Completed Event: Track and Field at Battle on the Bayou on April 3, 2026 ,
Final
Track and Field
at Battle on the Bayou
University of Oklahoma Athletics
Sooner Men Ranked 12th in National T&F Poll
March 01, 2005 | Track and Field
NORMAN, Okla. The OU men's track and field team moved to 12th place in the eighth week of the Trackwire Top 25 poll. The Sooners are just three points shy of the top 10.
Meanwhile, junior DaBryan Blanton, the defending 60-meter NCAA champion, moved to the top spot in the Dandy Dozen after his second place finish at the ninth annual Big 12 Championships last weekend.
Arkansas continues to hold the top spot in the poll which projects a hypothetical score for the NCAA meet, factoring in injury reports and NCAA qualifying competitions from across the country. The projection is generated by the Dandy Dozen, a power ranking of the top 12 athletes and relay squads in each NCAA event.
OU was unranked the first two weeks of the indoor season and was ranked 17th in the third poll. The Sooners dropped to 19th in the fourth poll after not competing the weekend of Jan. 29-30, then moved into a tie for 18th in the fifth poll. After a solid weekend of performances on Feb. 11-12, OU jumped seven spots in the poll, moving into a tie for 11th in the sixth poll before taking over sole possession of 11th in the seventh poll of the season.
The Sooners are one of seven Big 12 men's teams ranked in the top 25. Other ranked teams include Nebraska (fourth), Texas (ninth), Texas Tech (T-13th), Kansas State (15th), Texas (T-22nd) and Baylor (T-24th).
The factors used to build the Dandy Dozen include quantitative values that measure performances in past major competitions (such as conference championships, national championships and Olympic competition), durability and freedom from injuries, demonstrated ability to compete well in multiple rounds of competition, ability in other events, head-to-head competition with other top athletes, and personal or seasonal bests.
Blanton, who posted an NCAA automatic qualifying time in the 60 with a 6.61 in the conference semifinals, moved up to first after the previous number one runner, Tyson Gay, skipped the Southeastern Conference meet and is day-to-day because of an injury. Blanton had been ranked second in each of the previous seven Dandy Dozen lists released this season.
Blanton finished second in the Big 12 final on Saturday, marking the first time this season for him to finish second in the 60. He has won six of seven races in the 60 this season after winning 10 of 11 races in 2004. He is currently ranked third in the country on the NCAA qualifier's list.
Senior Aldwyn Sappleton is ranked third in the 800 in the Dandy Dozen after posting a 1:47.43 at the Cyclone Classic on Feb. 12. He jumped into the rankings for the first time on Feb. 15 after the ISU meet. The time lowered the school record by nearly a second. It is an automatic qualifying time for the NCAA meet and is the best time in the country in the 800 by nearly .30 seconds. Sappleton was named Big 12 Male Track and Field Athlete of the Week on Feb. 15 after his victory at the Cyclone Classic.
Sappleton won the Big 12 title in the 800 on Saturday, slipping around a pack of runners on the next-to-last curve, then sprinting down the home stretch to win by more than a second. His winning time set a meet record and beat the two runners currently ranked ahead of him in the Dandy Dozen.
Sophomore Scott Martin, who finished second at the Big 12 meet Friday in the pole vault with a 17-9.25, remains fourth in the Dandy Dozen list. He opened the season in 12th place and held that spot for two weeks. He moved up to fourth in the third poll and was third for two weeks after winning the J.D. Martin Invitational with a career best 17-6.5 He improved that provisional qualifying mark to 17-8.5 and finished fourth at the Tyson Invitational on Feb. 12. He dropped to fourth in the sixth poll after that performance and remained fourth in the seventh week of the poll after winning the Sooner Indoor with his fifth NCAA provisional mark in five competitions. The win at the Sooner Indoor was his fourth in five competitions this season
His mark at the Big 12 meet was another career best and marks the sixth time in six competitions for Martin to record an NCAA provisional qualifying mark this season. Martin is currently tied for fourth in the country on the NCAA qualifiers's list.
This week marks the final opportunity for athletes to record NCAA qualifying marks and several Sooners will be traveling this weekend to Qualifier Meets. The final decision on which athletes will compete and which meets they will attend is scheduled to be made later this week.
Saturday, June 13
Friday, June 12
Thursday, June 11
Wednesday, June 10
