HONORS: USTFCCCA All-Academic Team (2020 XC); Academic All-Mountain West (2020 XC, 2021 T&F, 2023 T&F, 2023 XC, 2024 T&F, 2024 XC).
INDOOR RECORDS: Ranks fifth all-time at USU in the 3,000 meters with a time of 8:06.13, set in 2023... Ranks fifth all-time at USU in the 5,000 meters with a time of 14:01.51, set in 2024.
OUTDOOR RECORDS: Ranks third all-time at USU in the 5,000 meters with a time of 13:48.09, set in 2022.
2025 (GR)
Cross Country (2024): Placed third, best among all USU runners, at the UC Riverside Invitational with an 8K time of 23:35.1... Finished ninth at the Paul Short Run with an 8K time of 23:44.8... Took 46th at the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals with an 8K time of 23:28.2... Placed 29th at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships with a 10K time of 29:56.6, helping the Aggies to a fourth-place finish and at-large nationals berth... Finished 133rd at the NCAA Cross Country Championships with a 10K time of 30:06.7.
2024 (SR)
Cross Country (2023): Opened the season by placing 63rd at the Virginia Invitational with an 8k time of 24:05.7… Took 102nd at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational with an 8k time of 24:22.2… Was the top Aggie finisher at the Mountain West Championships, placing 17th with an 8k time of 24:01.7 as Utah State finished fifth… Finished 69th at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships with a 10k time of 30:48.1… Named academic all-MW.
Indoor: Took fifth in the mile with a time of 4:12.90 at the Mountain West Indoor Championships after setting a personal best in the event with a time of 4:11.33 as he finished third during preliminaries… Placed 19th in the 5,000 meters with a career-best time of 14:01.51, which ranks fifth in school history, at the Washington-hosted Husky Classic… Set a personal record in the mile with a time of 4:25.32 as he finished 14th at the Weber State Invitational.
Outdoor: Finished sixth in the 1,500 meters with a season-best time of 3:47.18 after placing ninth in the preliminaries with a time of 3:48.14 at the Mountain West Outdoor Championships… Set a personal best in the mile with a time of 4:14.01 as he took 15th at the BYU-hosted Robison Invitational… Won the 1,500 meters with a time of 3:50.06 at the Utah State-hosted Aggie Invitational... Earned academic all-MW honors.
2023 (SR)
Cross Country (2022): Placed 74th with a 10K time of 30:08.8 at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships… Finished 109th with an 8K time of 24:06.3 at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational… Placed 107th with an 8K time of 24:06.9 at the Lehigh-hosted Paul Short Run to help Utah State place third out of 46 teams.
Indoor: Finished sixth in the 3,000 meters with a time of 8:15.61 at the Mountain West Indoor Championships… Won the 5,000 meters with a personal best time of 14:06.19 at the Washington Invitational… Set a personal best in the 3,000 meters with a time of 8:06.13, which ranks fifth in school history, as he placed 35th at the Washington-hosted Husky Classic.
Outdoor: Finished 38th in the 5,000 meters with a time of 14:12.02 at the NCAA West Preliminary Round… Placed 10th in the 1,500 meters with a personal-best time of 3:46.94, after advancing from preliminaries in seventh with a time of 3:47.08, at the Mountain West Outdoor Championships… Took 17th in the 5,000 meters with a season-best time of 13:49.43 at the Stanford-hosted Payton Jordan Invitational… Earned academic all-MW honors.
2022 (JR)
Cross Country (2021): Missed the season due to injury.
Indoor: Did not compete during the indoor season.
Outdoor: Placed ninth in the 5,000 meters with a time of 14:04.15 at the Mountain West Outdoor Championships… Finished sixth in the 5,000 meters with a career-best time of 13:48.09, which ranks third all-time in school history, at the Stanford-hosted Payton Jordan Invitational… Ran a career-best time of 3:51.07 in the 1,500 meters to finish seventh at the Arizona-hosted Willie Williams Classic… Placed 11th in the 5,000 meters with a time of 13:50.63 at the Stanford Invitational... Named a Joe E. and Elma Whitesides Scholar-Athlete.
