As part of the Alligator Awards recognizing the best in UF athletics during the 2013-14 season, staff writers Jordan McPherson and Eden Otero will debate two of the five nominees for best male athlete. Check out the rest of the nominees in the photos (left) and vote for the winner.
Jordan: There were several bright spots from Florida’s male athletes this season, but Dedric Dukes stood above the rest.
The junior sprinter on UF’s track and field squad set personal bests in every event he competed in this season. He ran the third leg of the 4x400-meter relay team during the indoor season that broke a school record, which was from 2005.
That same 4x400 relay team of Najee Glass, Hugh Graham Jr., Dukes and Arman Hall was also the first in school history to break the three-minute barrier in the outdoor season.
Individually, Dukes dominated the 200-meter dash during both campaigns, running the fastest time in school history in both the outdoor (19.91 seconds) and indoor (20.34) seasons since the turn of the century.
Need I say more?
Eden: I’m going to get behind you on the track and field sentiment, but I’m going to have to say junior long and triple jumper Marquis Dendy was the best.
Dendy completed his year with an outdoor national title win in the long and triple jump, which had not been done since 2002.
The win marked Dendy’s second individual NCAA title win in two years (in 2013 Dendy won the indoor long jump title) and the first time in UF history a Gator won the outdoor long jump.
What’s even more impressive about Dendy’s win is that he replaced his best triple jump score with 17.05 meters. And for those of you that don’t know the metric system, that’s 55 feet. Let me say it again: 55 feet.
That set him up as Florida’s fifth-farthest triple jump in school history.
Now, if that doesn’t scream best male athlete of the year then I don’t know what does.
Jordan: Dendy had a great season, and he is definitely a competitor.
But Dukes had the better all-around outing this year.
The Miami native ran a sub-20-second 200-meter dash not once, but twice during the outdoor season — becoming the first UF athlete to do so while in college.
The second time he accomplished the feat, it lifted him to a first-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Championships and gave him the fourth-best time in NCAA Championship history.
And what makes Dukes’ personal-best run more outstanding is that it came just 40 minutes after running the anchor leg of Florida’s first-place 4x100-relay team.
Dendy’s two titles at the NCAA Outdoors, in comparison, came on two different days, three days apart from each other.
Eden: What Dukes did is astounding. That’s a lot to put on an athlete, but Dendy is the only men’s jumper for Florida. He carries the weight of two entire events.
His ability to carry the events and place first in nine of his meets is a testament to Dendy’s success this year.
He’s the best not only because he doesn’t crack under pressure, but also because he can produce, which is hard to find in athletes now.
The Middleton, Del., native didn’t falter all season but instead got better with each meet.
Let me also add that while this is the category for best male athlete for the year, it was Dendy’s best year yet in the triple jump with him breaking his personal bests.
I would say that he had a great year on his long jump, which is totally true, but his 2013 season surpassed 2014.
Jordan: Dukes may not have — to use your words — carried the weight of events on his own like Dendy did, but he still competed in six events throughout the season.
During the indoor campaign, he ran the 60-meter dash, the 200-meter dash and the 4x400 relay. Once the outdoor season kicked off, Dukes ran on both the 4x100 and 4x400 relay squads in addition to the 100- and 200- and 400-meter dashes.
At different points in the year, he competed in three different events on the same day. That puts some serious wear-and-tear on your body.
And he got even better once the championship season rolled around.
Outside of his 14th-place performance in the 60m prelims at the SEC Indoor Championships, Dukes finished in the top four in every meet when it counted.
That’s coming in clutch.
Eden: Dendy’s season was just as lucrative as Dukes, if not better.
The jumper broke the long jump record in the outdoor NCAA meet on June 12. The last time it was broken was in 1993 by Dion Bentley. That seems like a big deal to me.
He’s one of the first athletes people think of when you mention track and field and that’s because he’s done some incredible things. Breaking records is just one of them.
Also, Dendy is just a junior at UF. If he’s breaking records and grabbing national titles like this now, imagine what the upcoming season will be like for him and the Gators.
Follow Jordan McPherson on Twitter @J_McPherson1126
Follow Eden Otero on Twitter @edenotero_l
Florida's Marquis Dendy reacts after competing in the long jump at the NCAA track and field championships on June 12 in Eugene, Ore. Dendy became the first athlete to win both the long jump and the triple jump at the NCAA Outdoors since 2002.
Scottie Wilbekin attempts a three-point shot during Florida’s 56-49 win against Tennessee on Saturday in the Georgia Dome. Wilbekin was the Southeastern Conference Player of the Year and averaged 13.4 points on the season.
Taylor Gushue bats during Florida’s 3-1 win against FSU on March 18 at McKethan Stadium. Gushue was a second-team All-American in 2014 after batting a career-high .318
Patric Young attempts a shot during Florida’s 72-49 win against Missouri on March 14 in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta during the Southeastern Conference Tournament. Young was the 2014 SEC Defensive Player of the Year and averaged 6.4 rebounds per game on the season.
Dedric Dukes races in the 400-meter dash at the Tom Jones Memorial on April 19 at the Percy Beard Track. Dukes set personal-best marks in every event he competed in during the 2014 season and help break the school's 4x400-meter relay record.
