#NCAATF: What To Watch Wednesday

What to watch at Wednesday's session of the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Hayward Field. This opening day of the championship includes men's finals in the 10,000 meters and five field events, men's preliminary rounds on the track and the start to the decathlon.

Live stream: ESPN3, 12:30 p.m. PT
Broadcast: ESPN2, 4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. PT; ESPN, 5:30 p.m. - 8 p.m. PT

THE SCHEDULE (Oregon entrants)
12:30 p.m.: Decathlon, 100 meters
1:10 p.m.: Decathlon, long jump
2 p.m.: Hammer throw
2:25 p.m.: Decathlon, shot put
3:40 p.m.: Decathlon, high jump
4:32 p.m.: 4x100 relay
4:46 p.m.: 1,500 meters (Sam Prakel, Mick Stanovsek)
5 p.m.: Pole vault
5:02 p.m.: 3,000 steeplechase
5:32 p.m.: 110 hurdles (Braxton Canady)
5:45 p.m.: Javelin (John Nizich)
5:46 p.m.: 100 meters (Cravon Gillespie)
6 p.m.: Long jump (Damarcus Simpson)
6 p.m.: 400 meters (Orwin Emilien)
6:14 p.m.: 800 meters
6:30 p.m.: 400 hurdles
6:40 p.m.: Shot put
6:44 p.m.: 200 meters (Cravon Gillespie)
6:56 p.m.: Decathlon, 400 meters
7:08 p.m.: 10,000 meters, final
7:48 p.m.: 4x400 meters (Oregon)

Big Stories for the Ducks: A year ago, fouls at the NCAA West Preliminaries denied Damarcus Simpson the chance to compete in his signature event at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. This week Simpson has his one and only shot to win a national outdoor title in the long jump at Hayward Field, and he intends to make the most of it. "It means everything," Simpson said Tuesday. "It's the last competition here before they start the renovation, and it'd mean everything to me to get the long jump championship." Simpson is the two-time Pac-12 champion, and he redeemed himself at this year's West Prelims by soaring a wind-aided 26 feet, 11.75 inches to record the best mark in the field. Simpson said it occurred to him Monday night how raucous the Hayward crowd could be for his jumps. "It's going to be on fire," he said. "It's very important to contain that excitement, but at the same time I want to use it for good. To start the competition off is going to be big, and I want to get those 10 points for the team."

Not to be overlooked: The other Duck with a chance to put points on the board is John Nizich, who will look to break into the top eight and grab a point or two in the javelin. Cravon Gillespie is projected to grab multiple points in both the 100 and 200 meters, and so will look to get off to a strong start in the qualifying rounds. Ditto Sam Prakel in the 1,500 meters, where Mick Stanovsek also will look to get through cleanly as well. Oregon also wants to see hurdler Braxton Canady, 400 runner Orwin Emilien and the 4x400 relay advancely safely through to Friday's finals.

What to watch elsewhere: Florida is again the favorite in the team race, and the Gators will look to Grant Holloway to get them off to a strong start. Holloway will try to hold off Simpson for the long jump title, and is joined in the field by another strong contender for the Gators, KeAndre Bates. Holloway also is in the first heat of the 110 hurdles qualifying; Canady of Oregon is in the second. Another contender for the team title is Georgia, which will have thrower Denzel Comenentia gunning for wins Wednesday in both the hammer throw and shot put. Alabama's entrants in the 10k and Houston's sprint crew also can make a statement about their chances to shake up the team race. One individual to watch is USC's Michael Norman, who set a world indoor record for 400 meters at 44.52 seconds to win the NCAA Indoor title, and is in the first heat of the 400 on Wednesday.