LOGAN, Utah – Utah State track and field junior Landon Bott, senior Logan Hammer and sophomore Ayodele Ojo, Jr. will compete at the 2026 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships in Fayetteville, Arkansas, from Friday-Saturday, March 13-14.

MEET INFORMATION
2026 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships
Date: March 13-14, 2026
Start: Friday @ 3:45 p.m.; Saturday @ 3:40 p.m. (MT)
Site: Fayetteville, Arkansas
Venue: Randal Tyson Track Center
Live Streaming: ESPN+ (Friday and Saturday)
Live Results: Flash Results
Competitions: Meet Schedule
General Info: Championships Central

DIRECTOR OF TRACK & FIELD/CROSS COUNTRY ARTIE GULDEN
"We are really proud of these three guys and looking forward to watching them compete. Qualifying for the NCAA championships is a special thing and an amazing accomplishment. There are lots of variables at this meet—some we control but many we don't. We want the guys to focus on what they control and go compete. Execution of that will be the key at these championships."

ON THE STARTING LINE
Utah State will send three student-athletes to the NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships: junior Landon Bott, senior Logan Hammer and sophomore Ayodele Ojo, Jr.

Bott enters the national championships as the fifth-seeded competitor in the men's 800 meters, qualifying with a seed time of 1:45.72 from his performance at the USU-hosted Roman Ruiz Speed and Power Invitational on Jan. 31. He will compete in the first of two semifinal heats on Friday, which are scheduled to begin at 5:35 p.m. (MT). Should he advance as one of the top-three in his heat or as one of the next-two fastest finishers, Bott would compete in the 800-meter final on Saturday at 4:20 p.m. (MT).

Hammer enters his second indoor national championships as the 12th-ranked men's pole vaulter in the country after he cleared 5.63 meters (18-5.5) at the BYU December Invitational on Dec. 10. The 2025 First-Team All-American was drawn 16th in the lineup for Friday's men's pole vault final, set to begin at 3:45 p.m. (MT).

Ojo qualified for the national championships with his altitude-adjusted seed time of 6.57 from the Idaho State-hosted Snake River Open on Jan. 16, ranking him 15th in the men's 60-meter field. He will line up in lane eight in the first heat of the semifinals, scheduled for Friday at 4:35 p.m. (MT). With a top-two finish in his heat or one of the next four fastest times, Ojo would race in the 60-meter final on Saturday at 3:40 p.m. (MT).

RECORD SCRATCH
Utah State's qualifying athletes each set program records in their signature events during the 2025-26 indoor season. Hammer opened the indoor campaign with a record-setting performance at the BYU December Invitational on Dec. 10, breaking his own pole vault record with a clearance of 5.63 meters (18-5.5). Ojo became the second of the three qualifiers and fourth Aggie overall to set a school record in 2025-26 when he ran the 60 meters in 6.55 at the Snake River Open on Jan. 16, topping both the Utah State record of 6.61, set in 2014, and the MW record of 6.60, set in 2015. Bott broke the men's 800-meter school record in front of the Aggie faithful at the Roman Ruiz Speed and Power Invitational on Jan. 30, crossing the line in 1:47.79. The junior went on to break his own 800-meter record by finishing in 1:47.55 at the Tyson Invitational on Feb. 14, on the same track that will host the national championships.

AGGIES AT THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
Hammer became the first Utah State athlete to qualify for consecutive NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships since Dillon Maggard qualified for three-straight from 2016-18. The Aggie men's three entries are tied for the most in program history with the 2018 contingent, who finished tied for 28th with eight points, their best team finish since 1977. The DMR team of Maggard, Clay Lambourne, Jordan Beutler and Brady Martin earned first-team All-American honors by placing fifth with a school-record time of 9:32.31 that still stands today. Maggard added an individual first-team All-American honor by finishing fifth in the 3,000 meters in a time of 8:06.69, while Lambourne ran the 800 meters in 1:48.30 to finish 10th and claim second-team All-American honors.

USU's best-ever finish at the indoor national championships came in 1975, when future Olympian Mark Enyeart won the individual title in the 880-yard run to lead the Aggies into a tie for 14th. Enyeart, whose indoor 800-meter record of 1:48.10 from 1977 was broken by Bott, holds the lone indoor national championship in school history.

AWARDS SEASON
Hammer claimed his seventh career MW Men's Field Athlete of the Week award on Dec. 16. The reigning indoor pole vault All-American is the first Utah State track and field athlete to earn seven or more MW weekly accolades since Maggard earned nine from 2017-18. Ojo received two MW Men's Track Athlete of the Week awards, earning the accolades on Dec. 16 and Jan. 20. Bott claimed the MW Men's Track Athlete of the Week award, his third career MW accolades, on Feb. 3.

LAST MEET
Utah State concluded its indoor season by capturing one gold, three silver and three bronze medals at the 2026 Mountain West Indoor Track and Field Championships in Reno, Nevada, from February 26-28. The USU men finished fifth out of eight schools with 80.5 points and the women placed eighth out of 12 teams with 37.5 points. Aggie athletes had seven performances from the three-day meet that ranked in the top 10 all-time in Utah State history, including sophomore Shay Jones tying the USU record in the women's 400 meters of 53.05. Hammer won his third-straight Mountain West indoor title, and sixth overall, in the men's pole vault with a clearance of 5.50 meters (18-0.5).

FOLLOW ALONG
Fans can follow the Utah State track and field programs on X at USUTF_XC, on Facebook at USUTrack and on Instagram at USUTF_XC. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on X at USUAthletics or on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics.

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