Two Florida Gators have picked up 2026 SEC Indoor Track and Field Awards, the conference announced today.
Freshman jumper Temoso Masikane was named the Men’s Freshman Field Athlete of the Year, and head coach Mike Holloway was recognized as the Women’s Coach of the Year.
Masikane, the 19-year-old from Phokeng, South Africa, was the highest-finishing freshman in both the triple jump and the long jump at the 2026 SEC Indoor Championships. Notably, he placed fifth in the triple jump with a personal best mark of 16.35 meters.
Additionally, Masikane is currently ranked fifth in the NCAA long jump with a mark of 8.11 meters, which he set at Arkansas’ Tyson Invitational on Feb. 13. He is the only freshman sitting in the top ten for this event.
With this accolade, Masikane joins an elite group of Gators who achieved success in their debut collegiate seasons. Since the Freshman Field Athlete of the Year award was introduced in 2004, five other Florida male athletes have earned it. Most recently, triple and high jump specialist Clayton Brown received the title in 2017.
The Women’s Coach of the Year award recognizes coach Holloway’s contribution to the women’s SEC Indoor Championship victory last month. It is his sixth time earning the SEC Indoor Coach of the Year title and his third time for the women’s program.
For Holloway, winning is nothing out of the ordinary. In 19 seasons at the helm of the combined men’s and women’s track and field program, he has led the team to 13 SEC track and field titles, seven of which were earned indoors. The 2026 SEC women’s indoor victory marks the fourth under his coaching.
Starting Friday, Florida track and field is set to compete in the NCAA Division I Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The women last won the division title in 2022, while the men have not earned it since their back-to-back wins in 2018 and 2019.
For Masikane, Coach Holloway and their team, these SEC accolades demonstrate that the Florida track and field program is capable of achieving success at high levels. This weekend’s NCAA championship meet presents the Gators with an opportunity to bring that talent to the national stage.
