Hall of Fame
A standout thrower for the NIU Men’s Track and Field team, Byrnes won the shot put title at the 1975 Mid-American Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships and was a three-time NCAA Championships qualifier in the shot put.
After transferring from Drake, in his first season at NIU, Byrnes won four indoor shot put titles while finishing second at the MAC Invitational with a mark of 56-05.25 (17.20m) and second at the Central Collegiate Championship with a season-best mark of 57-07.75 (17.57m). Byrnes went on to win six more meets during the 1975 outdoor campaign, including the MAC Championship where he recorded a mark of 56-07.50 (17.25m) to win the conference crown. His season-best throw came at Northern Iowa, winning the meet title with a mark of 57-08.75 (17.59m).
The 1975 MAC Championship marked the first time a Huskie student-athlete had won a MAC Track and Field title, as Byrnes won the shot put, Larry Satchwell took top honors in the hammer throw and Scott Pauli claimed the pole vault crown.
As a senior in 1976, Byrnes took 10th in the shot put at the NCAA Indoor Championships, recording a mark of 54-11.50 (16.75m) at the national meet. Byrnes recorded a season-best mark of 59-06.00 (18.13m) at the MAC Championships, finishing second. During the 1976 outdoor season, Byrnes claimed first-place finishes in the shot put at seven different events, including the Illinois Intercollegiate and the Central Collegiate. He posted a season-best mark of 60-02.50 (18.35m) twice that spring, first at the NIU Invitational and again in the prelims at the MAC Championship, where he finished second.
Byrnes concluded his Huskie career with an 11th place finish in the shot put at the 1976 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, recording a mark of 58-05.25 (17.81m).
