WASHINGTON (September 3, 2026) - There is a lot of excitement around the 2026 Howard University men's & women's cross-country season.
 
The men are coming off an improved season that featured some outstanding performances from some young runners.
 
Leading the way is junior Sayid Shakur (Fort Washington, Md.), who made his mark by finishing 13^th and earn all-conference recognition at the MEAC (Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) Championships.
 
"Sayid is going to be an impact performer for us, " predicted Dameon Morgan, Howard men's & women's cross country head coach, who is entering his fourth year at the helm. "He and Clevon are looking to finish in the Top 4."
 
Sophomore Noah Douglas (Boston) and rookie Clevon Wofford Jr. (Jamestown, N.Y.) are expected to make a big impact.
 
"We are looking for Noah and Clevon to add to what we are trying to build," Morgan said. "It must be noted that Douglas was on his way to an outstanding season before a season injury ended his season in October. He is fully healthy and is expected to add to the excitement of a successful season."
 
An outstanding student, Shakir offers his excitement around the upcoming season.
 
"We made a big jump last year," noted Shakur, a business finance major, who boasts a 4.0 GPA. "It has motivated to do even better and we have a lot of youth who want to be a part of something special."
 
Other contributors include juniors Paul Robinson (Bowie, Md.) and William Shepherd (Plano, Texas) and sophomore Ashton Thomas (Greensboro, N.C.).
 
On the women's side, Morgan, who is rapidly gaining a reputation as being one of the top and upcoming coaches in the track and field, and Howard are looking to win back-to-back MEAC titles. The prospects appear to be good.
 
The Bison's hopes are buoyed by the return of the trio of juniors Ester Kirk (Morristown, N.J.) and Mira Martin (Columbus, Ohio) and sophomore Alexis Jones (New Windsor, N.Y.), who form the nucleus of another championship. All three runners finished in top 15 to earn all-conference honors.
 
"It's a major plus when you have a young athletes perform liked Alex," said Morgan. "Her work ethic and dedication set the example for others."
 
Jones expresses her excitement about the prospects of the season.
 
"We are definitely working hard for a repeat," announced Jones, who holds the school record for the 6K. "We are young, but experienced team. We have brought in some freshmen who should add to what we have. We are not just showing up and living off what we accomplished last year."
 
Jones clocked in at 17:49.10 in last year's championship.
 
Jones, a biology premed major who is planning to become either an anesthesiologist or an emergency room surgeon.
 
Kirk earned All-MEAC honors after finishing behind Jones with a time of 18:18.70 shares her expectations.
 
"We are a fairly young team," Kirk noted. "We have only one senior and we have a couple of freshmen who are working hard to maintain what we have as a program. In the preseason workouts, everyone is working hard for a repeat."
 
Kirk is an environmental science major who plans to pursue law or conservation.
 
Other performers who Morgan expects contributions are Sarah Seam (Gaithersburg, Md.), the team's only senior who just missed making all conference, and junior Kendall Robinson (Bowie, Md.) and Esther Nelson (Tampa, Fla.).
 
The season gets underway Friday (Sept. 4) at the annual Mount Saint Mary's Invitational, followed the Virginia Invitational in Charlottesville (Sept. 11).
 
But Morgan feels that the meet will dictate how the season will go is the Paul Short Invitational (Oct. 2).
 
"All of our meets are designed to prepare us for the championships in November," Morgan stated, who has built the program in a short time since arriving on campus. "The Paul Short is very important to us. There will be teams who are potential qualifiers and we can determine where we are."
 
The MEAC Championships takes place Saturday Oct. 31 in Cary, N.C.
 
From an academic perspective, Morgan acknowledges that it is a luxury to have athletes who also excel in the classroom. The two teams combined for nine athletes who were named to the MEAC Commissioner's All-Academic Team.
 
"It is something that it expected at Howard," said Morgan. "There is strong competition in both athletics and in the classroom. It is a big part of recruiting."
 
The NCAA Regionals are scheduled for November 13 in Bethlehem, Pa.
 
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com.