BOSTON - On Jan. 27, Boston University junior David Proctor lined up alongside 91 other athletes preparing for the Terrier Invitational’s mile run. No one could predict that by the time he crossed the finish line the Rochdale, England, native would turn in one of the most extraordinary performances in BU track history. Proctor ran the race in an amazing time of 3:59.14, breaking a facility and university record, and setting a new NCAA standard for the 2006-07 indoor season.

Proctor edged out Providence’s Max Smith, who last year set the facility and meet record with a time of 3:59.33. Smith also entered this year’s meet already having run a 3:59.45 mile this season. Sponsored Reebok runner Grant Robinson, who was the 2003 NCAA Champion in the mile and a member of the 2004 U.S. Olympic team, also lined up against Proctor. However, by crossing the finish line first, Proctor propelled himself to the ranks of elite runners.

“I didn’t expect to win from the start,” Proctor said, “I knew it could be a fast race, but I never expected to win it, so I was happy that I won and then I looked at the clock and there was just a chain reaction after that.”

Proctor’s record time ranks him first in the nation this year, just ahead of Smith, and first in the United Kingdom as well. He holds the top time in the UK by over two seconds, qualifying him for the European Indoor Championship.

The Terrier Invitational was the second meet where Proctor and Smith went head-to-head this season.

“I’ll admit that he scares me a little bit.” Proctor said of Smith. “He’s one of the best runners in the country. I raced him once this season over at Harvard [Invitational] in the (3,000-meter run), which is beyond my capabilities but I do it for endurance and strength training, and he beat me by about half a minute, so I knew he was one of the best athletes in the country.”

What makes this story even more incredible is that the Terrier Invitational marked the first time Proctor participated in the mile this season. He entered the Terrier Invitational coming off a first-place finish in the 1000 meters during BU’s quad-meet on Jan. 17.

The mile run was not Proctor’s signature event when he came to BU. He spent the past two seasons focusing on the 800-meter run, but after performances that didn’t live up to his expectations, he decided to try a new event.

“I’d been concentrating on the 800 for the last four years but my performance was kind of stale,” Proctor said, “so I thought I’ll just switch to something else and it shows that I’ve got potential and that I could really do something big with it.”

Proctor is no stranger to attacking school records. Just a year ago, at the same meet, Proctor tied a school record in the 1,000 with a time of 2:22.46.

“I thought I had that school record, but my time was rounded up to even it and when I realized I had tied it instead of broken it, it kind of took the edge of it a little bit,” Proctor reminisced, however, this time there was no question, “This was definitely bigger, definitely better, a four-minute mile is magical.”

Although Proctor missed the automatic bid to the NCAA Championships by 00.14 seconds, the chances are high he will still represent BU in the mile run. The NCAA committee takes the top 25 times in the nation for the race, and it is rare that more than a handful of athletes run a sub-four minute mile during a season.

“One of the biggest things when going into a meet is having the confidence that you can do well, and coming off the quad-meet where I ran a time faster than where I was at the end of last season felt great,” Proctor said, “The kick was there and I felt so strong, and feeling that confident that I can do something big going into a race is definitely huge.”

Proctor wasn’t the sole Terrier competing in the mile. Senior Nick Goodman finished just behind his teammate, in fifth place, breaking a personal best and reaching an NCAA provisional mark with a time of 4:03.13.

“I didn’t realize he was right there,” Proctor said of Goodman, “I thought he was a little further back, but I’m so happy for him. He’s in great shape and he’s going to go a long way and I hope people give him the recognition he deserves, because a sub-four minute mile is so close, he’s going to break it any day.”

Goodman’s finish in the mile ranks him 11th in the nation this season. The Watertown, Mass., native also entered the Terrier Invitational coming off a strong quad-meet. He paced his team with two first-places finishes, taking the mile run and the 800 meters, and earning America East Track Performer of the Week for his efforts.

Proctor will have the weekend to allow his performance to sink in before returning to the Track and Tennis Center for a multi-team meet on Monday, Feb. 5.

“It was two days ago and it’s still hard to believe. I read all these things about it, but it’s a four-minute mile, it hasn’t really sunken in yet. I say all these things and dream about things all the time and then they come true,” Proctor said with a smile. “All these things you dream about one day being able to say you’ve done, and just like that I can, and I’m only a junior. I look forward to working with (distance coach) Bruce (Lehane), he’s gotten me to this stage and I’m only halfway done.”