The sixth edition of the Bowerman men's and women's watch lists for 2024 were released on May 15 and 16, with 10 athletes per gender making the cut. I've taken a look at both lists and ranked the athletes 1-10 to show who's in the lead for the Bowerman at this point in the season.
Keep in mind that these are my rankings of the already-announced Bowerman candidates listed on the Bowerman watch list, based on past performances and future projections. This is not an indication of how the Bowerman committee voted or will vote in the future.
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I am using evaluations from the ranking I did after the fifth watchlist update in these rankings too and will reference those in this article at points. There were only two weeks between this watch list and the last, and most athletes only participated in one conference championship during that time frame. As a result, performances during that time frame will be the main catalysts for changes.
That said, here's my ranking of the athletes on the sixth Bowerman watch list update.
Women
Who dropped out in watch list No. 6 (Stan's previous ranking): Lamara Distin, Texas A&M (9), Jacious Sears, Tennessee (10)
1. Parker Valby, Florida (Distance) | Prev: 1
In Parker Valby's most recent outing, she won the SEC Championship in the 5000 meters with the fourth-fastest time in NCAA history of 15:07.86. That's another all-time mark to boost the Florida superstar's hold on the top spot.
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2. Maia Ramsden, Harvard (Mid-Distance/Distance) | Prev: 2
In May, Maia Ramsden won Ivy League titles in the 1500 and 5000 meters. There are no signs of slippage from Ramsden, and no one's done enough to knock her from No. 2 on these rankings.
3. Brianna Lyston, LSU (Sprints) | Prev: 5
Brianna Lyston moves up to No. 3 after winning the SEC title in the 100 meters and finishing fourth in the 200 meters. Lyston is one of the top sprinters in the country and her consistency running sub-11 seconds gives her a legitimate shot at a potential 100-200 double if she makes it out of the first round of NCAA championships.
4. Rachel Glenn, Arkansas (Hurdles/Jumps) | Prev: 3
Rachel Glenn falls one spot in my Bowerman order after falling on the final hurdle for what would've been an SEC title in the 400 hurdles. Glenn also finished second in the high jump at SECs. Even with Glenn not winning an SEC title, she still projects to finish highly in both events by season's end.
5. Jasmine Jones, Southern California (Sprints/Hurdles) | Prev: 7
Jasmine Jones moves back into my top five after her outdoor season performances picked up. Jones won Pac-12 titles in the 100 hurdles and 400 hurdles, running the fastest time in the NCAA in the latter. Jones now has the outdoor performances to support her indoor season, and a potential spot as a Bowerman finalist could come down to who wins the 400 hurdles between Jones and Glenn.
6. JaMeesia Ford, South Carolina (Sprints) | Prev: 4
JaMeesia Ford still has an impressive Bowerman resume, even with dropping two spots in these rankings. Yet, Ford drops after finishing second in the 200 meters at SECs and 7th in the 100 meters. Looking ahead, Ford is only running in the 200 meters and relays for NCAA championships, so an indoor-outdoor 200m championship sweep could launch her back near the top of contention.
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7. Jaida Ross, Oregon (Throws) | Prev: 6
Jaida Ross hasn't done anything to drop one spot in these rankings; she won the Pac-12 shot put and discus throw titles. Yet, even with those two conference titles and two collegiate record book-topping shot puts, Ross falls one spot because she doesn't have an indoor title, and Jasmine Jones (last watch list's No. 7 ranked woman) does.
8. Michaela Rose, LSU (Mid-Distance) | Prev: 8
Michaela Rose won the SEC title in the 800 meters with the third-fastest race ever run to only herself and Athing Mu outdoors. She also helped LSU finish fifth in the SEC 4x400 meter relay. Rose is again having an impressive outdoor season and is only an outdoor NCAA title away from rising up this list.
9. Nickisha Pryce, Arkansas (Sprints) | Prev: NR
Nickisha Pryce makes her watch list debut after winning the SEC Championship in the 400m with the third-fastest time in NCAA history. During the indoor season, she finished second in the 400m and seventh in the 200m. She shouldn't be counted out on making a run to a Bowerman win, as her debut for update No. 6 is the same update that 2019 winner Sha'Carri Richardson made her debut.
