Hog Calls

UA teams hold up under new format

Oregon's Edward Cheserek leads the pack of runners - which includes Arkansas' Kemoy Campbell - before winning the men's 5000-meter run during the NCAA track and field championships in Eugene, Ore., Friday, June 12, 2015. (AP Photo/Ryan Kang)
Oregon's Edward Cheserek leads the pack of runners - which includes Arkansas' Kemoy Campbell - before winning the men's 5000-meter run during the NCAA track and field championships in Eugene, Ore., Friday, June 12, 2015. (AP Photo/Ryan Kang)

FAYETTEVILLE -- After experiencing the new made-for-ESPN TV format of both the NCAA men's and women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships last Wednesday through Saturday in Eugene, Ore., Arkansas Razorbacks men's Coach Chris Bucknam's review proffered two thumbs up.

Arkansas Women's Coach Lance Harter's review seemed more one thumb up and one hand still weighing issues.

At the NCAA Outdoor swept by host Oregon, the format changed from the traditional four full days of men's and women's competition to just men competing on Wednesday and Friday and women competing Thursday and Saturday.

ESPN televised 2 1/2 hours live per day, a NCAA Outdoor first finally exposing track and field to the casual fan, Bucknam said.

"It was a clean 2 1/2 hours like football or basketball and I thought it was a huge success," Bucknam said. "We will make some adjustments to handle that schedule, but I think for the big picture of track and field and TV we hit it out of the park. A good shot in the arm for our sport."

Harter concurs to a point.

"If the idea is we are going to try to get the general public to be more interested in watching track and field, then I think we can keep the origin of this philosophy," Harter said, noting he wants to see the ratings results "if that happened."

"But if it's for the quality of the athlete, I think that's questionable," Harter said.

Harter said some events, particularly the women's 1,600, had competitors still not recovered from events too close to that race.

Bucknam admits the tight schedule posed challenges but that elite athletes of his own, hurdler-sprinter Omar McLeod and especially long jumper-sprinter Jarrion Lawson, proved they were up to it.

Both were part of Arkansas' school record-setting and Hayward Stadium record-setting (38.47) national championship 400 relay and sixth-place All-American 1,600 relay. McLeod won the 110-meter hurdles, a wind-aided 13.01. Lawson took third in the 100-meter dash (wind-aided 9.90) and on Wednesday leaped a personal record 27-4 1/2 for second in the long jump almost simultaneous to running a 400 relay prelim.

Lawson individually scored 16 points and shared in 13 relay points as Bucknam's men tallied 53 team points for third place.

For Harter, Dominique Scott, running the 10,000-5,000 meter double reduced to just one day's rest between races instead of two, overcame with two second-places for 16 of Arkansas' 43 fourth-place points.

Harter said the best of both worlds could be combined by scrapping the May 28-30 West Preliminary meet, this year conducted in Austin, Texas, and instead prefacing an extra prelim day in Eugene.

"If we abandon regionals and start the meet on Tuesday it would be fantastic," Harter said. "You could get good two-hour windows like the U.S Olympic Trials."

Sports on 06/15/2015

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