Cougar kids pick up the slack

Chris Carter's win in the 400-meter hurdles kind of symbolized BYU's weekend hosting the Mountain West Conference track and field championships in Provo.

He's a freshman. He's not supposed to run so confidently, be so sure, be so good. But he was. Lord Byron once wrote the line "Fame is the thirst of youth," and over the weekend, Carter, from Roy High School, and a host of other Cougar freshmen stepped in and boosted the ailing Cougar track and field teams.

Carter was named the MWC freshman athlete of the year. On Saturday, he proved the point with an exclamation mark.

This year, injuries and surgeries sidelined stars both coaches Mark Robison (men) and Craig Poole (women) desperately needed to keep the Cougar run of titles rolling. Combined with a strong Colorado State team, Poole was worried and Robison wondered to himself heading into the outdoor championships, even with a No. 8 ranking. You never know.

Weeks ago, Poole surmised the injury bug finally caught up with his women. Lucky for decades regarding injuries, this season Poole's squad got hammered. Limited to a conference rule of just 28 athletes per team, Robison had to tell eight members of his squad they could not compete this week — a frustration in numbers he said was likely higher than other programs.

But Saturday, it didn't matter because a handful of rookies produced. Four BYU freshman men won conference titles. This included championships by Whitney Neves in the pole vault and Kyle Perry in the 1,500 meters.

On the women's side, freshman Mindy Neeley won the long jump and another freshman, Amy Fowler, took fourth in the steeplechase. BYU men won 248-178 over CSU, and the women edged the Rams 183-150.

Carter, wearing a pair of spiffy sunglasses, exploded out of the blocks in the 400 hurdle finals and attacked the first turn with a convincing lead. He was never seriously challenged in the remaining 300 meters. When he crossed the finish line, he whooped it up in a personal moment of triumph.

His game plan? "To just run fast," he said, trying to keep it simple for dummy reporters.

Carter won in 49.67, busting the conference all-time record, meet record and his personal record. It also was the third-fastest time in school history, which includes former world record-holder Ralph Mann. Carter's time should rank among the top two in the NCAA and could place him as the U.S. Junior frontrunner. It was only the fifth time he'd run the 400 hurdles.