EUGENE, Ore. -- Mark Wetmore was walking behind Hayward Field on Saturday looking like any of the thousands of track fans leaving the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials.

He had a backpack slung over his left shoulder and a camp chair in his right hand. He was dressed in jeans and a tan T-shirt with a northwestern Native American symbol emblazoned across the front. His demeanor was calm with not even a smile crossing his face.

There was nothing to suggest the man had just orchestrated one of the most successful track seasons in Colorado history.

But that's what Wetmore wrapped up this week, capping the season with two Olympic berths by CU athletes. Jenny Barringer, who just finished her junior season at CU, finished third in the women's 3,000 steeplechase and is going to Beijing. Billy Nelson, who just finished the last of six seasons under Wetmore, was second in the men's steeple to qualify in his first week as a pro.

Stephen Pifer, who just completed his last season at CU, wasseventh in the 5,000 meters. Senior-to-be Jeremy Dodson broke the distance mold at Colorado and qualified for the quarterfinals of the 200 meters. And all of it came on the heels of a men's conference title and several strong performances at the NCAA championships.

"This is the best overall year we've at had at CU since I've been here," said Wetmore, in his 13th year as CU head coach and 16th overall. "Usually I'm a little wrung out by this time of year, but right now obviously we're all sky high."

Those statements were made in the most measured way possible, which reflects Wetmore's style. While the University of Oregon has sparkling facilities and a world-class track, Wetmore coaches his athletes out of a small office in Balch Fieldhouse and runs them at a track with no permanent seating.

The coach's patient and thoughtful approach to athletics paid off for those Buffaloes competing at the trials.

Instead of trying to win every race, Barringer aimed for the biggest on the calendar. After winning the U.S. title in the steeple last year as a collegian, she was clearly one of the nation's best. This year she didn't even win the Big 12 title, but she set a new collegiate record while winning the NCAA championship in the event. Then she had enough left to qualify for the Olympics at the age of 21.

Nelson did win the Big 12 title but was second at the NCAA championships. Meanwhile, the man he lost to was far behind him Saturday, when Nelson crossed the finish line second in the 3,000 steeple finals at the Olympic trials. That meant more to him than any collegiate race.

"The Big 12s are important to our school and our team, and the national championships are important to our school and our team," Nelson said. "But Mark knew the four of us who came here wanted to compete and do well here, so he set us up to do that."

Nelson's win at the Big 12 Championships helped propel the Buffs to their first men's conference title since the Truman administration. They did it at Potts Field, the Buffs' modest facility a few blocks from the main campus. It was not only a major accomplishment in front of the team's home fans, but also a possible step forward for a program that has long been at the top of the nation in distance running and relegated to second-class status elsewhere.

Another reason the Buffs prevailed at the Big 12s was James Begley's win in the discus, thanks in large part to his coach Casey Malone. Malone did some throwing of his own at the trials, capping the Buffs' stellar showing in Eugene when he qualified Sunday in the discus for his second consecutive Olympics.

Plenty of former Buffs had success along with the current ones. Kara Goucher qualified in two events and won the 5,000 meters. Jorge Torres qualified in the 10,000 meters. Sara Slattery finished fourth in the 5,000 meters, and with the top three in the 5K already qualified in the 10K, one could possibly drop the 5K and open a spot for Slattery.

It was all enough to allow the CU coach to briefly savor what his program had accomplished, instead of consider what could have been.

"We had a very good season," Wetmore said. "I'm often unhappy at this time of year because I usually feel like we didn't reach our full potential. But this year I feel like we came pretty to close to that."