COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State men’s track and field season came to an unexpected end prior to the 2020 NCAA Indoor Championships, but the Buckeyes achieved new personal-best times and distances, individual event titles and accolades along with Big Ten medals and national rankings.
The 2019-20 campaign got underway with the highly-anticipated Jim Green Invitational hosted by the University of Kentucky. This meet would open the gates of continued success for the Buckeyes as they showed the rest of the NCAA what they’ve been working on during the off-season.
Domination in Kentucky
The Buckeyes claimed 15 top-five finishes during the Jim Green Invitational along with three career-best performances. Although the meet wasn’t scored, it was evident that Ohio State stood out among the 17 programs at the meet including in-state foes Xavier and Cincinnati.
Some highlights of the meet included:
B1G evening for sophomore Garett Doyle as he takes 🥈 in weight throw with a CAREER BEST distance of 19.61m💪🌰#GoBucks #DevelopedHere pic.twitter.com/w6hi82PqUb
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) January 11, 2020
Freshmen are on a ROLL💥
Clarence Foote-Talley wins the triple jump title with a distance of 16.09-meters‼️🤯#GoBucks #WeNotMe pic.twitter.com/ITI8Tev7VL— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) January 11, 2020
Simmons-Harvey Invite Runner-up
Next, the Buckeyes traveled north to Ann Arbor, Mich., to compete in the Simmons-Harvey Invite hosted by the University of Michigan. The event was a tri-meet between Ohio State, Michigan State and Michigan. The Wolverines won the meet with 126 points, Ohio State placed second with 113 points and Michigan State was third with 53 points.
Eric Harrison Jr. claims the 60-meter dash title with a time of 6.74!
Kainnan Ramsey takes third for the Buckeyes with a time of 6.89!#GoBucks #WeNotMe pic.twitter.com/OSRYlACdom
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) January 18, 2020
Foote-Talley does it again‼️ The freshman wins the men’s triple jump with a distance of 14.36-meters🌰
Not to mention this is his second consecutive event title and he’s No. 2 in the nation in triple jump🤯#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/Mggr2YmU9T
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) January 18, 2020
RJ Russell takes the 600-meter title for the men with a time of 1:20.03!#GoBucks #WeNotMe pic.twitter.com/JXhH0AbWFT
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) January 18, 2020
Columbia Challenge
At the Dr. Sanders Columbia Challenge, hosted by Columbia University, Ohio State finished with 44 team points to take seventh. Some highlights included:
Eric Harrison takes🥉in the men’s 60-meter dash to conclude day one of the Columbia Challege‼️💥#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/ww9548Idga
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) January 24, 2020
RJ Russell takes 🥈 in the men’s 400-meter dash with a career best time of 48.77‼️🔥#GoBucks #WeNotMe pic.twitter.com/DXqMx7Q8s2
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) January 25, 2020
Texas Tech
At the Texas Tech Invitational, where 11 programs were in attendance including No. 1 Florida State and No. 3 Southern California, the Buckeyes ended the competition with six top-eight finishes.
RJ Russell takes 🥉 in the men’s 600-meter run with a time of 1:18.58‼️🔥#GoBucks #WeNotMe pic.twitter.com/v6WYiIhh1J
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) February 1, 2020
Freshman Shaun Miller takes 🥈 in the men’s high jump with a personal record height of 2.09-meters‼️🔥
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) February 1, 2020
Notre Dame Meyo Invite
Ohio State was able to register eight top-ten finishes in a field of more than 20 programs and achieved ten personal records at the Meyo Invitational on the campus of the University of Notre Dame.
Ryan Harrington takes fourth in the men’s 400-meter dash with a career best time of 48.02‼️‼️#GoBucks #WeNotMe pic.twitter.com/kl6DZG8u0L
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) February 8, 2020
Cameron Cooper takes 🥉 in the championships 800-meter run with a CAREER BEST time of 1:49.33‼️🔥#GoBucks #WeNotMe pic.twitter.com/oBFM0oQ280
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) February 8, 2020
Buckeye Split
Ohio State was split into three groups and competed in three different meets the weekend of Feb. 14-16. Sprinters and jumpers traveled to Clemson, SC, middle distance and distance runners competed in the Iowa State Classic while throwers and pole vaulters stayed close to home and competed in Kent, Ohio. The men were able to secure 11 top-ten finishes and ten career-bests.
Robby Oswald claims fourth in the men’s pole vault with a cleared height of 5.22-meters, tying his career best‼️#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/ED3iVjMAKK
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) February 15, 2020
Men’s 4×4 relay ends the Tiger Paw Invite with a second 🥈 place showing‼️
Donnie Jame▶️Tyler Johnson▶️Andre Jeff▶️RJ Russell#GoBucks
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) February 15, 2020
Alex Wilson Invite
The Buckeyes competed in the Alex Wilson Invitational Saturday, Feb. 22, hosted by Notre Dame. The Buckeyes were able to end the meet with six top ten finishes during their second meet in South Bend.
Cameron Cooper takes fourth in the men’s 800-meter run (1:50.39)‼️#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/QoHs4fE6Sh
— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) February 22, 2020
Big Ten Championships
Ohio State fought hard during the Big Ten Indoor Championships, ending it with 57 team points to take fifth place overall. The Buckeyes claimed ten top-eight finishes and collected four medals.
Big Ten Finishes
Eric Harrison – 5. 60m 6.72; 5. Eric Harrison 21.14
Tyler Johnson – 2. 200m 20.87; 2. 400m 45.97; 2. 4×400 3:06.12
Donnie James – 6. 200m 21.15; 2. 4×400 3:06.12
Andre Jeff – 7. 200m 21.32
Ryan Harrington – 3. 600m 1:17.57; 2. 4×400 3:06.12
Shaun Miller – 7. High Jump 2.08m
Clarence Foote-Talley – 2. Triple Jump 15.88m
🚨Meet Day🚨
This is what we’ve been working for😤
B1G Info: https://t.co/oxjhdAnkKj
#GoBucks #WeNotMe pic.twitter.com/M0V8dQ1QLT— Ohio State T&F/XC (@OhioStateTFXC) February 28, 2020