In hindsight, Nathan Kent believes he brought the wrong mindset into the 2024 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
Navy’s standout sprinter qualified for nationals in the 400-meter dash and was pleased with that accomplishment. Kent finished 13th out of 24 competitors to earn second team All-American honors.
“Making nationals last spring was great, but I probably had low expectations for myself. I was just thankful to be there,” Kent said last week.
Kent has qualified for the NCAA championships in the 400 again this spring, but now has a larger goal than repeating as an All-American. The junior from Rocklin, California, aims to be in the event finals, which will require posting one of the nine fastest preliminary times.
In his first appearance at fabled Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, Kent was unsure if he belonged. Finishing fourth in one of three heats was proof he was among the best in the collegiate ranks.
“If I learned anything from last year’s nationals it’s that I’m not only ready, but able to compete at that level,” Kent said.
Further validation came three weeks later when Kent set the school record in the 400 while advancing to the semifinals of the U.S. Olympic Trials. He wound up placing 12th with a time of 45.32 seconds.
“Going to the Olympic Trials and doing pretty well opened up my eyes as to what I was capable of doing,” he said.
Kent earned a return trip to nationals by placing fourth at the NCAA East Region meet, breaking his own school record in the process by clocking 45.23 seconds.
This year, the East Regional produced faster times than the West Regional with the top seven finishers all clocking 45.29 seconds or faster. William Jones of USC won the West Region with a time of 45.32.
Twenty-seven athletes advanced to the NCAA championships in the 400 and they are split into three heats of nine each. In order to qualify for the final, Kent must finish first or second in his heat or post one of the next three fastest times.
Kent is confident the training regimen designed by Navy coach Jamie Cook will pay dividends during Wednesday’s preliminary round.
“Some guys that are capable of running really fast don’t peak well,” said Kent, who has only run the 400-meter dash at three meets this season. “That is where my edge is going to be because we back off a bit toward the end of the season.”
Cook believes advancing to the event final is an achievable goal for Kent, who finished one spot ahead of the nation’s top-ranked 400 runner at the East Regional, Florida State’s Micahi Danzy who clocked 44.38 at the Atlantic Coast Conference championships.
“I wanted Nathan to be ready to deliver his best performances at the end of the season,” Cook said. “Nathan ran great at the region meet and beat a lot of really good sprinters. I know he is going to go out there fully prepared to give a great effort no matter what.”
Kent chose the Naval Academy in part because it was one of the few schools willing to allow him to pursue two varsity sports. The 6-foot-3, 180-pound graduate of Rocklin High is also a starting wide receiver for the Navy football team.
Coaches in both sports have worked together to support Kent and ensure he excels on the gridiron and the track. Kent does not participate in winter offseason strength and conditioning drills for football because they conflict with indoor track and field. He missed all of spring practice because it coincides with the outdoor track and field season.
“There have definitely been challenges along the way, but thankfully my coaches and teammates have made it manageable,” Kent said. “I’m very thankful that track is not trying to pull me away from football season and that football is not trying to pull me away from track season. That was the expectation coming in and the coaches have upheld it and for that I’m extremely thankful.”
Kent was named a position captain for football and head coach Brian Newberry believes he is poised for his best season as a senior. Kent was recently named a track and field captain for the 2025-26 season with Cook praising the leadership he’s displayed.
“Nathan is a shining example to every Naval Academy athlete as to what you should do and how you conduct yourself. He always goes about his business the right way,” Cook said. “Performance-wise and character-wise, Nathan is everything you would want in a Navy athlete.”
Kent was named Patriot League Men’s Track and Field Athlete of the Meet for both the indoor and outdoor championships. He also holds the Navy records in the 100 and 200.
“Nathan has as high a ceiling as any track and field athlete that has ever been at the academy,” Cook said. “Nathan has also distinguished himself on the football field. He has proven that you can play two sports at a very high level. Hopefully, we have more multi-sport athletes that are looking at the Naval Academy.”
While excited to return to nationals in his primary individual event, Kent was even happier about helping Navy qualify for the NCAA championships in the 4×400 relay. He teamed with Pete deJonge, Jacques Guillaume and David Walker to set the school record of 3:04.05 as the Midshipmen finished 11th to narrowly earn a berth in nationals.
“I was filled with so much joy and excitement when I found out we had qualified. That was a lot more rewarding than any individual event,” Kent said. “I would trade the individual 400 for the 4×400 relay making it to nationals any day of the week. Team is all that has ever mattered to me.”
Guillaume and deJonge are seniors who were members of the 4×400 relay as sophomores when Navy just missed qualifying for nationals. Walker is a sophomore who posted a personal-best time of 45.8 seconds on the second leg.
“David put up a great time and you could say he’s the reason we made nationals. He stepped in a big way,” Kent said.
Guillaume, whose best 400-meter relay split is 44.73, said qualifying for nationals was three years in the making.
“We’ve been working toward this since our youngster year and it’s great to see all the effort finally come to fruition,” he said. “We’re a tight-knit group that works hard in practice and holds each other accountable. It was all about effort, attitude and taking advantage of our opportunity. Every single man was 100 % bought in.”
Meanwhile, senior distance standout Murphy Smith qualified for the NCAA championships in the 10,000-meter run. Smith placed ninth at the East Region meet with a time of 29 minutes, 6.20 seconds.
This will be the first outdoor nationals appearance for Smith, a two-time Patriot League champion in cross country. The Charlotte, North Carolina, native was the Patriot League champ in the 5,000 both indoors and outdoors as a junior. He holds the school records in both the 5,000 and 10,000.
“I’m really happy for Murphy because I know how much he has wanted it and the sacrifices he’s made,” Cook said. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen someone more driven in his singular pursuit of becoming the best runner he can possibly be. He is so incredibly focused on doing every little thing right.”
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