What if Sydney McLaughlin never left Kentucky to run pro track?

Sydney McLaughlin is arguably the most dominant women’s track athlete of the past two decades. And she turned professional after only 1 year of running in college. But what would have happened if Sydney ran her final 3 years for the University of Kentucky? How many championships could she have won? Would anyone have ever beaten her? And how would the balance of power in NCAA track and field shifted to change history?

Freshman Year Recap

Sydney began her college career in the 2017-18 track and field season. She primarily ran the 400 meter and 200 meter indoors, winning the SEC championship in the 400. At the indoor NCAA meet she actually finished second running 50.54 in the 400 to a senior Kendall Ellis of USC, and 4th in the 200 meter to future Olympian Gabby Thomas, who was a junior at the time. And in her outdoor campaign she ran the 200 meter, 400 meter, and 400 hurdles of course, never losing a meet in any of them. Running away literally at the NCAA meet with the 400 hurdles title.

Sophomore Year

In reality Sydney turned pro in 2019 and only ran indoor once, and that was in the 500 meter. She ran 1:09.46 and had she ran that time as a sophomore it would have been the collegiate leader, and good enough for 9th on the All-Time collegiate list. And her indoor 400 times from her freshman year, which only got her second at the NCAA meet, would have been the collegiate leader that year, by nearly a full second. And had she simply repeated her indoor 200 meter times from her freshman campaign, she would have moved up to second at the NCAA indoor meet, losing only to Kayla White of North Carolina A&T. These performances would have banked 20 points in the 200 and 400 at the SEC meet and 18 points at the  NCAA meet for Kentucky. And they would have vaulted up from sixth place up to second in the SECs. And from 21st up to 4th at the NCAA Indoors.

But Outdoors she would have dominated the 400 hurdles running 52.23 running far away from anyone who dared to line up against her. And the one 400 meter she ran outdoors that year in reality, was 50.78. That one performance proves that she should have finished second overall at the NCAA meet had she completed the double with the open 400. She would have lost to Wadeline Jonathas who also ran in the SEC for South Carolina, banking 18 points for Kentucky at both the SEC and NCAA meets. Kentucky would have jumped up from 4th up to second at the SEC meet, and all the way from 14th to 5th at the NCAA Outdoors. By this point Sydney would have already won 3 NCAA championships between the 400m indoors and 400 hurdles outdoors. And she would have 4 SEC championships, including a 200 meter SEC title. But she’s still just getting warmed up.

Junior Year

But in 2020 there famously was no indoor or outdoor championship, and we all know why. So her final two years would have started in 2021, where she would transition to adding in the 60 meter hurdles indoors, and the 100 meter hurdles outdoors. However, she likely wouldn’t have scored even at the SEC indoor meet in the 60 hurdles, and run things back in the 200m and 400m. She would have likely finished fourth in the 200 meter at the NCAAs and SECs with her teammate Abby Steiner leading the way. But her only 400 meter to go off for that season was a 51.16 which she ran outdoors. Even duplicating that performance, she would have likely finished second at the SECs, but third at the NCAA indoor meet, losing to Kaelin Rogers of Florida, and Athing Mu of Texas A&M. And Kentucky would have moved from 5th to third at the SEC indoors, and from 13th up to 8th at the NCAAs.

Yet Sydney’s Outdoor season she would prove her versatility and dominance, running 12.65 as a serious 100 meter hurdler. That time alone would be good enough for second overall at both the SEC championships and NCAA outdoor meet. And the 400 meter hurdles would be without a doubt her race, a year in which she set a world record in that event, so everyone else never would have had a chance. Those 18 points would have moved Kentucky only from 11th to 9th at the SEC meet, but all the way from 21st to 4th at the NCAAs. Sydney would now have NCAA medals in the Indoor 200m, Indoor 400m, Outdoor 400m, Outdoor 100 hurdles, and been undefeated in the 400 hurdles. But she’s not done yet.

Senior Year

Because 2022 would have been her senior year, one where she only ran outdoors in reality. Assuming she never ran indoors for whatever reason, she still put down an impressive 12.75 in her only 100 hurdles race. Good enough to make her an NCAA championship finalist. And if she duplicated that performance she even could have finished 3rd at the NCAAs. But in the 400 meter hurdles she went on to break her own world records. Banking an easy 10 to 16 points for the Kentucky Wildcats in the SEC and NCAA championships. Kentucky would still finish no higher than third at the SEC meet, and second at the NCAA championships their best finish throughout her entire career.

The Bottom Line

So if Sydney McLaughlin never left college early, she likely would have been not only the most dominant women’s 400 hurdles runner ever, but the most versatile sprinter we have ever seen. With NCAA championship medals in 5 separate events between indoors and outdoors, she would go down as a once in a generation talent, and the queen of the track, the likes of which nobody has ever seen before, and we maybe won’t get to see ever again.

KNOW THE GAME. WIN THE GAME.

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