Pryce enters these rankings one spot over another watch list debut member, thanks to being on the indoor winning team title team.
10. McKenzie Long, Ole Miss (Sprints) | Prev: NR
McKenzie Long also makes her watch list debut after winning an SEC title, taking the 200m crown. Long ran the sixth-fastest race in NCAA history in the win, and in the indoor season, finished second nationally in the 200. It'll likely take a collegiate record for Long to win the Bowerman, but like Pryce, Long can't be counted out yet.
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Men
Who dropped out in watch list No. 5 (Stan's last ranking): Graham Blanks, Harvard (10), Terrence Jones, Texas Tech (4)
1. Nico Young, Northern Arizona (Distance) | Prev: 1
Nico Young will only be competing in the 5000 meters at NCAAs, and in May, he went undefeated in the race at the Oxy Invitational and Big Sky championships. Young only competing in one event at NCAAs shortens the gap he had the potential to create in the Bowerman race, but he's still in the lead entering the first round of competition.
2. Christopher Morales Williams, Georgia (Sprints) | Prev: 2
At this point, we're just waiting for Christopher Morales Williams to run 43 seconds in the 400 meters. He ran 44.05 to win the SEC title, the sixth-fastest time all-time. Morales Williams did so a week after competing in the World Relays for Canada. With fresher legs during championship season, Michael Norman's collegiate record of 43.61 could be in reach.
3. Leo Neugebauer, Texas (Combined Events) | Prev: 3
We saw Leo Neugebauer win the Big 12 long jump title and finish fourth in the Big 12 discus in May. We haven't seen the decathlete compete in the decathlon since March, but we haven't had to because he already clinched his berth in Eugene with the third-most points ever. We're in wait-and-see mode for how he does at national championships.
4. Wayne Pinnock, Arkansas (Jumps) | Prev: 5
There's no movement for Wayne Pinnock here, who never trailed in his SEC long jump win.
5. Romaine Beckford, Arkansas (Jumps) | Prev: 6
Romaine Beckford stays in the top five after winning the SEC high jump title.
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6. Colin Sahlman, Northern Arizona (Mid-Distance) | Prev: 7
Colin Sahlman's two Big Sky titles in the 800 and 1500 meters help him stay above Chris Robinson and Sam Whitmarsh.
7. Chris Robinson, Alabama (Sprints/Hurdles) | Prev: 8
Chris Robinson won the SEC 400 hurdles title and ran leadoff on the second-place 4x4 relay at SECs. He's still my favorite to win the 400 hurdles at NCAAs in Oregon, so he still has a shot at being a potential finalist.
8. Sam Whitmarsh, Texas A&M (Sprints/Mid-Distance) | Prev: 9
Sam Whitmarsh won the SEC 800 meter title, but that still isn't enough to move up the list. He'll need some big performances at NCAAs and other athletes to falter to climb the rankings.
9. Tarsis Orogot, Alabama (Sprints) | Prev: NR
The latest any Bowerman winner has ever appeared on a watch list all-time was update No. 5, so it's unlikely Tarsis Orogot, the newest entrant, can make a push for the award. Nonetheless, Orogot is worthy of a spot on the watch list after running the third-fastest 200 meters in NCAA history at 19.75 seconds to win an SEC title.
10. Ja'Kobe Tharp, Auburn (Hurdles) | Prev: NR
Ja'Kobe Tharp rounds out the list after he broke the American U20 110m hurdles record set by Renaldo Nehemiah in 1978 with a 13.18-second finish to win the SEC title. Tharp ran that time after celebrating through the line; it's feasible he can run sub-13.10.
Yet, like Orogot, history shows it's likely too late for Tharp to make a push for the Bowerman.
: Arkansas, Texas Tech win 2024 indoor titles | Florida, Arkansas win 2024 outdoor titles | How the outdoor championships work
💥HISTORY: Programs with the most titles | Men's champ history | Women's champ history | Bowerman history
🧠 WHAT TO KNOW: Wind and scoring explained | Greatest venues | Best uniforms | The difference between indoor and outdoor seasons
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