Clemson Men’s Track And Field To Compete At ACC Championships

Feb. 14, 2002

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CLEMSON, SC – The Clemson men’s track and field team will compete at the ACC Indoor Track and Field Championships this Friday and Saturday in Chapel Hill, NC. The Tigers are in search of their 20th ACC title under Bob Pollock. Clemson has won the last five ACC Indoor Championships, claimed five Indoor titles between 1989-1993, have won eight outdoor titles in the last 14 years, and won the 1989 cross country championship. The Tigers claimed the 2001 ACC Indoor Championships with 181 points.

Tigers Eligible For NCAA Championships Three Tigers as well as Clemson’s 4x400m relay team have qualified for the 2002 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships to be held in Fayetteville, AR, Mar. 8-9. Larry Griffin and Todd Matthews posted qualifying marks at the Appalachian State meet in December, while Dwight Thomas qualified in February at the Virginia Tech Challenge. The Tigers’ 4x400m relay team also qualified in February at the Tyson Invitational. Griffin’s converted 60m time of 6.72 currently ranks him 25th among all qualifiers through Feb. 11.

Matthews’ converted 60m hurdles time of 7.79 ranks him fourth in the nation among all qualifiers through Feb. 11.

Thomas recorded a qualifying time of 6.71 in the 60m dash, ranking him 22nd nationally. He is ranked 13th in the 60m hurdles with a time of 7.84.

Clemson’s 4x400m relay team of Harper, Thomas, Spain and Modibo is ranked eighth overall with a time of 3:09.17.

Clemson In The ACC The Tigers are in the top 10 in the conference standings in every event, and Clemson has five Tigers who lead the league in their respective events.

Larry Griffin leads the league in the 55m dash with a time of 6.24. He also ranks third in the 60m dash (6.81).

Jacey Harper leads the ACC in the 200m with a time of 21.28. He is fourth in the league in the 60m dash with a time of 6.84.

Todd Matthews has the fastest time in the ACC in the 55m hurdles (7.26).

Dwight Thomas holds the fastest time in the conference in the 60m hurdles with a time of 7.84, and is also tied for the ACC lead in the 60m dash with a time of 6.71. Thomas also ranks second in the conference in the 200m dash with a time of 21.37.

Ato Modibo leads the league in the 400m dash with his provisional qualifying time of 46.88.

Clemson’s 4x400m relay team leads the league with its time of 3:09.17.

Other Tigers who rank in the top 10 in the 55m dash are Eugene Lee (6.26), George Kitchens (6.41), Michael Bolling (6.46), Shauntae Lovings (6.57) and Todd Matthews (6.60).

Clemson is the only school to have run the 55m hurdles this season. Lovings is second in the event with his time of 7.38, while Ian Potter and Rick Hill posted times of 7.48 and 7.94, respectively.

In the 60m dash, Larry Griffin, the 2001 ACC Indoor Rookie of the Year, is tied for second with Harper. Both have recorded a time of 6.81 this season.

Matthews ranks third in the 60m hurdles with a time of 7.94, and Potter and Lovings have times of 8.12 and 8.16, respectively.

Thomas is second in the conference in the 200m dash with a season-best time of 21.37.

Otto Spain has the third-fastest time in the league in the 400m dash (47.49), while Marcus Hodge is sixth in the 800m dash (1:53.76). Jason Meany leads the Tiger distance runners, ranking fifth in the 5,000m with a time of 14:43.53.

Clemson’s distance medley relay team is ranked sixth entering the ACC Championships.

Doug Ameigh leads three Tigers in the high jump, ranking third overall (6’11”). Terrance McDaniel and Bryant Howe are fourth and sixth in the high jump with marks of 6’10.75″ and 6’9.5″, respectively.

George Kitchens and Terrance Huey are tied for fourth in the long jump with marks of 23’11.5″, while Kai Maull is ninth (23’5.5″).

Andrew Kessler and Adam Klotzbach rank fourth and fifth, as they cleared 16’0.75″ and 15’7″, respectively.

