Noah Lyles is the reigning World champion in the 200 meter dash, and the fastest American to ever run that event. He’s perhaps the most exciting sprinter we’ve ever seen on a track, since Usain Bolt and he has the talent to back it up. When he turned professional, signing with Adidas out of high school, most fans have forgotten that his brother Josephus Lyles also signed a deal at the same time. Regardless of how anyone feels about it, Josephus Lyles was a track and field phenom, who would have been one of America’s best young talents, even without his brother leading the way. It appears that the shadow that Noah’s success has cast over him, keeps fans from realizing just how good he really is. The truth is that Josephus Lyles could have become an NCAA All American, at the same time that Noah was winning World Championships. But he’s also all the proof that anyone should need, that going pro in track and field is way harder than anyone could ever realize. 

How good was Josephus Lyles in high school?

Nobody really knows the story of Josephus Lyles because his brother has always dominated the headlines. They both attended TC Williams in Virginia, coincidentally the same school known for the movie “Remember the Titans.” Although Noah is about a year older on the calendar, they completed high school side by side, in the classroom and on the track. However Josephus was clearly one of the best high school prospects in the entire nation by his Senior year season. That said, there’s a big difference between being a top 10 sprinter in the nation, and being the best one in all of high school. That difference is what we have already witnessed between Noah and Josephus. While Noah led the nation in the 100 and the 200 meter dashes, Josephus ran 20.73 in the 200 meter dash, a time that ranked him 7th in the nation. That likely would have won him a state championship if his brother wasn’t also competing in his state, on the same team. Yet in the 400 meter dash, he did something even his brother did not, by running 45.94. The performance was not only the fastest time in the state, but the third fastest in the nation. For the record the two names that were ahead of him were future World Champion Michael Norman, and Tyrese Cooper, who was actually top 5 all time for any 400 meter runner under the age of 18. Considering that Michael Norman’s success is well documented, the real question is why didn’t Josephus follow suit? 

What if Josephus Lyles ran track in college?

Unlike Jospehus Lyles, Michael Norman went to college. He competed for 2 seasons at USC making the NCAA championships both Indoors and Outdoors. He didn’t win it all as a freshman, but he was competitive in almost any race that he entered. Keep in mind college athletes run a lot of races, almost every weekend from January through to June. Josephus committed to run for the Florida Gators, but he didn’t actually attend. So what would have happened if he did go to Florida, even without his brother? That would have changed the course of history, both for him and the NCAA.

Using the times he ran as a pro in 2017 and beyond, we basically know what Josephus Lyles would have been in college. What he likely needed was more time to develop into the type of sprinter he was always capable of. As a freshman he would have run as fast as 45.30 outdoors in the 400 meter dash, a time that would have ranked him 10th in NCAA Division 1. Fred Kerley was the champion that year back when he still thought his best event was the 400 meter dash. But for the record, that’s borderline D1 All American status, and also good enough to land him fifth overall in the SEC conference. In 2018 Josephus ran even faster going 45.09. Ironically that would have only ranked 12th in the nation outdoors, in the same season where Michael Norman won the 400 meter dash indoors and outdoors at the college level. For the record, up until this point in his career he wasn’t putting out times that were fast enough in the 200 meter dash to get to the NCAA championship meet.

In what would have been his junior year, Josephus struggled in the 400 running slower than he did in the past 2 seasons, but still good enough to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor meet. Interestingly enough his 200 meter finally began to catch up, running 20.40. Which would have qualified him for the NCAA championships to run both events, likely struggling to make a final. The funny thing is what would have been Josephus’s senior year would have been 2020. A year where his outdoor times proved that he could have competed well enough at the SEC championship meet to project as a potential finalist for the indoor 200. But in reality that meet never happened for reasons that we all know. Therefore the 2021 outdoor season could have been his senior season for the Florida Gators. Saving his best for his last.

That is the year where Josephus finally came into his own as a sprinter. He didn’t run the 400 at all competitively, instead focusing on the 100 and 200. His 100s were fast, but not quite NCAA championship level. That is not major concern because his 200 meter dash dropped all the way down to 20.03 wind legal. That time would have ranked third in the entire NCAA, ahead of Joseph Fahnbulleh and Matthew Boling. It also would have made him an All American and a medalist at the NCAA championships. In all honesty, Josephus would have likely been better than this as a college runner. Because the pressure of making it as a pro would have been lifted off of him, which makes running fast times a whole lot easier. Especially when you have access to good coaching, and a lot of races to figure it out, along with unlimited food to eat in a college dining hall.

The Bottom Line

The only times a pro level sprinter in America is ever recognized is if they win a Diamond League event, make Team USA for the Olympics or World Championships, or at the very least make a Championship final at either of those events themselves. Josephus Lyles hasn’t done any of that to this point, but I’m here to argue that if he had gone to college, that probably could of changed. In 2022 he broke the 20 second barrier, going 19.93 in the 200 meter dash, and finishing fifth at the USA championship final. That means he was right on schedule for what a first year pro should look like after a full college career. The expectations for Josephus have been made very clear since the days he first signed with Adidas. He was supposed to be just as good as his older brother. But that is unfair to him and only sets up fans for disappointment. Josephus Lyles is actually right on schedule for what his talent always said he was capable of. He’s an amazing young sprinter, who needed time to work out the kinks to develop into a world class talent. He could have taken that time in college, but passed up on it to go a different route. In fact he chose a much harder route. But there’s no shame in that because his career isn’t over. It's actually just beginning.

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