University of Tennessee Athletics
Tennessee Roster Set for NCAA Indoors
March 05, 2002 | Men's Track
March 5, 2002
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee's top-ranked track and field team travels to Arkansas this weekend for the NCAA Indoor Championships with one of the most elusive commodities in sports -- a rare second chance at the one that slipped away. After coming so close to the school's first SEC Indoor title since 1996 two weeks ago in Fayetteville, Ark., the Volunteers' aim turns to capturing the university's first NCAA Indoor title Friday and Saturday nights on the banked oval at the Randal Tyson Track Center.
"We have nine guys going for us and a couple of near misses with Stephen Harris (long jump) and Sean Lambert (sprints)," head coach Bill Webb said. "We need the same championship-caliber performances the Tennessee guys put in at the SEC Indoors. If someone offered me all those SEC performances again for nationals, I'd ask him where I could sign up for that. We've had great practices. We need good health and a lot of luck, and we could have a chance. First of all, you have to qualify well to get into the finals and have a chance to score. We can't take that for granted. We need a couple more guys to step up and give us a couple more points than we're expecting."
Tennessee sends Justin Gatlin and Leonard Scott to the starting line in the 60M and 200M dashes. Gatlin holds the top qualifying time thus far in both events, while Scott stands second-best nationally in the 60M dash and fourth-best in the 200M dash. Tennessee's 4x400M relay team (Gatlin, Dwayne Bell, Scott, Gary Kikaya) holds the nation's second-fastest time. Rocky Danners holds the third-best pole vault clearance on the collegiate landscape. In the 800M run, freshman Marc Sylvester stands fifth in the qualifying lot. Co-captain Tim Bell's sixth-best high jump effort made the cut. The Tennessee pair of Karl Jennings (seventh) and co-captain Hassaan Stamps (12th) will don the orange and white in the 60M hurdles. Gary Kikaya's 11th-best time reserves a lane for him in the 400M dash.
"The SEC is a huge factor in this meet," Webb said. "We don't put much credence in rankings, but I think the top three finishers will come from the SEC teams ranked in the top four nationally. Arkansas at home has to be the favorite. They're always tough on their home track, and they get to sleep in their own beds. Alabama has three superstars in Miguel Pate (long jump), David Kimani (distance) and Ron Bramlett (hurdles). Just those three guys could score 50 points to win the meet. LSU is similar with three or four superstars. They have two great 400M guys, the top 4x400M relay and Walter Davis (long jump and triple jump). I'm just not as familiar with the rest of the nation as I am the SEC, but a Villanova or Stanford or someone else will step up. I think Arkansas, Alabama, LSU and Tennessee will have another historic battle for the title."
Tennessee has never won the NCAA Indoor title. The Vols have taken three NCAA Outdoor titles (2001, 1991 and 1974), in addition to the 1972 NCAA Cross Country title. Tennessee's best NCAA Indoor finish came with runner-up performances in 1995, 1994 and 1985. Tennessee's 40 points in 1994 stand as a program-best in the NCAA Indoor meet. Last year, Tennessee took ninth with 19 points.
"The SEC Indoors for us were kind of like the U.S. in the Winter Olympics recently," head coach Bill Webb said. "Everyone was wowed by all the individual performances by Americans, but the Germans ended up with one more medal. I think we helped ourselves more for nationals at SECs than any other school, as Tim Bell's (high jump), Rocky Danners' (pole vault) and the 4x400M relay's performances come to mind. Our guys have been successful on that track."