Matt Lombardi ranks sixth in the shot put with a season-best mark of 50’2″.

Brett Varner ranks fourth in the weight throw with his mark of 58’5.25″. Colt Hodge is seventh in that event with a mark of 56’11.5″.

Last Time Out The Clemson men’s track and field team competed at the Virginia Tech Challenge in Blacksburg on Feb. 9. The Tigers were led by Dwight Thomas and Ato Modibo, who both provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championships. Clemson also set 26 season-best marks at the meet.

Thomas provisionally qualified in two events, finishing second in the 60m dash with a time of 6.71 and recording a time of 7.84 in the preliminaries of the 60m hurdles. His time in the hurdles places him fifth on Clemson’s all-time leaders list. Michael Bolling also finished in the top 10 in the 400m with a time of 48.59, good for ninth-place. Matt Gunn finished ninth in the 3000m with a season-best time of 8:32.59. Clemson’s 4x400m relay team of Thompson, Richards, Eure and Copes finished third with a time of 3:17.23.

In the field events, George Kitchens placed fifth with his mark of 23’5.5″. Andrew Kessler set another season-best mark in the pole vault, clearing 16’0.75″ to finish tied for third. Adam Klotzbach finished tied for sixth in the pole vault with a mark of 15’7″.

Clemson In The Rankings Clemson opened the ranking season with a ranking of 11th on Jan. 15. The Tigers’ climbed as high as eighth on Jan. 22, before falling into a tie for 10th on Jan. 29. Clemson continued its slide in the polls as the Tigers moved from a tie for 23rd (Feb. 5) to no ranking in the most recent poll (Feb. 12).

The Tigers currently stand in 11th in the Team Power Rankings with a score of 247.11. Clemson was tied for fourth in the Team Power Rankings on Jan. 29 with 236.91 points.

Tigers In The Record Books Nine Tigers are currently listed on Clemson’s all-time best list. Jacey Harper, Colt Hodge, Ryan Lewis, Todd Matthews, Kai Maull, Ato Modibo, Otto Spain, Dwight Thomas and Brett Varner all rank among the Tigers’ all-time leaders.

Harper ranks fourth on the 200m dash list with a time of 21.05. His time was set in 2001 at the Virginia Tech Last Chance Meet. Hodge is fifth on Clemson’s all-time list in the 35-pound weight throw. He posted a season-best mark of 56’11.5″ at the Kroger Invitational at Virginia Tech in 2002.

Lewis is tied for third on the indoor pole vault list. He posted his personal- best mark of 16’8.75″ at the Virginia Tech Invitational in 2000.

Matthews ranks third all-time in the 60m hurdles. He recorded a personal-best time of 7.73 at the 2001 ACC Indoor Championships.

Maull ranks in the top five in two events. He is Clemson’s all-time leader in the long jump with a personal best mark of 25’1.75″ set in 2001 at the Virginia Tech Last Chance Meet. Maull is also fifth in the triple jump with a mark of 50’7.25″ set at the 2001 ACC Indoor Championships.

Modibo is ranked in the top five in three events, and is Clemson’s all-time leader in the 300m and 500m. Modibo set a Tiger record time of 33.42 in the 300m at the 1999 Tiger Classic. He also set the school record of 1:01.80 in the 500m in 1999 at the Clemson Invitational. Modibo is second on the 400m all-time best list with a time of 46.00 set at the 1999 ACC Indoor Championships.

Spain is fourth on Clemson’s all-time best list in the 400m. He posted a time of 47.49 at the Virginia Tech Challenge in February.

Thomas entered the record books at fifth in the 60m hurdles after setting a time of 7.84 at the Virginia Tech Challenge this month.

Varner ranks third all-time in the 35-pound weight throw. He posted his personal-best mark of 58’5.25″ at the Tyson Invitational in February.

