Aug. 11, 2010
COLLEGE STATION - Texas A&M's indoor track and field season, which will conclude with the Aggies hosting the NCAA Indoor Championships in March, features a surplus of talented programs visiting Gilliam Indoor Stadium for the five meets A&M will host in 2011.
"This will be our most competitive indoor schedule to date," Aggie head coach Pat Henry said. "A collection of some of the finest teams in the nation will be competing at our indoor facility this coming indoor season. This allows us to bring great track and field competition to our fans."
After selling out the NCAA Indoor meet when Texas A&M hosted the event in 2009, a total of 11,535 Aggie fans returned in 2010 for the five home meets A&M held. In 2009, when Gilliam hosted the Big 12 Championships and NCAA Indoor, the attendance total reached 27,144 for five home meets.
One of the highlights of the 2011 indoor season will feature the Aggies in a dual meet with the LSU Tigers on January 22.
"In scheduling a dual meet with LSU I'm extremely pleased to have a program that has a well-balanced team for both genders," noted Henry, who totaled 27 national titles in his 17 years at LSU. "The Tigers, under head coach Dennis Shaver, are a very well-balanced program. They are committed to having a great team and bring athletes in all event areas.
"It will be a great competition and one that we are excited to start this season and look forward to the future of this dual meet."
Last season Texas A&M finished second and fifth with the men and women during the indoor national meet before winning both national team titles outdoors. Meanwhile, LSU placed third and fourth with their women and men indoors and both Tiger squads finished sixth outdoors.
The series of Texas A&M Challenge meets feature three to four conference schools combining resources to produce a team score against another conference. The first Challenge meet on January 15 will pit three schools from the Big 12 against three schools apiece from the Southland, Sunbelt and SWAC conferences.
On January 28-29 the second Challenge meet will feature four teams from the Big 12 versus four schools from the SEC. The third Challenge series, on February 12, will include three squads from the Big 12 against three teams from Conference USA, Pac-10 and SEC.
"The Texas A&M Challenge meets provide a great competitive team environment," said Henry. "From last year's NCAA Outdoor Championships we will have nine men's and nine women's teams who placed among the top 25 in team scoring.
"The group of teams we will host includes defending men's NCAA Indoor champion Florida as well as the Tennessee women, who were NCAA Indoor runner-up. Eight women's teams and seven men's squads placed among the top 25 at last year's indoor national meet."
Teams scheduled to compete in Challenge meets hosted by Texas A&M include:
January 15 - Baylor, Louisiana-Lafayette, Louisiana-Monroe, North Texas, Northwestern Louisiana, Oklahoma, Prairie View A&M, SFA, Southern-Baton Rouge, Texas Southern, and UT-Arlington.
January 28-29 - Florida, Georgia, Kansas State, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Texas Tech.
February 12 - Alabama, Arizona, Baylor, Houston, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Rice, Tennessee, USC, and UTEP.
TEXAS A&M INDOOR TRACK & FIELD - 2011 SCHEDULE
| Â DATE | Â MEET | Â SITE |
| December 11 | Reveille Invitational | College Station |
| January 15 | Texas A&M Challege | College Station |
| - Big 12, Southland, Sunbelt, SWAC | ||
| January 22 | Texas A&M vs. LSU Dual | College Station |
| January 28-29 | Texas A&M Challenge | College Station |
| - Big 12 vs. SEC | ||
| February 4-5 | New Balance Collegiate Invitational | New York City, NY |
| February 12 | Texas A&M Challenge | College Station |
| - Big 12, Conf. USA, Pac-10, SEC | ||
| February 25-26 | Big 12 Championships | Lincoln, Neb. |
| March 11-12 | NCAA Championships | College Station |