All-American honors in track are strictly results based I'm pretty sure vs. voted on like other sports.
Top 8 in the national meet are 1st-team All-Americans and 9-16 are 2nd-team if I'm not mistaken. So by finishing 14th he makes 2nd-team All-American. Just a freshman, will be interesting to see how his career progresses. It's not atypical I feel like to see some track athletes actually decline a bit as they reach their upperclassmen years. Hopefully he can continue to improve and compete for 1st-team AA or even a podium finish or national championship before his career is up. A South Alabama athlete won the pole vault so it can be done.
Depends on some factors. Next year is an Olympic year, so he will be motivated to try and make the team. When you reach upperclassman status, unless you’re guaranteed a pro contract sponsorship, athletes will typically focus more on internships and job prospects, which is where the decline comes in. Not from lack of talent or athletic decline (most T&F athletes don’t decline until well into their 30’s with the right support structure), but more from life getting in the way.
Right now his S.B. places him 34th in the nation, which has him 10 spots outside the OTQ places & most pros aren’t jumping this year yet. He’s a couple feet away from top three OT contention.
It wouldn’t serve him to portal out, when you reach a good level you want to focus more on performance rather than outside factors. Moving to a new place, unless it is with great coaching, affects you more and risks injury. Coming into an Olympic year cycle, you stay put where you have a routine already.
