GREENWOOD, Ind. – Ben Barton, Josh Taylor, Carter Cutting, Garrett Copelin and Creed Thompson were all named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District team, the organization announced Tuesday.
The 2026 Academic All-District Men’s Track & Field teams recognize the nation’s top student-athletes for their combined performances on the track, in the field and in the classroom. The CSC Academic All-America program separately recognizes men’s track & field honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA.
To be eligible for the award, student-athletes must be at least a sophomore and must maintain at least a 3.50 grade point average while finishing in the Top 50 at a regional cross country championships or rank in the Top 50 in their respective region in an individual event.
Senior multi-athlete Ben Barton earned CSC Academic All-District honors after capping his final season in a BYU uniform by crowning himself the first Cougar NCAA decathlon national champion in more than 45 years. The now five time first team All-American, who has earned three CSC Academic All-American honors, holds the BYU school record in the heptathlon and the No. 2 all-time record in the decathlon.
All-American Josh Taylor ended his final season earning the honor after propelling the 4x400-meter relay squad to a national championship appearance and setting the indoor 400-meter BYU record. The senior who graduated with a degree in Construction Management earned a GPA of 3.70 over his years at BYU. Taylor earned All-Big 12 honors after finishing second in the 4x400m relay at the 2026 outdoor Big 12 championships.
Carter Cutting claimed the award just weeks after being named the men’s track and field Big 12 academic athlete of the year with a GPA of 3.81 in Finance. The junior earned the distinction on the Academic All-District team in a season where he set the three school records across two events. The Wilsonville, Oregon native claimed the indoor mile BYU record on his way to winning BYU’s first national title indoors since 2011. Cutting also broke the school record in the outdoor 1500-meter competing at the national championship where he placed eighth to claim first team All-American honors.
Creed Thompson ended his BYU career on the CSC Academic All-District list while finishing out his final season named the Big 12 10,000-meter champion. The two time first team All-American holds four spots on the BYU top 10 boards with the No. 3 fastest all-time BYU record in the indoor 5000-meter, No. 6 fastest in the indoor 3000-meter, No. 9 in the outdoor 5000m and No. 6 all-time in the outdoor 10,000m. The Lehi, Utah native graduated with a degree in computer science with a GPA of 3.74.
Davin Thompson, the identical twin brother of Creed Thompson, earned the CSC Academic All-District honors after earning a USTFCCCA men’s athlete of the week distinction during the 2025 cross country season. The senior who holds the No. 10 fastest BYU record in the indoor 5000m graduated alongside his brother in the Computer Science program earning a GPA of 3.68.
Garrett Copelin earned the Academic All-District distinction in a season where he earned All-Big 12 honors by finishing seventh at the outdoor Big 12 championships in 13.75 seconds in the 110-meter hurdles. The sophomore from Tallahassee, Florida has a GPA of 3.76 in the Pre-Business program and set the BYU No. 5 all-time BYU record in the 110m hurdles.