Cross Country Season on Flotrack 2013Oct 23, 2013 by Isaac Wood
Flotrack XC Rankings Men's NCAA XC Top 31 Teams (Week 4)
Flotrack XC Rankings Men's NCAA XC Top 31 Teams (Week 4)
This top 31 was impossible for me to determine because of the quality depth up front at both Pre-Nats and Wisco. It appeared that the Pre-Nats meet was a little more top heavy in terms of quality teams, but Wisco was definitely deeper. It was hard leaving some upstart teams off the rankings who deserve a look like Air Force and Illinois, but the chances of them getting out of their regions seems slim. Remember these are the teams who will be making the NCAA meet and where they will finish in Terre Haute.
Place Team Points
1 - OK State 125
The Pokes ran a "B" team this weekend at Pre-Nats that included Craig Nowak, Chad Noelle and Joseph Manilafasha. If that's your "B" team then there is something good brewing over there in Stillwater that the country has yet to see. We still have not seen Charles Mathenge and it will be fun to watch the whole team get after it at Big 12s in a few weeks.
Next up: Big 12s
2 - Colorado 140
The Buffaloes looked smooth this weekend winning the Pre-Nats meet without leader Jake Hurysz and did it with unheralded, yet very talented, Morgan Pearson leading the way. Freshman phenom Ben Saarel was outstanding in his debut in CU uniform finishing 9th individually. All-American Blake Theroux was 21st and he is only going to get better. The gap between Oklahoma State and the rest of the NCAA is much closer than we all think and Colorado proved that this weekend.
Next up: Pac-12s
3 - Oregon 158
A second place team finish, only 23 points away from Colorado, puts them right behind CU and OSU in the rankings this week. Ed Cheserek is proving himself each and every race to be the real deal and Parker Stinson and Mac Fleet are outstanding senior leaders for the Ducks. Mac Fleet is running the best xc of his career and he makes Oregon that much better. When Eric Jenkins is added to the mix and Tanguy Pepiot doesn't have to "just" win an open race, the race for the title is going to be fun.
Next up: Pac-12s
4 - NAU 179
NAU placed 4 athletes in the top 40, led by Futsum Z at 6th and their No. 5, Andy Trouard, not that far behind in 43rd. To prove how deep NAU is, Trouard, the No. 5, beat studs like Jeremy Rae of Notre Dame, Ryan Dohner of Texas and Andrew Springer of Georgetown. Although they are ranked 4th here, the race for the title is seemingly down to the four teams that should have the podium spots all but wrapped up.
Next up: Big Sky Champs
5 - BYU 222
BYU probably had their best team finish in nearly two years since their 2nd place finish at Wisconsin in 2011. The surprise of the meet for the Cougars was that the no. 1 runner was not ol’ reliable Tylor Thatcher, but Jason Witt. Witt is seeking redemption from his second to last place finish at NCAAs last season and proved how talented he really is by finishing 8th individually at Wisco. Returned missionary Jon Nelson is getting better every race and has scary upside. BYU is so deep, they had all seven of their athletes in right around the 75th place mark.
Unfortunately the top four teams are so good, that it would take a melt down (which seemingly happens every year) for the Cougars to find themselves on the podium, but don't count them out of a spot quite yet.
Next up: The Greatest duel meet that's a conference meet, West Coast Conference Champs
6 - Portland 282
The Pilots were also impressive this weekend finishing 3rd behind NAU and BYU. Led by Junior Scott Fauble who was 15th, and three other juniors (they will be dang good next year too) who finished in the top 60 and their no. 5 who was 61st, Portland is shaping up to be a very good team-- per usual. Coach Rob Conner always has his teams ready to roll around this time as they own the West Coast Conference and will have a battle on their hands once again in a couple of weeks in Malibu as BYU will be seeking revenge on the one point victory Portland had over them in 2012.
Portland is good and will be awaiting a slip up from any team above them to sneak into a podium spot.
Next up: WCC Champs
7 - Iona 326
Coach Ricardo Santos is no longer under the shadow of Mick Byrne and his recruiting classes. Santos is bringing in some talent on his own and proved it this weekend with a 3rd place team finish at Pre-Nats. With nearly three athletes finishing in the top 20 and basically five in the top 40, Iona is not lacking for a no. 5 runner and look to be just as good if not better than their under-achieving 2012 squad. With a studly trio of Daniel Clorley, Kieran Clements, and Matt Gillespie up front, the Gaels are no joke.
