Eric Jenkins pissed off at Ches?

First, this shows again how clueless A Duck is, as he's always said this is the closest/most tight knit Oregon team ever. In reality, A Duck is a stalker and Oregon people try to avoid him.

While I think it was a dick move by Ches given their agreement, I don't like that they had an agreement in the first place. Just race baby.

Lastly, don't expect anything different in the 5000m. Ches will win. To get your hopes up otherwise is foolish.

I bet this is a plot by Oregon or NCAA people to stir up some drama for the media coverage on Friday as they are confident they have the team title wrapped up by that point so they will need something else to keep the fans interested in the show. NCAA has to find a way to justify the new schedule and format, and keeping people tapped in due to teammate drama is a way to do that.

This was my thought exactly. Shady move.

It's obvious that Ches didn't expect Jenkins to fly past him indoors in the 3k and then wrongly said he let him win or at least it sounded like that, making Jenkins resentful, as he had always not tried to beat Ches and as a result got no titles. The gloves are off in the 5000m in the finish, no doubt, and they'll both be going for it, which means it is going to be fun to watch. And they got Oregon 18 points last night.

Why can't it simply be that Ches just wants to set a legacy by being a four time NCAA champion in the 10,000 meters? Has that ever happened before? I wouldn't count Jenkins out so quickly... He has wheels. It seems to me he would need to out strength Cheserek's kick and that may wear him down some leaving it open for Cheserek. I could be wrong but it looked as if Jenkins was trying to get away in the last 1000 meters.

Simply a cultural difference here, move on to the 5k.

Coaches say cruise it in together, so the American takes it literally and the Kenyan takes it figuratively. I guarantee Ches felt like he followed the instructions to a T.

If it brings a little extra intensity to the 5k from Jenkins then great, but it was going to be an all out affair either way.

Maybe his PR is faster than that but Cheserek and Jenkins would've just sat behind him and torched him the last lap if he tried to pull away at any time.

Serious question:

If Jenkins won the 10K, would it have a positive impact on his pro contract which he will be signing in the next few weeks?

I know nothing about pro contracts. But would a multiple time NCAA champ garner a better deal/bigger signing bonus than a guy with one title and a handful of runner-ups?

NCAA titles do not matter at all. It's all about perceived future marketability. What hurts Jenkins is that he has never run a really good time at any distance. I mean he's run well, but not a marketable one. He would have been better off running a 13:10 or 27:30 at Stanford and never even running at NCAAs than jogging that 29 and then winning something this weekend.

I know a guy wrote:

NCAA titles do not matter at all. It's all about perceived future marketability. What hurts Jenkins is that he has never run a really good time at any distance. I mean he's run well, but not a marketable one. He would have been better off running a 13:10 or 27:30 at Stanford and never even running at NCAAs than jogging that 29 and then winning something this weekend.

I would've thought he'd improve more after 2 years at Oregon, considering he came from Northeastern where he was hurt a lot.

Mile - 1s faster at Oregon

3000m - 1.5s faster at Oregon

5000m - 9s faster at Northeastern

steve dildarian wrote:

I know a guy wrote:

NCAA titles do not matter at all. It's all about perceived future marketability. What hurts Jenkins is that he has never run a really good time at any distance. I mean he's run well, but not a marketable one. He would have been better off running a 13:10 or 27:30 at Stanford and never even running at NCAAs than jogging that 29 and then winning something this weekend.

I would've thought he'd improve more after 2 years at Oregon, considering he came from Northeastern where he was hurt a lot.

Mile - 1s faster at Oregon

3000m - 1.5s faster at Oregon

5000m - 9s faster at Northeastern

Stay tuned- Jenkins has jogged all of his races this spring- training through the NCAA season with goal of competing on the world stage. His season opener is essentially the 5k final on Friday.

What a d-bag move by Cheserek, considering that Jenkins did all the work to drop Witt and secure the 1-2 finish. Whether its telling the press he let Jenkins win in the indoor 3k, showboating down the homestretch in the Penn DMR, running 6 min pace in the Penn 4x 1 mile, or the latest, with this guy its one d-bag move after another. I hope Jenkins teaches him the same lesson in the 5k that Jordy Williams did in the Penn 4x1.

Jenkins will not run a 5000m PR Friday, and he will not win. Sorry.

rojo wrote:

I was shocked that they didn't finish together.

Even if they intended to finish together. The Finish Lynx would have discerned the first place finisher. By throwing down a finish sprint he at least gives jenkins the chance to respond.

It's not that Che's didn't "let him win" it's the fact he cut him off. If you're going to sprint for the finish at least make it a fair fight and not cut him off, could we agree on that?

JenkinsFan wrote:

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What a d-bag move by Cheserek, considering that Jenkins did all the work to drop Witt and secure the 1-2 finish. Whether its telling the press he let Jenkins win in the indoor 3k, showboating down the homestretch in the Penn DMR, running 6 min pace in the Penn 4x 1 mile, or the latest, with this guy its one d-bag move after another. I hope Jenkins teaches him the same lesson in the 5k that Jordy Williams did in the Penn 4x1.

I feel really sorry for Jenkins. I hope he wins the 5K. I also hope all the other runners who did not win get ribbons to make them feel better and hugs from beautiful women as they cross the line. Everyone is a winner!

steve dildarian wrote:

Jenkins will not run a 5000m PR Friday, and he will not win. Sorry.

I think he meant that it will be the first hard, or all out, race he runs this season (besides maybe that 3:57).

I certainly hope that's the case because I would like to see him actually test himself a couple times this summer.

He should definitely be ready to improve upon that 13:18 he ran two years ago. Not at NCAA's, but somewhere.

"King Ches" should be called 'King A*^hole" for that trick. C'mon man, you did zero work in that race, then hang your teammate out there and steal it from him in the last 100. At least act like a man and teammate and tell him you intend to win - take it from 800 out and run hard, and earn it.

If he did that to me I would have slugged him after the race. I'm impressed Jenkins walked off the track without losing his temper right there,

aaa Duck wrote:

Anyone who thought the reigning NCAA Champ in the 10,000 meters was going to finish "together" holding hands and skipping across the line is / was unrealistic to idiotic.

The drama queens behind LRC try to once again create controversy where there isn't any. I sat with two diff groups of friends during the race and was mere feet from the Oregon coaches at the finish.

Of course a talent like Jenkins doesn't like to lose and of course a racer like Ches was going to defend his title; it's instinct.

No one in the stands was surprised; it was the exact outcome that was expected.

e.

Not true. I think most coaches assumed they'd finish together. After the race, I talked to an NCAA coach who noticed how Jenkins reacted when he crosse the line. It was obvious to anyone that was watching that Jenkins wasn't happy.

I've updated our recap with photos. It's clear that Jenkins wasn't happy.

^ It was clear that Jenkins was not happy at the moment he had his little hissy fit and ran off the track immediately after the race. So what? He was the second best runner in the race, and he finished second. If he wanted first, or somehow wanted to be part of the reflected glory of being nearer to Cheserek, then he needed to do something different. But whatever -- he sure needed to do something different after he ran off the track after finishing second. Looked like a spoiled brat.

Did Cheserek do something that would have gotten him a disqualification in other circumstances? No. He just accelerated a tiny bit in the last 100 as he moved past some lapped runners, and Jenkins did not or could not go with him. If that's all it takes for him to finish second, and if that's all it takes for him to have a tantrum, then he has some real growing up to do.

If those guys are really friends, and are such a great story, then they could have shown some respect for each other, for the event, for the sport, and for the moment, and actually engaged in a bit of racing -- say for 200 or even 300 metres.