Frosh Look to Bolster UNC Sprinters

The North Carolina men's track and field team is younger than previous seasons, but that doesn't necessarily mean it lacks experience.

Of UNC coach Dennis Craddock's 43 team members, 13 are true freshmen, several of whom have national and international experience. The learning curve might be less steep for this highly touted group than for most freshmen.

Saturday's North Carolina College Big 12 meet in Chapel Hill was Craddock's first chance to gauge the kind of boost his young talent might provide.

"We're all considered pretty big recruits," freshman Curtis Fraser said. "We definitely feel some pressure given there's at least three of us with national experience (Fraser, Ryan Therrien, and Richard Allen III)."

Therrien finished eighth of 28 in the 400-meter, while Fraser finished 14th out of 28 in the 60-meter. Allen did not run due to a hamstring injury.

The rest of the team is anxious to see what this much anticipated class can do over the course of the season.

"I don't really listen to what anyone did in high school," said senior Joey Handy. "You never know whether any of it is legitimate or not. But training with them, I like Ryan's integrity on the track, I like his speed. Richard Allen is another one I train with, and you can just tell how tough he is."

It is no surprise that these freshman have impressed early on. It has been well noted that this is a big recruiting year for the Tar Heels, with several full and partial scholarships handed out this year on the men's side.

But what the freshmen are ultimately expected to do is improve the men's ACC standing. Last year, it finished fifth and third in the indoor and outdoor championships, respectively.

In 2002, UNC had conference indoor champions in the pole vault, discus, shot put and high jump.

Craddock said he hopes the freshmen will help fill the gaps in the other events, particularly the middle distances and sprints.

"We really need them in the sprints," Craddock said. "They've got to come of age quickly. We don't have time for them to grow up."

The seniors would like to see the freshmen live up to the hype. Handy said he wants to see a quick improvement specifically from the sprint squad.

"We didn't do very well, sprint-wise at ACCs (last year)," Handy said. "We felt like we let the team down. We weren't as competitive, and with the freshmen coming in, it will boost everyone up."

Fraser said he needs to improve on his time of 7.00 seconds in the 60-meter, but added that it is no cause for concern

"That was a pretty slow time, but I'm not worried because I know exactly what I need to work on," he said.

Although his team is young, Craddock said he'd like for his men's squad to match the recent success of the female side, which has won the last two ACC titles, and slide into a top 10 national ranking.

For that to happen, however, the freshmen will have to make significant contributions.

"They'll have to come a long ways," Craddock said.

The Sports Editor can be reached at sports@unc.edu.