The Bowerman: 2026 Men’s Preseason Watch List
NEW ORLEANS – New year. Same goal.
Win The Bowerman.
Here are the ten athletes on the Men’s Preseason Watch List for The Bowerman in 2026: Mykolas Alekna of Oregon, Peyton Bair of Oregon, James Corrigan of BYU, Gary Martin of Virginia, Ralford Mullings of Oklahoma, Brian Musau of Oklahoma State, Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan of Ole Miss, Habtom Samuel of New Mexico, Jonathan Seremes of Texas Tech, and Ja’Kobe Tharp of Auburn. This group features 2025 finalist Tharp, along with four other returning semifinalists in Alekna, Corrigan, Mullings, and Musau.
The Bowerman Men’s Watch List
| Year | Team | Events | Hometown | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mykolas Alekna | RS SR | Oregon | Discus | Vilnius, Lithuania |
| Peyton Bair | SR | Oregon | Combined Events | Kimberly, Idaho |
| James Corrigan | RS JR | BYU | Mid-Distance/Steeple | Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Gary Martin | SR | Virginia | Mid-Distance/Distance | Warminster, Va. |
| Ralford Mullings | SR | Oklahoma | Throws | Kingston, Jamaica |
| Brian Musau | JR | Oklahoma State | Distance | Machakos, Kenya |
| Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan | SR | Ole Miss | Throws | Woonsocket, R.I. |
| Habtom Samuel | JR | New Mexico | Distance | Keren, Eritrea |
| Jonathan Seremes | JR | Texas Tech | Jumps | Paris, France |
| Ja’Kobe Tharp | JR | Auburn | Hurdles | Murfreesboro, Tenn. |
ALSO RECEIVING VOTES: BJ Green, Oklahoma (Jumps); T’Mars McCallum, Tennessee (Sprints); Chinecherem Nnamdi, Texas A&M (Javelin); Samuel Ogazi, Alabama (Sprints); Tarsis Orogot, Alabama (Sprints); Aleksandr Solovev, Texas A&M (Pole Vault); JC Stevenson, Southern California (Sprints/Jumps); Tyrice Taylor, Arkansas (Mid-Distance)
NEXT UPDATE: February 5
Alekna, who hails from Vilnius, Lithuania, left his name all over the record book in 2025. Most notably, he shattered the world record for the second consecutive year – this time his own – by launching the discus 75.56m (247-10) at the Oklahoma Throws Series World Invitational. That mark capped a historic competition in which he also opened with a then-WR 74.89m (245-8) throw. Alekna owns nine of the ten farthest throws in collegiate history, including the top four marks, all achieved last year. He is still seeking his first NCAA title after finishing runner-up twice and third once in three seasons. Alekna is now tied with two-time finalist Lawi Lalang and former Georgia standout Kendell Williams for the third most appearances in Watch List history with 24. He is also the first athlete to appear on a Watch List across five different years.
Bair, who hails from Kimberly, Idaho, is the reigning King of the Combined Events, sweeping the NCAA heptathlon and decathlon titles in 2025. The former Mississippi State standout, now at Oregon, dominated at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships, winning the decathlon by 435 points – the third-largest margin in meet history. During the competition, he set collegiate decathlon event records in both the 100 meters (10.25) and the 400 meters (46.00).
Corrigan, who hails from Los Angeles, California, ran into the record book at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships last year. The BYU standout clocked an in-season PR of 8:16.43 to capture the NCAA title and become the fourth fastest performer in collegiate history. Corrigan put together a strong outdoor season that included a double at the Big 12 Championships, where he won both the steeplechase and 5000 meters with meet record times. This is the fifth time that Corrigan has appeared on The Bowerman Watch List.
Martin, who hails from Warminster, Pennsylvania, has yet to win an NCAA title, but ranks among the top ten in collegiate history in four events. The Virginia standout is No. 2 in the mile (3:48.82, just 0.50 seconds off the collegiate record), No. 4 in the 1500 meters (3:33.71), No. 5 in the indoor 3000 meters (7:36.09), and No. 8 in the indoor 5000 meters (13:05.57). He is also the only male athlete in collegiate history with two all-time top-ten performances in the 3000 meters. This is the third time that Martin has appeared on The Bowerman Watch List.
Mullings, who hails from Kingston, Jamaica, has thrown the discus farther than anybody in collegiate history not named Alekna – the man he beat last year for the NCAA title in Eugene, Oregon. It was within the friendly confines of Hayward Field where the Oklahoma standout sent a 69.31m (227-5) PR to cement his status at No. 2 in collegiate history and nuke a 33-year-old meet record. Earlier in the season, Mullings whirled the platter 69.13m (226-10) to win the Texas Relays. He is the first Oklahoma male athlete to appear on the Watch List since Mookie Salaam in 2011.
Musau, who hails from Machakos, Kenya, doubled up on 5k titles last year. The Oklahoma State standout won both the indoor and outdoor crowns – the first to do so since Morgan McDonald in 2019. He also ranks among the top 15 athletes in collegiate history in both the indoor and outdoor versions. Musau is the first Oklahoma State male athlete to appear on the Watch List since Fouad Messaoudi in 2023.
Robinson-O’Hagan, who hails from Woonsocket, Rhode Island, returns to the Watch List for a ninth time and has been the nation’s premier shot putter since 2024. The Ole Miss standout has won three NCAA titles in the past two years, including the last two indoor crowns. As a junior in 2025, Robinson-O’Hagan set PRs in the shot put (21.11m/69-3¼), weight throw (24.35m/79-10¾), and hammer throw (76.78m/251-11).
Samuel, who hails from Keren, Eretria, picked up where he left off last year, continuing to post all-time marks. The New Mexico standout opened the 2026 season with a 13:05.21 over 5000 meters at the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener in early December – the sixth-fastest performance in collegiate history. Eight months earlier, Samuel shattered the outdoor collegiate record in the event with a 13:05.87 at the Bryan Clay Invitational. Samuel was a three-time NCAA runner-up last year, finishing second in both the indoor and outdoor 5000 meters, as well as the 10,000 meters. This is the ninth time that Samuel has appeared on the Watch List.
Seremes, who hails from Paris, France, went undefeated in the triple jump indoors last year and elected to redshirt the outdoor season before transferring from Missouri to Texas Tech. He bounded PR 17.04m (55-11) to win the NCAA title by nearly two feet. Seremes is the first Texas Tech male athlete to appear on the Watch List since Terrence Jones in 2024.
Tharp, who hails from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, probably needs no introduction after his accolades were well discussed on-stage at The Bowerman Presentation this past December. But for those uninitiated, Tharp ended the 2025 outdoor season the same way he did the indoor season – winning an NCAA title and becoming the fifth-fastest performer in collegiate history in that event. Outdoors it was the 110-meter hurdles at 13.15. Indoors it was the 60-meter version at 7.45. This is the tenth time that Tharp has appeared on the Watch List.
Eight other athletes received votes, but not enough to land on the Watch List: BJ Green of Oklahoma, T’Mars McCallum of Tennessee, Chincherem Prosper Nnamdi of Texas A&M, Samuel Ogazi of Alabama, Tarsis Orogot of Alabama, Aleksandr Solovev of Texas A&M, JC Stevenson of Southern California, and Tyrice Taylor of Arkansas.
The next Watch List will be released on February 5.
