Press Conference Notebook: BYU Phenom Will Face Defending Champion Doris Lemngole; Oklahom State Coach Dave Smith Responds To Criticism Over Too Many Kenyans

By David Woods for DyeStat

Photos courtesy of NCAA

COLUMBIA, Mo. – It can be perilous to anoint young athletes as The Next Big Thing. We don’t know what they’re enduring or how high is their sky.

For instance, Jane Hedengren had a setback that remains indeterminate.

She has done so much over the past 12 months, forgotten is where she was 14 months ago. 

She finished fourth in the Woodbridge Invitational high school meet at Irvine, Calif., 16 seconds behind the winner. And she was coping with a mysterious medical condition.

On Saturday, barring mishap, the BYU 19-year-old should become the first female freshman in 40 years to win at the NCAA Cross Country Championships.

“She should jump out of bed tomorrow morning and be so excited to get on the starting line,” BYU coach Diljeet Taylor said at Friday’s pre-meet news conference.

The women’s 6,000 meters will be at 10:20 a.m. (ET) and men’s 10,000 at 11:10. Races will be televised live on ESPNU from Missouri’s Gans Creek Course.

Hedengren suggested she had lingering effects of a summer illness in late September 2024, prompting tests on her red and white blood cell counts. In one workout in which she was supposed to run 5:35 pace, she said, a 6-minute pace caused her pulse to climb to 193.

“I’m not really sure what that little bout of not feeling like myself was,” she said. “Grateful to be feeling more like myself.”

Her father, John Hedengren, is a BYU professor of chemical engineering. He said extensive tests have been done on his daughter and that no abnormalities were detected. He said she will continue to be monitored “so that she does have a long career.”

What Jane Hedengren has achieved already defies credulity.

In April 2025, she set a national high school record of 14:57.93 for 5,000 meters, finishing five seconds behind Pamela Kosgei of New Mexico. Kosgei went on to win NCAA titles at 5,000 and 10,000 . . . and lost to Hedengren by 42 seconds in the Mountain Region meet a week ago.

Hedengren’s high school records in the mile (4:23.50), 3,000 (8:40.03), two-mile (9:17.75) and 5,000 were all close to the collegiate records. And she continues to accelerate.

“What’s made it so great has been this team, and my coach,” she said. “Just the resources at BYU, and what they can do to put you in a good position. And how the  women have taken me under their wing and showed me the way. Show me how to do it, and how to do this sport in a healthy way.”

Taylor, whose No. 2-ranked Cougars are defending NCAA champions, is still discovering what Hedengren can do. The coach said Hedengren built confidence for nationals through preparation, and preserving a chip on her shoulder.

“Because I’m thoroughly impressed, not so much by the talent, but by the intentionality of how she approaches this craft of hers,” Taylor said. “It’s inspiring. It’s inspired our team.”

Cowboys coach Smith: ‘Shut up and coach your team’

Dave Smith, coach of the No. 1 Oklahoma State men, lashed back at BYU coach Ed Eyestone over the subject of recruiting Kenyan runners.

Eyestone was quoted by the Salt Lake City Deseret News:

“Some coaches have decided to take a shortcut by taking foreign talent. Many are older and developed. I always felt I’d be embarrassed to have seven foreigners on the team. The NCAA is definitely the way we develop talent in this country.”

A company marketing Kenyan runners to U.S. colleges, plus NIL money and NCAA roster limits, have all contributed to a rise in the number of foreign runners.

Of the 261 men at the NCAA Championships, 112 (43%) are foreign, according to letsrun.com. Only eight of 32 teams have all  Americans.

“I have no problem with anybody running their program within the rules and doing  things the way they should be done,” Smith said. “I believe if someone doesn’t like a rule or doesn’t like a situation in the NCAA, don’t bitch about it. Go change it. Get involved in the sport. Get involved in leadership, and make change the way change is supposed to be made.

“Otherwise, shut up and coach your team.”

Smith went on to say runners on his team “suffer together,” sharing a common goal and becoming close to each other.

“This idea we’re trying to divide people – not to get on a soap box – but that’s part of our problem in society,” he said. “We’re trying to divide each other into smaller and smaller and smaller pieces of society.”

Notes: N.C. State women ‘deepest ever’

>> After winning three successive women’s titles, North Carolina State dropped to eighth in 2024. N.C. State is back and better than ever, according to Grace Hartman. “This is the deepest our team has ever been, which is saying a lot because we have a lot of incredible women pass through N.C. State,” she said. “I say our current team would field two nationally competitive teams. It’s tough to be in our top seven.” Hartman, who was fifth at NCAAs last year, skipped the Southeast Region race.

>> Iowa State coach Jeremy Sudbury defended recruitment of Kenyans, explaining his program has done so since the 1970s. One of Iowa State's biggest fans, Sudbury said, is Yobes Ondieki, the first man to run 10,000 meters under 27 minutes (in 1993). “Not to tap into those alumni and the history, it’d be naïve,” he said. “I think it’s something that would be silly, personally. That’s why we lean into it.” He supplied no details on suspension of some Iowa State runners, reiterating that they violated team rules.

>> New Mexico’s Habtom Samuel, after finishing second in 2024 and 2023, said he is “ready to fight” for the men’s individual title. “I’m really ready,” the 21-year-old Eritrean said.

Contact David Woods at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.