Bowerman Favorite Lands A Spot

Texas A&M's Jessica Beard — an Armory favorite who won the 400-meter dash at the 2011 New Balance Collegiate Invitational before anchoring the Aggies to victory in the 4x4 — had one eventful week.

She had two important calls. One from USA teammate Debbie Dunn to say that an injury had forced her withdrawal from the World Championships, meaning that Beard would have an opportunity to run individually at Worlds (she was already heading to Daegu, South Korea, as a relay runner). The other to say that she was the top online vote getter for the Bowerman, college track's version of the Heisman.

"I'm excited," Beard told Tom Warsinskey of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "Debbie called me a few days ago to tell me, and I wasn't allowed to say anything. I really respect her for that. This is a dream. I'm getting an opportunity to do what I love to do."

She also told Warsinskey that if she could match her personal best (50.56) it could be enough to make the final. Of course, once you make a final, it is anyone's ball game.

And, of course, she'd enter that final as something of the "people's choice" after garnering nearly 50 percent of the Bowerman votes, ahead of LSU's Kimberlyn Duncan. Beard becomes the first person — male or female — to receive more than 20,000 votes.

The men's top vote getter was Florida State's Ngoni Makusha, with Washington State's Jeshua Anderson and Florida's Christian Taylor close behind. The winners of The Bowerman, determined by this fan vote as well as paper balloting, will be announced in December by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.