Former Freedom track star Smith leads Gators

Former Freedom High track and field standout Calvin Smith II, now a University of Florida senior, begins competition in the NCAA Track and Field Championships on Friday at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Ark.

Smith says he has set himself plenty of goals in his final season with the Gators. Winning his first indoor title, he says, is one of them.

He's already a 13-time all-American and owns an NCAA outdoor gold medal in the 4x100 relay.

"I've got higher expectations this year," said Smith, the son of former 100-meter dash world record holder Calvin Smith. "I think if I stay healthy, I can achieve them but I have to stay focused, too."

Smith is one of five Gators who enter the meet ranked first -- or tied for first -- in their respective events and Smith is No. 3 in another. His 200-meter time of 20.67 seconds is tied with FSU's Charles Clark for the No. 1 mark in that event and his 400 clocking of 45.61 is the third-best time entering the two-day meet.

Smith is also part of UF's 4x400 relay, which is seeded third. The 200 prelims and finals are Friday, along with the 400 qualifying rounds. The 400 and 4x400 finals are set for Saturday.

In his senior season, Smith is a key member of the Gator coach Mike Holloway's track team and one of its leaders.

"I think in any sport, you need a leader and I think Calvin has developed into a leader for us," Holloway said. "At the end of the day, what Calvin does, people know, people in the program and other programs know, that when Calvin takes the track, that he's going to go out there and do his job.

"The big thing for Calvin that I'm very proud of is his focus this year has been better than it ever has been. In the past, he could get complacent and say 'Well, I've done this now, I'm OK,' but this year his focus has been on getting better and better each week. He comes to practice every day with a different focus, kind of a different moxy about him so I expect big things from Calvin this weekend and I can assure you he does too."

UF's men, who were runners-up at the recent SEC indoor championships, are looking for their first NCAA Indoor Championship in program history after a second-place finish at last season's event in College Station, Texas, under Holloway. The Lady Gators, winners of the SEC, last won the NCAA crown in 1992.

Other Gators athletes coming in ranked No. 1 include Charlotte Browning (mile run), Jeff Demps (60), Mariam Kevkhishvili (shot put) and Christian Taylor (men's triple jump). A total of 11 men and seven women for the NCAA indoor finals.