Franklin Nwankpa and Corey Ihmels are heading into the ISU Classic this weekend with high expectations.

Ihmels is seconds away from breaking the 1984 ISU record of 3-minutes, 59.76 seconds set by Bob Verbeeck in 1984, and Nwankpa hopes to top his own time of 6.62 seconds in the 55-meter dash he ran in the ISU Open two weeks ago.

His time was good enough to beat Keith Williams of Nike Central (6.75), who finished second in the 1996 USA Track and Field Championship.

Both Nwankpa and Ihmels are members of the Iowa State men’s track team who carry the distinction of being All-Americans.

Nwankpa, a 5-8 senior from Port Harcourt, Nigeria, has more to brag about than just having the second fastest time in the country in the 55.

Nwankpa holds the ISU record in the 55 with a time of 6.17, beating Big Eight 100-meter champion Piere Lisk.

He also anchored the 4×100 team that finished third at the NCAA outdoor championship (39.38), won a Big Eight title (39.23) in a conference record and took the Drake Relays title (39.31), and represented Nigeria in the 4×100 relay in the 1996 Olympic Games.

Ihmels, a 6-2 senior from Williston, N.D., is a four-time All-American and was sixth in the Big 12 Cross Country Championships. Ihmels also placed fourth in the NCAA indoor mile final (4:04.03) and placed sixth in the Big Eight outdoor 1,500 final.

Both will face stiff competition at the upcoming meet.

“This weekend is loaded. In the dash, there will be several pros to run, besides the kids that will be here,” said Steve Lynn, head coach of the men’s track team.

Some of the standouts to square off against Nwankpa at the meet include Marcel Carter, who once ran for ISU and now runs for Nike South, and Keith Williams of Nike Central, Lynn said.

He will also face James Duncan of Illinois State, who was an All-American last year in the 200, Jerry Harris, who has one of the top times in the 55, Kevin Green, who made it to semifinals at the Olympic trials and is running for Nike Central, and Dorian Green from the University of Illinois.

“I expect a tremendously fast race. It will take faster than a 6.62,” Lynn said of the 55 that Nwankpa will compete in. Lynn said one small mistake can cost a person the race. “In the 55-meters, you need a great start and great explosion.”

Nwankpa also will run the 200, another race that Lynn is predicting to be fast.

This is also the last meet that Nwankpa will compete in at Iowa State, and according to Lynn, he is in the best shape of his career.

Lynn believes the 200, the 55 and the mile races will be the marquee events of the meet.

Kevin Buorke, head cross country coach, believes there will be some good competition for the mile race.

His focus is getting Ihmels to run a sub-four, and they are banking on Dmitry Drozdov, last year’s Iowa State Athlete of the Year, to help out.

“We are going to have a rabbit in there,” Buorke said of Drozdov. “That will help it go fast. A lot of times, [Ihmels] just needs to get in the right race. He will have some competition, but having Dmitry in there will certainly help. Ihmels wants the school record, and he is certainly capable of running that.”

Drozdov is a national steeplechase champion and a former teammate, and Ihmels believes that having Drozdov take the lead is crucial to getting a sub-four time. Ihmels’ personal record is a 4:01.71, which he set earlier this season.

“Dmitry [Drozdov] is going to take the pace the first 1,200 meters of the race,” Ihmels said.

Another barrier that Ihmels has appeared to have overcome is the injuries that have plagued him in the past.

“Last year, I had trouble with my hamstring and calves. I seem to get them at the wrong times, and it has been frustrating.”

“I think that I am pretty fit, and the sub-four is definitely in my grasp. It will happen sooner or later. It’s going to come. I just want to get it over with and go on. It is just a matter of getting in the right race and trying to run as fast as I am capable.”

The ISU Classic will be held Feb. 7 and 8 at the Lied Recreation Facility.