EUGENE -- Oregon track coach Robert Johnson pushed hard for UO distance star Edward Cheserek's selection for The Bowerman on Tuesday at Hayward Field.
The Bowerman is given annually to the top male athlete and top female athlete in college track and field.
Cheserek, who has won 14 national championships -- 17 if you include cross country -- has been named one of the three male finalists for The Bowerman for the past three years. But he never has been selected.
"The Bowerman is the highest award you can win in track and field, right?" Johnson said at a news conference prior to this week's NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.