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49 Astrauskas, as well. "You never expect someone to break an NCAA re- cord," Astrauskas said. "I knew that he would throw well and I knew that he would throw far. But I didn't think it would happen this soon. None of this was expected." Lihrman is a student of the sport. He regularly looks up videos to compare techniques between elite throwers, especially those who fit his body style. He critiques others and he critiques himself in order to evaluate what he is doing wrong, how he can improve and how he can get a leg up on the competition. Despite the records and accolades, Lihrman isn't satisfied. While he holds the NCAA Division I record, he still isn't the collegiate record holder. That title belongs to Kibwe Johnson of Division II Ashland University, who holds the top two marks all-time. On Feb. 9, 2007, Johnson set the collegiate record by throwing 79-10 1/4, and extended it exactly one month later with a heave of 82-3 1/2. Heading into the 2014 Big Ten Indoor Champion- ships this weekend at the SPIRE Institute in Gene- va, Ohio, Lihrman believes he can throw at least 81 feet. If he feels like he's on during warm-ups and his technique is sound, he thinks he can take down the collegiate record. "Oh boy, if I feel like I did last weekend, you can expect the record to be beat because I know I can throw even further," he said. Lihrman won't have much room for error and will have to be at his best once again because the Big Ten boasts the top four weight throwers in the nation this season. Astrauskas says that depth means a 70- foot throw might result in just a fifth-place perfor- mance. Lihrman wouldn't have it any other way. "They are going to push me to be the best I can be," he said. Lihrman hopes to have his biggest throw on his first attempt this weekend because he believes it will give him an edge. He says it might make his competitors push too hard trying to play catch-up, which can result in poor distances. Astrauskas doesn't know how much further Li- hrman can throw. He has given up trying to guess; it's more fun not to. "Every time I put a distance on what I think Michael can throw, he surpasses it," Astrauskas conceded. "Bigger marks are going to come. "I'm going to enjoy the journey, that's for sure." Lihrman credits Deren Wilder for ev- ery stride he has made. The junior doesn't know where he would be without him. "He's my number one fan and I'll never be able to repay him for all the help he has given me," Lihrman said. "He knew what I was capable of. I had no idea what I was ca- pable of at the time because I was too inex- perienced. But he did." Almost two years later, Lihrman still doesn't know what his limits are. "If I set goals that I knew I could reach, I wouldn't be doing a very good job at push- ing myself," he explained. "I like to shoot for an unrealistic mark because it makes me try even harder to reach that goal. "But I always reach it, which should tell you how much I still don't know what I'm capable of."