2021 (SO)
Cross Country (2020): Was the fifth Aggie to cross the finish line at the NCAA National Championships, placing 138th with a time of 32:05.5 to help USU place 11th as a team… Finished 17th at the Mountain West Championships with a time of 24:17.7 to help the Aggies to a runner-up finish… Earned a top-10 finish and helped Utah State win the team title at the Dixie State Invitational, posting a time of 24:04.3 to eighth… Placed 35th in the Florida State Winter Classic Garnet Race with a time of 24:17.1… Earned USTFCCCA All-Academic and academic all-MW honors.
Indoor: Season canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Outdoor: Placed 11th in the 5,000 meters with a time of 14:23.69 at the Mountain West Outdoor Championships… Finished eighth in the same event with a season-best time of 14:08.84 at the Drake Relays… Placed fifth in the 1,500 meters with a season-best time of 3:53.80 at the Idaho State-hosted Bengal Invitational… Earned academic all-MW honors.
PREVIOUS SCHOOL: Competed on the cross country team at Idaho State… Opened the 2019 season at the Montana State Cross Country Classic, where he placed 52nd with a time of 26:15.9 to help the Bengals finish third as a team… Placed third with a time of 19:03.6 at the Idaho State Cross Country Invitational… Placed third with a time of 19:13.24 at the Southern Utah-hosted Color Country Invitational… At the Texas A&M-hosted Arturo Barrios Invitational, placed 52nd with a time of 6:02.7… Represented the Bengals at the 2019 Big Sky Conference Cross Country Championships, placing 44th with a time of 28:52.3.
HIGH SCHOOL: Competed in track & field and cross country at Mountain Crest High School in Hyrum, Utah… Was tabbed the Mustangs’ Cross Country MVP in 2015… Placed 15th in the 3,200 meters (9:37.60) in the 3,200 meters and 22nd (4:27.35) in the 1,600 meters as a senior at the 5A state track & field championships… Ran personal-best times of 4:27 in the 1,600 meters and 9:37 in the 3,200 meters, respectively.
PERSONAL: Son of Michael and Christene Nelson… Has two brothers and two sisters… Served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Cape Coast, Ghana, from 2016-18… Majoring in marketing.
PERSONAL BESTS INCLUDE:
| EVENT |
INDOOR |
OUTDOOR |
| Mile |
4:11.33 |
4:14.01 |
| 1,500 Meters |
NA |
3:46.94 |
| 3,000 Meters |
8:06.13 |
NA |
| 5,000 Meters |
14:01.51 |
13:48.09 |
POSTSEASON RESULTS:
NCAA CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
| YEAR |
PLACE |
TIME |
| 2020 |
138th |
32:05.5 |
| 2024 |
133rd |
30:06.7 |
NCAA CROSS COUNTRY REGIONALS
| YEAR |
PLACE |
TIME |
| 2022 |
74th |
30:08.8 |
| 2023 |
69th |
30:48.1 |
| 2024 |
29th |
29:56.6 |
MW CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
| YEAR |
PLACE |
TIME |
| 2020 |
17th |
24:17.7 |
| 2023 |
17th |
24:01.7 |
NCAA WEST PRELIMINARY CHAMPIONSHIPS
| YEAR |
EVENT |
PLACE |
TIME |
| 2023 (Sacramento) |
5,000 Meters |
38th |
14:12.02 |
MW INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS
| YEAR |
EVENT |
PLACE |
TIME |
| 2023 |
3,000 Meters |
6th |
8:15.61 |
| 2024 |
Mile (prelims) |
3rd |
4:11.33 |
| 2024 |
Mile |
5th |
4:12.90 |
| 2024 |
3,000 Meters |
DNS |
DNS |
MW OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS
| YEAR |
EVENT |
PLACE |
TIME |
| 2021 |
5,000 Meters |
11th |
14:23.69 |
| 2022 |
5,000 Meters |
9th |
14:04.15 |
| 2023 |
1,500 Meters (prelims) |
7th |
3:47.08 |
| 2023 |
1,500 Meters |
10th |
3:46.94 |
| 2023 |
5,000 Meters |
DNS |
DNS |
| 2024 |
1,500 Meters (prelims) |
3:48.14 |
9th |
| 2024 |
1,500 Meters |
3:47.18 |
6th |
| 2024 |
5,000 Meters |
DNS |
DNS |
