With the SEC Indoor Championship starting on Feb. 27, the Longhorns will seek to win back-to-back conference championships for the women’s team after winning the Big 12 Indoor Championship last season. The men’s team finished third in the conference champions last year. It will also be the Longhorns’ first opportunity to claim an SEC indoor […]
With the SEC Indoor Championship starting on Feb. 27, the Longhorns will seek to win back-to-back conference championships for the women’s team after winning the Big 12 Indoor Championship last season. The men’s team finished third in the conference champions last year. It will also be the Longhorns’ first opportunity to claim an SEC indoor title.
More recently, Texas athletes continue to build toward the end of the indoor season. With two invitationals and a qualifier remaining, Texas will have a few more opportunities to prepare for the Indoor Championships.
With impressive histories now intertwined, Texas has yet another opportunity to demonstrate why it deserves to have the SEC as its new home. Texas has looked impressive, earning nine event wins at the MLK Jr. Invitational on Jan. 24 and a win in shot put in the New Mexico Collegiate Classic on Saturday. In pole vault, senior Sam Hurley moved to No. 2 on the Texas all-time performer list after the invitational, and sophomore Sophia Kowalski moved to No. 6 after the invitational. Texas performed well in other events too, with junior Logan Popelka moving up to No. 4 in the 400-meter and freshman Meagan Humphries moving to No. 4 in the pentathlon.
With Texas included in the count, an SEC member has won the national championship in men’s indoor track and field 33 times since 1965 and women’s indoor track and field 27 times since 1983. All the other conferences combined have 39 wins in men’s and women’s indoor championships, compared to the 60 won by the SEC.
The men’s track and field team has found more recent national success as a team. The Longhorns won the program’s first-ever team national championship in 2022, the squad headed by current head coach Edrick Floréal.
Track and field’s spring season is just around the corner, and the Southeastern Conference Indoor Championship is weeks away, meaning it’s time to take a look at where the team may find itself compared to the rest of the conference.
As a team, Texas also has a track record of success, dating back to 1986 for women’s track and field’s first national championship victory. From that point, the women’s team would go on to win five more team championships and currently has the third most all-time amongst NCAA Division I programs with six. The team’s latest victory occurred in 2006 after outscoring second-place Stanford 51–36.
Two-time All-American sophomore Akala Garrett will also be depended upon for the Longhorn’s championship hopes. The 2024 600-yard Big 12 Indoor Champion recently spent her summer in Eugene, Oregon, to compete for a spot on the Olympic team. Garrett didn’t make the team in the 400-meter hurdles, finishing seventh out of nine.
Texas’ individual talent will be a major factor in their ability to garner a win at the Indoor Championships.
Since Texas has made the SEC its new home, it has added to the conference’s already extensive resume.
