Nick Canepa: Meet the Unknown U.S. Athlete of the Year

Sez Me …

Television is not where track and field goes to die. In the United States, it’s already dead on arrival.

We really care about the greatest sport in this country … every four years.

Olympic sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson recently was arrested for domestic violence against her boyfriend. During a blazing international summer of hot times and marks, that has been the biggest story in the world of track and field.

Scandals, mostly involving drugs, seem to feed the sport more than marks. I wonder how many American sports fans have heard of 2025’s greatest athletic feat, one that didn’t nearly get enough attention?

His name is Cooper Lutkenhaus. He’s 16. He just became a junior at Justin (Texas) High School and ran 800 meters at the U.S. Track and Field Championships in 1 minute, 42.47 seconds — the fastest 800 by a 16-year-old in history. It is the fourth-fastest time run by any American, any age, in history.

More? It is the 18th-fastest 800 in the history of the world.

Cooper is the Unknown U.S. Athlete of the Year.

This is incredible stuff. It should be huge news. It should be plastered all over TV. Instead, we’re hearing Paramount will pay $1.1 billion a year for UFC events. That’s mixed martial arts. Bloodsport.

I imagine this is what the cavemen watched.

Hey, I don’t expect track to be our No. 1 sport any more than I do soccer. But doesn’t it have everything we like? Speed, strength and skill?

It’s individual. There are personalities. Is it better than watching some multi-millionaire who doesn’t even take ground balls anymore bat .230?

Eugene, Ore., is by far the hottest bed in American track. The U.S. Championships were held there in July, as always, over 10 days. What other city would want it? The high attendance was 4,500, the low 2,500. That’s the number of people who saw Cooper’s 800 live.

San Diego used to be a terrific track town. Used to be. Why it no longer is, I have no guess. I’ve loved it since Rick Smith was covering the Lincoln High-San Diego High dual meets. It is the greatest and probably the oldest of competitions. But people rarely bleed.

So I guess that’s it. …

Do you have a calendar? It’s August. The National League West race doesn’t end this month, no matter how this weekend turns out. …

I’m sure there have been other 70-yard field goals kicked in practice before that one. …

I believe we’re getting dangerously close to kickers being forced to use 5-pound balls.  …

Imagine having the ball on your own 35-yard line and playing for the field goal. …

Jerry Jones on his Cowboys: “If we’re not getting looked at, then I’ll do my part to get us looked at. I’ll stir it up.” Greatest showman since P.T. Barnum. He can appease the suckers. …

Jones is alone on the playground, a child left to himself in a huge, fancy toy store. Other owners say nothing. …

Former NFL offensive tackle Gosder Cherilus has been arrested for urinating on a fellow airline passenger. The excuse, apparently, was that he couldn’t fit in the bathroom. …

How can the Raiders win if 70-something coach Pete Carroll can tackle one of his players in practice every day? …

If Shedeur Sanders never gets a snap in a real NFL game, his fall to the fifth round of the draft still remains the greatest mystery in the history of the lottery. He did nothing to warrant it. …

Micah Parsons on the current state of his dealings with Jones: “My mouth is closed.” So we know one thing: Micah never will go into politics. Unless he’s lying. Then he takes the lead in polls. …

Did you know Sandy Koufax had two pitches and he tipped them to batters? “Still couldn’t hit him,” said Ernie Banks. Sandy was a Dodger, so I hate saying this, but he was the best and remains the best. …

Tablets should not be allowed in dugouts any more than smartphones should be OK’d for classrooms. I don’t know how getting close-ups of a pitcher’s grip isn’t cheating. And yet, it’s still an Everest climb to get a batter to hit .300. …

Not since mighty Mexico Poly in 1966 has Aztecs football faced a tougher challenge in an opener than theirs with Stony Brook, which I believe was named for former San Diego sports broadcaster Jim Stone. …

Seriously, I believe SDSU could have scored 200 points on that Mexico team. Don Coryell, who completely let up (it was a 45-0 joke), wanted a rematch, but Poly politely declined. …

It appears Texas will be the first No. 1 in the preseason football poll to be an underdog in its opener (Ohio State). Damn. And here I was starting to believe in preseason rankings. …

Texas is one of the historic football programs, and yet, even with a screwed up poll system, it never has been a preseason No. 1? …

Of course, most poll voters see more of teams during the preseason than they do in real games (when they’re working with no chance of seeing everyone play). …

The Longhorns’ Arch Manning is being touted as a generational quarterback, although he’s really done little outside of being born with a football name. I don’t know if America can stand it. I don’t know if I can stand another Manning. …

But, much to my delight, I saw a list the other day naming the 10 most overrated NFL players of all time. No. 1: Eli “Jughead” Manning. I’m no fan of most lists, but that was a great one. …

Matthew Stafford’s back is out front. Biggest story of the preseason. …

“I’m not going to buy my kids an encyclopedia. Let them walk to school like I did.” — Yogi Berra, who, along with Churchill, said most of the important things that have ever been said.

China is testing a vacuum train that can travel 1,000 mph. The biggest problem is that even first-class meals are fast food. …

I’ve been to Alaska twice. A beautiful place we’ve yet to totally screw up. But how dense am I? I didn’t know everyone was speaking Russian. I thought it was an accent. …

I’m not going to jump on the “Caleb Williams is a bust” bandwagon. A major talent. …

I wonder when the D.C. Crimebusters are going to do something about real bad stuff, such as millions being blown on bike lanes? …

Josh Allen admits he drank beer when he was 12 years old. He was raised on a cotton farm. So maybe you expected Dom Perignon? …

Got it. If you find yourself in a sticky situation, build a beautiful ballroom. …

You know what I’ve always found? There are people better at things than you think you are. …

I didn’t know there was anybody in this country smart enough to rig an election by 7 million votes. Shoeless Joe Jackson no longer is around.  …

There’s a new cure for baldness? I thought there already was one. It’s called a hat.