Ajayi Returns, Ogazi Stays Strong on Bowerman Watch List
Auburn’s Kayinsola Ajayi has returned to The Bowerman Watch List after missing out in the previous update, while Alabama’s Samuel Ogazi continues his consistent run since first making the list earlier this season.
This latest update comes just days before the NCAA DI Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon, where both athletes will look to solidify their cases for collegiate track and field’s highest individual honor.
Ajayi’s reappearance follows his blistering 9.84 (+0.7) in the 100m at the NCAA East First Rounds in Lexington, Kentucky, a performance that made him the second-fastest man in collegiate history behind 2017 Bowerman winner Christian Coleman.
His indoor season had already tied Coleman’s 60m collegiate record of 6.45 on two occasions, underscoring his place among the nation’s elite sprinters.
Ogazi, meanwhile, has been a fixture on the Watch List thanks to his dominance in the 400m.
The Alabama standout captured the NCAA indoor title in March with a 44.57, equaling the recognized world record. Outdoors, he has only gotten faster, clocking 44.02, 43.95, and most recently 43.82, all marks that rank among the top ten in collegiate history. He enters Eugene as the favorite to complete the season sweep.
Since its debut in 2010, The Bowerman Watch List has carried weight: every athlete who appeared on the final list has gone on to win the award in December.
Update No. 6 of the Men’s Watch List also includes: Simeon Birnbaum (Oregon), Tah Chikomba (Kansas State), Geoffrey Kirwa (Louisville), Colin Sahlman (Northern Arizona), Habtom Samuel (New Mexico), Texas Tanner (Air Force), Ja’Kobe Tharp (Auburn), and Jelani Watkins (Arkansas).
