McLeod, Geopfert Named USTFCCCA National Award Finalists

NEW ORLEANS -- Tennessee sophomore Carey McLeod and associate head coach Travis Geopfert have been selected by members of the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) as national award finalists for the 2020 indoor track & field season. McLeod is one of three finalists for National Men's Field Athlete of the Year, while Geopfert is one of three finalists for National Men's Assistant Coach of the Year.

National award finalists were voted on by USTFCCCA member coaches from a pool of regional award winners, write-ins and additional candidates determined by the national office staff. Two weeks ago, McLeod was tabbed as the NCAA DI South Region Men's Field Athlete of the Year for the indoor season, while Geopfert earned the regional Men's Assistant Coach of Year award.

Carey McLeod • NCAA DI National Men's Field Athlete of the Year Finalist
McLeod has made an immediate impact for the Vols in his first season on Rocky Top. The Kingston, Jamaica, native scored a team-high 18 points at the SEC Championships, taking home gold in the long jump and silver in the triple jump. He was UT's first SEC men's long jump champion since 1995 and first men's triple jump medalist since 2007.

With a season-best long jump of 8.19 meters (26-10.5) at the conference meet, McLeod sits atop the NCAA performance list by a wide margin of eight centimeters. His mark ranks fourth in the world for the 2019-20 indoor season and No. 17 in collegiate indoor history.

McLeod finished second in the triple jump at the SEC Championships with a performance of 16.49 meters (54-1.25), just one centimeter shy of the gold medal. His season-best mark of 16.68 meters (54-8.75) is the No. 2 performance in the NCAA and No. 19 performance in the world for 2020.

Travis Geopfert • NCAA DI National Men's Assistant Coach of the Year Finalist
Now in his second season with the Vols, Geopfert has revitalized Tennessee jumps and combined events to compete on the SEC and national level. On the men's side, his athletes scored 35 points at the SEC Indoor Championships as UT finished 5th in the team standings — good for the Vols' highest placement at the indoor conference meet since 2009.

During the regular season, Geopfert coached Tennessee high jumper Darryl Sullivan to a clearance of 2.33 meters (7-7.75) at the Virginia Tech Invitational, which tied the all-time SEC indoor record and No. 4 jump in collegiate indoor history. Sullivan still stands as the world leader in the high jump this season, and he recently made his second-straight appearance on the men's watch list for The Bowerman — collegiate track & field's highest individual honor.

In addition to McLeod's historic podium performances at the SEC Championships, Geopfert guided Sullivan (high jump) and Jalen Tate (triple jump) to respective fourth- and fifth-place finishes at the conference meet.

In the SEC men's heptahlon, Geopfert coached two freshmen to scoring performances as Yariel Soto (5,498 points) and Peyton Davis (5,204) placed fourth and sixth respectively. It was the first time UT had two top-8 finishers in the event since 2008. Soto's total of 5,498 points ranked No. 7 on the Tennessee all-time top 10 list, and his fourth-place finish at SECs was the best for the Vols since 2009.

Geopfert is a two-time indoor National Assistant Coach of the Year award winner, earning the honors back-to-back seasons in 2013 and 2014 during his previous stint as an assistant coach at Arkansas.

A complete listing of the USTFCCCA Division I National Award Finalists can be viewed below. For the most up-to-date information on Tennessee track & field, follow @Vol_Track on Twitter.

National Men's Track Athlete of the Year – Finalists
Trey Cunningham, Florida State
Tyler Day, Northern Arizona
Randolph Ross, North Carolina A&T

National Men's Field Athlete of the Year – Finalists
Gleb Dudarev, Kansas
Carey McLeod, Tennessee
Chris Nilsen, South Dakota

National Men's Coach of the Year – Finalists
Ron Helmer, Indiana
Dennis Shaver, LSU
Michael Smith, Northern Arizona

National Men's Assistant Coach of the Year – Finalists
Travis Geopfert, Tennessee
Todd Lane, LSU
Ben Thomas, Oregon

National Women's Track Athlete of the Year – Finalists
Nia Akins, Penn
Dani Jones, Colorado
Tonea Marshall, LSU

National Women's Field Athlete of the Year – Finalists
Tyra Gittens, Texas A&M
Olivia Gruver, Washington
Jasmine Moore, Georgia

National Women's Coach of the Year – Finalists
Lance Harter, Arkansas
Dennis Shaver, LSU
Caryl Smith Gilbert, Southern California

National Women's Assistant Coach of the Year – Finalists
Sean Brady, Texas A&M
Tim Hall, Kentucky
Justin St. Clair, North Dakota State

University of Tennessee Athletics

McLeod, Geopfert Named USTFCCCA National Award Finalists

Players Mentioned

Peyton Davis

Carey McLeod

Yariel Soto

Darryl Sullivan

Jalen Tate

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