[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 33 (Thursday, March 17, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Page S2990]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   CONGRATULATING THE UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS TRACK AND FIELD PROGRAM

 Mr. PRYOR. Mr. President, today I pay tribute to the 
University of Arkansas Track and Field Team on earning their 40th NCAA 
Title last weekend. This win also marks the team's 18th indoor track 
title, the most of any Division 1 athletic program in the Nation.
  Saturday's win continues a long tradition of excellence for a program 
that boasts some the best attendance at track events nationwide. A 
crowd of 5,461 faithful fans cheered them on to victory in 
Fayetteville, AR last Saturday. The success of our talented athletes 
and coaches is a source of pride for all Arkansans.
  Under the leadership of Head Coach John McDonnell, the Razorbacks 
have been a consistent powerhouse in collegiate athletics, earning him 
the honors as the Nation's winningest track and field coach. In his 
33rd year as head coach, McDonnell has won 74 conference championships, 
31-straight cross-country conference titles, and 5 NCAA triple crowns.
  In fact, Coach McDonnell's team has won at least one national title 
in cross country, indoor or outdoor track in 20 of the past 21 years. 
It is no wonder that he has been named National Coach of the Year a 
total 27 times for his work with Arkansas athletics. Indeed, his record 
of success reads like a page out of the Guinness Book of World Records. 
His ability to recruit and hone the talents of the most outstanding 
athletes in collegiate track and field rightly identifies him with the 
greatest names in the history of college sports.
  The young men that join the University of Arkansas track squad are 
models of athletic excellence. Their hard work and dedication to the 
sport are a source of pride and inspiration for Arkansans and sports 
fans everywhere. Among them are 156 All-American athletes who have won 
a total of 585 All-American honors for individual events, and the 
members of the Arkansas track and field team have earned a remarkable 
102 national championships for individual events. In fact, the official 
web site of Razorback Athletics, www.hogwired.com, boasts that ``[track 
and field] athletes who letter four years are likely to leave with more 
rings than fingers.'' Additionally, twenty-five U of A track athletes 
have gone on to compete in the Olympic Games, the highest honor for an 
amateur athlete.
  I would be remiss if I neglected to mention the essential 
contribution that the University of Arkansas's Athletic Director, Frank 
Broyles, makes to the success of the track program. Frank is a 
steadfast supporter of track and field, and by appointing Coach 
McDonnell to head the program in 1977 and funding the track program at 
an optimal level for the many years thereafter, this 40th National 
Title is a tribute to him and his work to make Arkansas athletics what 
it is today. A legend in the world of collegiate athletics and a model 
Arkansan, it is fitting the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette named Frank 
Broyles the most influential figure in athletics in the state during 
the 20th Century.
  The Senate has a tradition of recognizing particularly extraordinary 
accomplishments of Americans, whether in military service, scholarly 
research, the arts, athletics or other fields. I believe that the 
University of Arkansas Track and Field Program deserve this 
recognition. Out of profound respect for the achievements of all the 
outstanding athletes that have played a role in the success of the 
Arkansas track and field program, the coaching staff under the 
direction of John McDonnell, and all the athletic staff at the 
University of Arkansas, I am pleased to express my congratulations to 
the Arkansas Razorbacks on their 40th National Track and Field 
Title.

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