the mile, Lexi Weeks of Arkansas in the pole vault and Kendell Williams of Georgia in the pentathlon.
Up Next
After competing against many of the nation’s top teams at the Razorback Invitational this weekend, the Tigers and Lady Tigers will be back on the road next week as they head West to Albuquerque, New Mexico, for a two-day appearance at the New Mexico Collegiate Classic scheduled for Feb. 3-4 at the Albuquerque Convention Center.
Selected athletes will also compete at home next Friday, Feb. 3, with events at the Bayou Bengal Invitational set to begin at 12:30 p.m. in the field and 3:30 p.m. on the track at the Carl Maddox Field House.