Next up: MAAC Champs
8 - Stanford 328
In my initial all 31 team deep individual predictions this summer, I got a ton of flack for placing so many freshman as high up as I did. One of the reasons for this is because this group of freshman are far and away the strongest group in recent memory and Sean McGorty is huge part of that. His 5th place finish at Pre-Nats led Stanford to a 4th place team finish. There has got to be nothing more motivating to an upperclassman than to see an underclassman beat you in a big time race. McGorty will be providing that motivation for guys like Jim Rosa, Erik Olson and Mike Atchoo the rest of the season. Stanford is good this year and they are due for a good one at NCAAs. Maybe this is the year.
Next up: Pac-12s
9 - Tulsa 351
Chris O'Hare is good. I mean, think about what he was doing this summer and how well he ran indoors this past spring, and look at what he is doing now. There may not be an athlete as versatile as O'Hare in the NCAA (ok well maybe Lawi Lalang). Tulsa has four very good athletes that have been running well throughout the season, but they are lacking in the no. 5 department. After going 3-27-30-32, Tulsa's no. 5 was 67th. When that gap can be closed, this is a dangerous team with the low-stick in O'Hare.
Next up: Conference USA Champs
10 - Wisconsin 354
At their home meet, the Badgers brought in front of the home crowd finishing 4th as a team and got great performances from redshirt Freshman Malachy Schrobilgen and Junior Michael Van Voorhis who finished 20th and 21st, respectively. Alex Brill and Alex Hatz also had solid races and Wisconsin had a good 1-5 spread of :33 seconds. The upside of Rob Finnerty’s bummer of a 115th place finish is that when he’s back and rolling-- like he should--the Badgers will be even better.
Next up: Big 10s
11 - Arkansas 373
Yes, Arkansas' depth--or lack thereof--was exposed this weekend. I do have a hard time seeing Solomon Haile running that poorly again; his 75th place 24:13 effort was a bit out of character. But Kemoy Campbell has become a different runner this season and in all honesty, is probably the only athlete in the NCAA that could give Kithuka a scare. If Stanley Kebenei learns how to be patient in races and he is a shoo-in All-American. Gabe Gonzales is a solid no. 4—he could be average at NCAAs and still finish in the 60s. Arkansas is going to be fine at the NCAA level because of their low-sticks. As long as Rono or Wallace is decent in Terre Haute this is a top-10 team at worst.
Next up: SECs
Check out this week's Workout Wednesday with the Razorbacks.
12 - New Mexico 374
The unknown factor, thatis still somewhat abounding in Albuquerque, is what this team is capable of this season? After a poor performance at Notre Dame, New Mexico's men looked great at Wisconsin finishing 5th. Luke Caldwell is the real deal and is the front-runner that the Lobos need. Adam Bitchell had the best race of his NCAA career finishing 24th individually. UNM had four in the top 70 and their no. 5, Elmar Engholm, was 109th. The real questions are when will Ross Millington be healthy and when will Ross Matheson open up? Both of the Rosses hold the key to New Mexico having any chance at a top 10 finish at NCAAs.
Next up: MWC Champs
13 - Columbia 382
The Lions proved that they are for real this season following up the best win in their program history at Notre Dame with a 6th place team finish at Wisco. Their 1-5 spread is very good, with all five scorers finishing within 28 seconds of each other. Jake Sienko is the leader of this team, but is backed up by Daniel Everett, Nico Composto and John Gregorek. The move to 10k in a few weeks will be interesting for this squad. They’re pieced together by mid-d, steeple, and 10k guys with a freshman in the mix as their no. 5. Maybe the most intriguing team in the NCAA is in the Upper West side of Manhattan.
