The Red and Black

Issue date: 6/25/09 Section: Sports

GAYMON

There are definitive speed bumps ahead, but the Georgia Track & Field team is poised for a bright future.

The Bulldogs took several major strides in the 2009 outdoor campaign toward once again establishing themselves as a national power within the men and women's ranks - although those strides couldn't have been more polarizing.

Head coach Wayne Norton proclaimed the women's program in a "rebuilding mode" from the start of the season, and there were many instances where his declaration held obvious rings of truth.

The women failed to score a point at the NCAA Championships and sent just two competitors. For comparison, national champion Texas A&M sent 17 women to the championship meet.

However, the 2009 women's squad was young and looks to be more competitive next season with many of their top athletes returning.

Both NCAA Championship participants, javelin thrower Michelle Thompson and sprinter Georgina Nembhard, will be back to lead the charge.

The Lady Bulldogs program is rich with track history, with many national top-10 finishes and a Southeastern Conference title under its belt, so expectations are that this dry spell will not have lasting effects.

Though the results were not blatant, the Georgia women took many steps in the right direction in 2009.

On the other hand, the men's side made improvements - and the results were obvious. On the heels (and mainly shoulders) of four All-Americans, the Bulldog men placed 11th at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, their best finish since 2002.

Georgia's men were led by one of the nation's top throwing teams, who tallied three scorers at nationals with hammer throwers Nate Rolfe and John Freeman, as well as national javelin champion Chris Hill. Six-time All-American senior Justin Gaymon finished off the Bulldog effort, placing third in the 400-meter hurdle event.

"A program is either growing or dying and I think this shows we are definitely growing," Norton said in a news release. "Having this many current or former team members in a meet like this shows that we have some life and some growth in this program.

"It also displays that we have some athletes who are (SEC) champions and scorers and All-Americans," Norton said. "We are getting more and more of this type of competitors and having this many team members who competed for us in the last two years shows what direction this program is going."

Though the men's squad is taking an enormous hit from the early departure of Hill, as well as from senior NCAA scorers Gaymon and Rolfe, optimism abounds from everyone involved with the program.

Youth and talent prevail in many events, so there looks to be little overall drop-off in 2010 - if any.

This year's incoming recruiting class is one of the most talented in years, one that can be contributed to Norton assembling an all-star-caliber coaching staff and the millions of dollars being spent on renovations to Spec Towns Track.

There is much work to be done to restore national prominence on a consistent basis, but both teams are on the upswing, with the potential to be on the national stage for many years to come.

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