Ja’Kobe Tharp of Auburn ran 12.75 in the 110‑meter hurdles at Hayward Field, a new world record that eclipsed Aries Merritt’s 12.80 and the collegiate benchmark of 12.98, and marked the first men’s world record at the NCAA championships since 1976.
Tharp’s 12.75 not only reset the global standard — the time also cleared Grant Holloway’s collegiate record set in 2019 — and arrived on a day when Auburn supplied another headline: its 4x100 relay quartet of Azeem Fahmi, Kayinsola Ajayi, Austin Kresley and Tyler Davis ran 37.75 in heat two of the semifinals, a collegiate record that shaved down LSU’s 37.90 from 2023.
The meet was deep with shifting leaders. BYU’s Ben Barton led the decathlon after Day 1 with 4,414 points, having won the 100 meters, the high jump and the 400 on the first day, but as the combined events moved into Day 2 Louisville’s Kenneth Byrd sat atop the standings after three events with 6,925 points, underlining how quickly multi‑event placings can change.
Nebraska held the team lead after six scored events with 28 total points, but that advantage is plainly provisional: organizers listed 15 events still to be scored, and several of those remaining — relays and final field events among them — typically swing team standings late in the meet.
Individual finals produced more headline results. Nebraska’s Dyson Wicker won the men’s pole vault with a personal‑best 5.85 meters, a clearance that lifted him to No. 10 on the all‑time collegiate performers list. New Mexico’s Habtom Samuel returned to the top of the podium as the 10,000‑meter champion, one of six individual champions determined on the opening day of competition.
The immediate consequence is twofold: Tharp’s mark rewrites record books and provides Auburn with a momentum surge, while the team race remains unsettled. The decathlon was still in progress with two events remaining after eight disciplines, and Auburn’s relay depth plus individual event wins could translate into a late climb if they keep scoring where it counts.
The central unanswered question now is whether Nebraska’s 28‑point edge will hold as Hayward Field settles through the remaining 15 events, including the final decathlon disciplines and the championship relays that often decide the team title. Championships continue at Hayward Field, and the results that will determine the NCAA team and individual champions remain in play.