Next up: HEPS
14 - Syracuse 390
This week Syracuse gets no. 14 in the rankings because that's where Syracuse always ends up at NCAAs. No foolin’, since 2009 Syracuse has finished 14th, 14th, 15th and 15th. And this Orange team is no different with seven interchangeable parts that each will be a scorer at one big meet or another throughout the year. This weekend at Wisconsin, where Syracuse placed 8th as a team, MJ Erb emerged as a solid no. 2 and Martin Hehir is the definite top dawg for this team. We're still waiting Joe Whelan to come back to his old form and once he does, this team is actually much more talented than a 14th place team at NCAAs, but it will take Whelan to really come around for that to change.
Next up: ACCs
15 - Princeton 415
A :36 second spread separated Sam Pons (no.1) from Matt McDonald (no.5) at Pre-Nats where the Tigers finished 6th as a team. As much as they should be closer to Tulsa in these rankings, they finished 117 points behind them and therefore provided a nice gap between the top ten quality schools in the field and the top-20 type teams.
The Tigers also have a lot of interchangeable parts and the capacity to have four guys place in the top 80 at NCAAs if it all comes together at the right time. Pons, Chris Bendtsen, Tyler Udland and Arroyo-Yamin are all talented athletes and can be dangerous at any race, especially the now incredibly deep HEPS.
Next up: HEPS
16 - Michigan 453
Mason Ferlic is really starting to figure out this whole cross country thing. It’s always interesting to see really good steeplechasers struggle at cross country, but Ferlic is getting it down. A 12th place finish at Wisconsin is good enough for me to believe he is looking at an All-American run at NCAAs. Mark Beams is also running well for the Wolverines and helped them finish 9th as a team this weekend. The Big 10s will be exciting, as Michigan is not that far behind Wisconsin and will give them a run (literally) for the title. BTW where is Tony Smoragiewicz? With him in the mix he makes them that much better.
Next up: Big 10s
17 - E. Kentucky 458
This is the most enigmatic team in the NCAA right now. They have so many guys that have run unreal times on the track or in cross during previous seasons. The only real consistent athletes they have are Soufiane Bouchikhi and Wade Meddles who were All-Americans last year and can be expected to be so this upcoming NCAAs. Bouchikhi was great at Wisco finishing 5th individually. Meddles also was solid in 32nd. Newcomer Ambrose Maritim is running pretty well for the Colonels. But where is steeple stud (8:37) Ben Toroitich? Oh wait he was 198th. What about NCAA Steeple 7th place finisher Ole Hesselbjerg? 139th.
This team should be better than 10th at Wisconsin, and the sky is the limit if they can pull it together. And if they do? This is a top 10 team at worst.
Next up: OVC Champs
18 - Villanova 469
The Wildcats kept a low profile this weekend rolling the competition at the Princeton Invite. These guys are staying under the radar pretty well, but Patrick Tiernan, Jordy Williamsz, Sam McEntee and Robert Denault are all running great right now. Fifth man Brian Basili was not far behind and the Wildcats are a sleeper team in the NCAA right now.
Next up: Big East Champs
19 - North Carolina 487
Led by Ryan Walling and John Raneri, the Tar Heels had a very good start to the Wisco invite, getting out very well but faded over the last few k. An 11th place finish is still nothing to frown at and they have the points necessary that, even if they struggle at reagionals, they will get into the NCAA meet. Pat Schellberg probably should be their no.1 based off his track PRs and he was their no.3 this weekend finishing 70th overall. When he finally sharpens up, he adds another dimension to this team as a possible contender in Terre Haute.
Next up: ACCs
20 - Virginia 500
The Cavs sat out this weekend in preparation for a bid at the ACC Championships in two weeks.
21 - Indiana 508
The Hoosiers are another interesting team after their 17th place finish at Wisco overshadows their victory at Paul Short. J.R. Ricker and Robby Nierman who should be their 1-2 were the no.3 and no.5 runners this weekend. This leads me to believe that they have the potential to get better with stronger performances from their leaders. Carl Smith and Evan Esselink were good this weekend with solid top 50 performances.
Next up: Big 10s
22 - Harvard 509
Maksim Karolev and James Leakos are very good, but they are not the only pieces that Harvard has that make them an NCAA qualifying team. Tom Purnell is also running quite well and was 66th at Wisconsin this weekend to compliment his front running teammates who placed 2nd and 10th, respectively. Through six, the Crimson are actually pretty solid and seemingly picked up the points necessary to ensure their NCAA bid. With Karolev and Leakos leading the way at the Big Dance in Terre Haute, Harvard should have a nice day in Terra Haute.
