USC track and field recruiting standards
NCAA Division I · Big Ten · 2025-26
| Event | Considered for athletic aid | Invited walk-on |
|---|---|---|
| 100m | 10.20 | 10.50 |
| 200m | 20.75 | 21.35 |
| 400m | 45.80 | 46.80 |
| 110m hurdles | 13.45 | 13.90 |
| 300m hurdles | 36.30 | 37.10 |
| 400m hurdles | 51.00 | 52.50 |
| 800m | 1:48.00 | 1:54.00 |
| 1600m | 4:04.00 | 4:17.00 |
| Event | Considered for athletic aid | Invited walk-on |
|---|---|---|
| 100m | 11.30 | 11.80 |
| 200m | 23.20 | 24.20 |
| 400m | 53.00 | 55.00 |
| 100m hurdles | 13.20 | 13.70 |
| 300m hurdles | 41.40 | 42.50 |
| 400m hurdles | 57.00 | 59.00 |
| 800m | 2:05.00 | 2:10.00 |
| 1600m | 4:43.00 | 4:55.00 |
Source: USC Track & Field, 2025-26 Recruiting Standards – Men (PDF) · USC Track & Field, 2025-26 Recruiting Standards – Women (PDF). Retrieved October 2026.
What USC's tiers mean
- Considered for athletic aid
- The level at which USC will consider you for athletic aid (a scholarship).
- Invited walk-on
- The level at which USC may invite you to join the roster without athletic aid.
What the sheet also says
- USC calls the chart an indicator of the caliber of athlete it looks for.
- Scholarships may be awarded to athletes who don't fit the criteria, at the coach's discretion.
Getting recruited by USC
- 1Fill out the questionnaire
Most programs collect prospects through a recruiting questionnaire on their official site. Look for it on USC's track and field pages, along with the coaching staff's contact details.
- 2Email your event coach
Keep it short. Give your events, your FAT marks with wind readings and meet dates, links to your results, your graduation year, GPA and test scores, and the meets you're running next.
- 3Be honest about where you are
Compare your wind-legal FAT marks to the tier you're aiming for. If you're close but haven't hit it, say so and show how your last few races have trended.
- 4Follow up when you PR
A new mark is the best reason to write again. Coaches build their recruiting boards over months, so send a time that crosses one of their lines as soon as you run it.
The Sprint University app
Train to hit USC's standard
USC's men's 100m line is 10.20. The Sprint University app plans the speed and strength work between your PR and that mark, and adjusts each session to how recovered you are that morning.
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