Clemson Wins 2001 ACC Indoor Track & Field Championships The Clemson Tigers won the team title with 181 points at the 2001 ACC Indoor Track and Field Championships. It was the fifth consecutive title and 11th overall championship for Clemson. The Tigers have won 10 of their 11 indoor championships under current head coach Bob Pollock.

In the 60m hurdles, Clemson swept the top three spots. Todd Matthews recorded an automatic qualifying time of 7.73 en route to the individual title. Sultan Tucker was second with a provisional qualifying time of 7.75 and Ian Potter finished third overall with a time of 7.99 The Tigers’ Jacey Harper claimed the 60m dash with a time of 6.74 while Larry Griffin was second in 6.89. Sultan Tucker was also a scorer for Clemson in the 60m with a sixth place finish (6.99).

The Tigers took the top three finishes in the 200m dash. Jacey Harper won the event in 21.35 while Ato Modibo was second in 21.50. Spain was third with a time of 21.66 and Maull was fifth in 21.91.

Clemson also swept the top three spots in the 400m dash. Modibo won the event with a provisional qualifying time of 46.57 while Otto Spain was second in 47.81. Garrick Copes took third for the Tigers with a time of 48.86.

Mike Connelly was a scorer for the Tigers in the 800m run with a time of 1:54.41. Scott Shaw posted a fourth-place finish in the one-mile run in 4:14.10, a Clemson season-best time. Jason Meany also finished fourth in the 5000m run with a time of 14:41.28 while Travis Alexander was 11th in 15:06.06. Meany was ninth in the 3000m run with a time of 8:28.25.

The Tigers 4x400m relay team of Spain, Harper, Copes and Modibo won the event in 3:14.08, a provisional qualifying time.

Doug Ameigh won the men’s high jump with a mark of 7’0.5″ while Malcolm Reynolds placed third (7’0.5″). Bryant Howe finished fifth with a mark of 6’8.75″.

Benjamin Hess placed fourth in the pole vault with a mark of 16’4.75″ and Adam Klotzbach was sixth (15’11”).

In the triple jump, Maull finished third with a mark of 50’7.25″ while Lloyd was fourth (49’5″). McDaniel posted a seventh place finish (47’5.75″) and Barrow was eighth with a mark of 47’4.5″.

Brett Varner finished fourth overall in the weight throw with a mark of 57’10.5″ and David Schenek was sixth with a mark of 57’0.75″.

Pollock Named 2001 Southeast Region Coach Of The Year Clemson men’s track and field coach Bob Pollock was named the 2001 Southeast Region Men’s Indoor Coach of the Year.

Pollock, in his 14th season at the helm of the Clemson program, earned his fifth- straight Southeast Region and ACC Coach of the Year awards in 2001 after the Tigers won their fifth consecutive ACC Indoor Championship with a school-record 181 points. Pollock has won 10 ACC Indoor titles during his tenure at Clemson. He has received 12 Region Coach of the Year honors in the last 13 years.

The Quest For 20th ACC Title Should the Tigers win the 2002 ACC Indoor Track and Field Championships, the victory would give head coach Bob Pollock his 20th ACC title during his tenure. In his first season with the Tigers, Pollock’s team claimed the 1989 ACC indoor title. Clemson won four more consecutive titles from 1990-1993 until Florida State ended the streak in 1994. The Tiger track and field team has won the last five ACC Indoor Championships (1997-2001). Clemson has also won eight ACC Outdoor Track and Field Championships, including the last two conference meets.

Clemson Under Pollock Under head coach Bob Pollock, the Tigers have won 10 of their 11 ACC Indoor Championships and have claimed 57 individual or relay conference championships. Pollock has received nine Coach of the Year honors, more than any other ACC coach since 1987. One of his greatest honors was bestowed in 1992 when he was named the National Indoor Coach of the Year after Clemson finished second at the NCAA Championships.

At the NCAA Championships, the Tigers have finished in the top 10 indoors six times under Pollock, including two second-place finishes (1992, 1993) and two third-place finishes (1998, 1999). Clemson has also had 62 athletes earn NCAA All-American honors indoors during Pollock’s tenure.