Next up: HEPS
23 - Colorado State 510
The Rams were off this weekend in preps for the MWC Champs.
24 - Providence 528
Shane Quinn led the Friars this weekend at Wisconsin with a very good 9th place individual finish, which helped Providence place 12th as a team in a loaded field. Ben Connor had the best race of his career finishing 29th. The gap between Connor (the no.2) and Brian Doyle (the no. 3) is 70+ places and that gap needs to be tightened in order for the Friars to help themselves get out of the now very competitive Northeast Regional.
Next up: Big East Champs
25 - Notre Dame 539
The Irish are still trying to get things going this season after a disappointing home meet performance a few weeks ago. Jeremy Rae and Martin Grady continue to lead the Irish and placed 45th and 57th respectively. Their :38 second spread is good, but their no. 5 placing 143rd is a definite area of weakness. Once that improves, Notre Dame will be battling in a couple of weeks in Kernersville, North Carolina for the ACC crown.
Next up: ACC Champs
26 - Washington 561
The Huskies finally lived up to what I thought they could be earlier this season when I had them ranked initially. Aaron Nelson has become a freak and ran an incredibly smart race at Wisconsin and ended up 4th individually. The closer Meron Simon, Izaic Yorks and others can keep the gap between themselves and Nelson they will be prepared to make the NCAA meet out of the brutal West Region. A 15th place finish at Wisco is a good start and prepares them to do battle at Pac-12s in two weeks.
Next up: Pac-12s
27 - Minnesota 581
Ok. Minnesota, what happened this weekend? After a surprisingly good finish at Notre Dame that I felt like secured their spot at NCAAs, they ended up 29th at Wisconsin. John Simons, normally a very good no.1 for them, had to have been sick or hurt at Wisco, because he finished 257th. Their spread is good from 1-5 as it is under :30 seconds. If Minnesota can figure out Simons' issue and help the rest of the crew to get their mind right, Minnesota should have enough points already to make NCAA, although everyone and their dog got points from them this weekend. We'll see.
Next up: Big 10s
28 - Texas 593
The gap between Craig Lutz and Ryan Dohner and the rest of the squad from Austin is galactic. Luckily for the Longhorns the South-Central Region is doable, as they all but have the bid for NCAAs locked up. An 18th place finish at Wisconsin is not very convincing of what they are capable of this season and things can only go up from where they are now. Lutz and Dohner are a solid 1-2 puch, but the Longhorns desperately need production out of Mark Pinales and crew.
Next up: Big 12s
29 - Florida State 604
Things are not looking very bright in Tallahassee as Florida State struggled again this weekend at Pre-Nats. Without high roller Jakub Zivec, the Seminoles lack in any kind of front runner and therefore are paying the price for it at big meets like Pre-Nats. The good news is that things can only get better for these guys, too. When Zivec is healthy and running, which will happen at ACCs, and Zak Seddon can finally wrap his head around cross country, the 'Noles have the pieces to be pretty good.
The lone reason they linger on this poll is because of the fact the South Region is very weak this year. They should make it out to keep their streak of NCAA appearances alive.
Next up: ACCs
30 - Boise State 658
After another solid performance this weekend at Pre-Nats, finishing 8th as a team, I've come to believe that the Broncos should have a chance at making NCAAs. Their :18 second spread from 1-5 is likely the best in the NCAA and will really come in handy at the West Regional.
In fact, the Broncos looked solid this weekend without having a great performance out of typical 1-2 guy Drew O'Donaghue-McDonald. Boise State will show where they’re really at and how ready they are for NCAAs at the MWC Champs against New Mexico and up-start Air Force.
Next up: MWC Champs
31 - Auburn 718
Auburn is another case of a pretty good team that should make the Big Dance because their region is not very good. The South region should be winnable for the Tigers and they looked pretty good this weekend winning the Crimson Classic. Ty McCormack, Kane Grimster, and Nik Buhner are a very good 1-2-3 and it will be interesting to see if their no. 5 (who is mediocre at best) will be capable of running well enough at Regionals to get them to the Big Dance. We'll see where they match up with some good teams at SECs up next.