The Florida A&M men’s track team, which has displayed strong performances all season, looks to continue its success in Clemson, S.C. during Friday’s Tiger Paw International.
Garnering success in Clemson would provide a solid base to build on as the Mid-Eastern Conference Indoor Championship nears on Feb. 16.
FAMU has ranked in the top ten in both the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association poll and the Indoor Track & Field poll for three weeks straight.
The Rattlers said they are excited about this week’s competition because it is one-step closer to the MEAC Championship.
“Our goal is to run very fast to put ourselves in the position to be seeded right in the MEAC Championship,” head coach Wayne Angel said. “We want to make sure our sprinters are faster. We want to make sure our distance guys are faster. We want to make sure that are jumpers are ready to do what they need to do, so that when we go in the meet, we have no reservations about what we came there to do.”
Angel said he is also looking forward to strong performances from their sprinters and jumpers, specifically the triple jump and their distance runners.
“In all those areas, we may not be as deep as we want to be but we have a lot of quality. So we’re really excited about that,” Angel said.
Team members said their morale is high because of recent success and plan to keep it going.
“The goal is to get better every week,” said Jeremy Tillman, whoblazed to a second place finish (6.77) in the 60m dash during the Niswonger Invitational two weeks ago. Tillman said he is shooting for a top-20 finish by finishing the 60m in at least 6.6 seconds.
Niko Richey, who participated in the second-place 4 x 400m relay team during the Niswonger Invite, has recovered from a hamstring pull and sprained ankle. He will run healthy for the first time and said he is excited about competing injury-free.
“It’s the meet that’s getting us ready for the championship,” Richey said.
Tillman said the team looks forward to representing FAMU during Clemson’s meet. He said the team is confident and looks forward to competing.
“We’re always aiming to win,” he said.