Yeah I didn't expect much from his this season either, but this was a great run. I don't imagine XC is gonna be his best event, so he's gonna be scary come track season. He might be scary at XC nationals if Jerry doesn't redshirt him.
Just watched the finish video. It seemed like a large percentage of the top 20 runners were unattached. What’s the point of redshirting guys of that caliber if they are in race shape and racing anyways and not injured? As someone already mentioned, use ‘em before you lose ‘em, and save the redshirt for when they’re injured.
Yeah I didn't expect much from his this season either, but this was a great run. I don't imagine XC is gonna be his best event, so he's gonna be scary come track season. He might be scary at XC nationals if Jerry doesn't redshirt him.
If NAU don’t set a scorching pace early on and it comes down to a kick: I’d back Birnbaum against Nico Young every time.
Ethan Godsey from UC Santa Barbara, making some nice progress there with 8th place. Not exactly from a powerhouse school. only a sophomore, too. Though I think I'd like to live & work in Santa Barbara, California, too.
Just watched the finish video. It seemed like a large percentage of the top 20 runners were unattached. What’s the point of redshirting guys of that caliber if they are in race shape and racing anyways and not injured? As someone already mentioned, use ‘em before you lose ‘em, and save the redshirt for when they’re injured.
Seems like Jerry thinks he can win nattys back to back for 3-4 years, starting next year, by redshirting freshmen and ‘giving his training time to work’ . Whether this is realistic remains to be seen.
Daaaam..okay, I'm not a huge fan of redshirting true freshmen (18-year-olds, first year of university) who are on fire (aka, doing really well) their first year of university. they might only run 2-3 years of university anyway, and then go pro. why waste them? or waste their eligibility.
Wasn't there a guy at Wisconsin who was doing really well his frosh year, and Jerry Schaumacher decided to "save him"/redshirt him his freshmen year. But he really should've run at natty's. Can't remember his name offhand. IIRC, he then got injured his soph year.
Echohawk #23, also really good for a true freshman.
When I saw Birnbaum unattached I also thought it seemed a waste for someone who may well turn pro before his eligibility is up if things go well. But I guess the counterpoint here is: what's stopping Nike from giving Oregon runners sweet NIL deals to keep them in the NCAA until they join Bowerman?
The setup seems primed to keep runners like Birnbaum and Burns at Oregon for 5 or 6 years. They could start getting paid once they're good enough to earn professional money, keep going for NCAA titles, and then transition smoothly to the pro team. Not sure if it'll actually play out like that, but if Jerry and Nike really wanted Oregon to start winning NCAA XC titles again it's not a bad setup to do it.
Just watched the finish video. It seemed like a large percentage of the top 20 runners were unattached. What’s the point of redshirting guys of that caliber if they are in race shape and racing anyways and not injured? As someone already mentioned, use ‘em before you lose ‘em, and save the redshirt for when they’re injured.
Yes, if an athlete has a shot at being All American his freshman year, he shouldn't be redshirted IMO. wwwhhhyyy not let them go for it? Anyone in the top 50-60.
Yeah I didn't expect much from his this season either, but this was a great run. I don't imagine XC is gonna be his best event, so he's gonna be scary come track season. He might be scary at XC nationals if Jerry doesn't redshirt him.
If NAU don’t set a scorching pace early on and it comes down to a kick: I’d back Birnbaum against Nico Young every time.
If NAU don’t set a scorching pace early on and it comes down to a kick: I’d back Birnbaum against Nico Young every time.
this aint it bro
I’m talking about a slowish race. Obviously Nico is in much better 10k shape than Birnbaum and has two years in the NCAA under his belt already, so if it’s a fast one he’ll be a cut above. But tactically Birnbaum is a better racer and is known for having a deadly kick. Hence why other runners have tried before to set a good pace that Birnbaum can’t keep up with to avoid a sit and kick situation.
Is this Oregon’s B team? How is unranked Cal Poly beating the Ducks, Portland, etc.
Jerry only officially ran guys who will definitely run XC this season. Nobody seems to know how many of the unattached runners in this race will officially run later this season. Van Hoy is a good coach and as he establishes credibility with his current crop he'll be able to recruit higher profile athletes next season.
I’m talking about a slowish race. Obviously Nico is in much better 10k shape than Birnbaum and has two years in the NCAA under his belt already, so if it’s a fast one he’ll be a cut above. But tactically Birnbaum is a better racer and is known for having a deadly kick. Hence why other runners have tried before to set a good pace that Birnbaum can’t keep up with to avoid a sit and kick situation.
Nico has been in the NCAA three years already; this is his 4th/senior year. And saying that Simeon is tactically a better racer than Nico? I don't know about that. Think about the Arcadia 3200 against Cole Sprout, the Bryan Clay 5k B heat this past spring, and the dome mile in winter '22 when Nico beat Luis. It's not like Nico has never closed strongly or picked up spots in a final straight before.
Simeon is definitely the better 800 runner, but let's not get ahead of ourselves here.
This video is dedicated to Matt Withrow and his incredible 2003 cross country season. The video is to "Dream On" by Aerosmith, and the quote is poem "Our Dee...
Daaaam..okay, I'm not a huge fan of redshirting true freshmen (18-year-olds, first year of university) who are on fire (aka, doing really well) their first year of university. they might only run 2-3 years of university anyway, and then go pro. why waste them? or waste their eligibility.
Wasn't there a guy at Wisconsin who was doing really well his frosh year, and Jerry Schaumacher decided to "save him"/redshirt him his freshmen year. But he really should've run at natty's. Can't remember his name offhand. IIRC, he then got injured his soph year.
Echohawk #23, also really good for a true freshman.
That 23 for Echohawk is awesome, he’s primarily been more of an 800/mile type and it’s pleasantly surprising to see him doing well at D1 level XC off of one summer base of oregon’s program.