Wisconsin #1 In 2007 Pre-Season Men’s Cross Country Rankings
Posted September 11th, 2007 at 7:29 PM by Martin Kennedy
Section: News & Results, Cross Country
If the first Division I men’s poll of the season is a reliable indicator; this should be a very interesting cross country season at the national level.
Wisconsin claimed the top spot in the poll released Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. The Badgers received five first-place votes to tabulating 379 points.
Second-ranked Colorado picked up four first-place votes. Third-ranked Iona and fourth-ranked Oregon received one and three first-place votes, respectively.
Rounding out the top 10 are Arkansas, Stanford, UTEP, Oklahoma State, Texas and North Carolina State.
The second 10 consists of Providence, William & Mary, Notre Dame, Portland, Louisville, Georgetown, Alabama, Minnesota, BYU and Northern Arizona.
Rounding out the top 30 are Michigan State, UCLA, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Florida State, Iowa State, Michigan, Princeton, Virginia and Florida (tied for 28th), and Washington.
The voting panel for the USTFCCCA Division I women’s poll consists of nine elected regional representatives, four at-large members of the USTFCCCA and compiled by Don Kopriva.
Wisconsin started the 2006 season ranked first in the nation and held its position heading into the NCAA Championships, where the Badgers were defending their 2005 title. But top runner Chris Solinsky finished a sub-par 73rd and the Badgers finished second in the team race to Colorado.
While Solinsky graduated, Wisconsin still has a strong, deep squad. Stuart Eagon finished third at last year’s NCAA meet, and the Badgers expect to see results from their talented group of sophomores.
Colorado returns four runners from the seven-man team that won last year’s national title, including Brent Vaughn (12th) and Stephen Pifer (20th). Colorado coach Mark Wetmore expects as many as 10 or 12 underclassmen competing for spots in his team’s top seven.
“We feel the same expectations and aspirations every year, and that’s to be the best we can,” Wetmore said. “If it adds up to a national championship, that’s wonderful.”
Iona, the third-place finisher at last year’s NCAA meet, returns six of its top seven runners. Mohamed Khadroui placed 13th at nationals as an Iona sophomore.
The fourth-ranked Ducks return five of their top seven runners from a year ago after finishing tied for fifth place at the NCAA meet a year ago.
The 2007 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Championships will be held Nov. 19 in Terre Haute, Indiana.
Division I Men’s Cross Country rankings
Sept. 11, 2007
(first-place votes in parentheses)
Ranking Team Points
1. Wisconsin (5) 379
2. Colorado (4) 369
3. Iona College (1) 363
4. Oregon (3) 362
5. Arkansas 329
6. Stanford 320
7. UTEP 292
8. Oklahoma State 277
9. Texas 258
10. North Carolina State 249
11. Providence 240
12. William & Mary 231
13. Notre Dame 215
14. Portland 205
15. Louisville 177
16. Georgetown 169
17. Alabama 153
18. Minnesota 145
19. BYU 139
20. Northern Arizona 137
21. Michigan State 132
22. UCLA 130
23. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo 126
24. Florida State 95
25. Iowa State 80
26. Michigan 68
27. Princeton 61
28. (tie) Florida 51
28. (tie) Virginia 51
30. Washington 46
Release via: USTFCCCA
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Tags: colorado, cross country, cross country rankings, D I, DI, Division I, ncaa, oregon, poll, pre season, u.s. track & field and cross country coaches assocation, University of Colorado, university of oregon, university of wisconsin, USTFCCCA, wisconsin, wisconsin badgers, XC, xc rankings
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