Arkansas Men, LSU Women on Top in Final Pre-Championships DI Rankings

NEW ORLEANS – The Arkansas men and LSU women will be the top teams in the nation heading into NCAA Championships weekend, according to the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) National Team Computer Rankings released Tuesday, though Arkansas finds itself in a much more comfortable position atop the rankings.

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS INFO: National Championships Central
Accepted Entries: Men | Women
Entries Leaders: Entries by Team | Entries by Conference

National Ranking PDFs: Top 25 | Full Rankings By Team | Event-by-Event | TFRRS Top 10 NCAA Qual. Bests
Week-by-Week PDFs: By Rank | By Team | All-Time
All-Division Collegiate Bests: Full PDF | Best Marks by Football Players

These two top teams find themselves in drastically different situations. Arkansas’ team score of 241.43 is the largest total of any team entering the NCAA Championships – men or women – since the rankings began in 2008, and its 67.39-point lead over No. 2 Florida is the second-widest margin between No. 1 and No. 2 heading into the NCAA meet. Only Florida’s 78.61-point margin over No. 2 LSU in 2011 surpasses it.

LSU, on the other hand, holds just a slim 3.35-point lead on No. 2 Kansas – the second-smallest margin in the history of the women’s rankings. In 2009, No. 1 Texas A&M held a slight 2.98-point advantage in the rankings over No. 2 Tennessee, but the Volunteers overtook the Aggies at the Championships to claim the team title.

This is the final edition of the National Team Computer Rankings of the indoor season, with rankings determined solely on the NCAA Championships accepted entries released Monday evening. The NCAA Indoor Championships are set for March 8-9 in Fayetteville, Ark.

ESPN3 will stream the meet live on March 8 from 6:30 p.m.-10:30 p.m. ET and March 9 from 7 p.m.-9:30 p.m. ET. Portions of the meet not available on ESPN3 can be viewed via ArkansasRazorbacks.com. A tape delay of the championship will air Sunday, March 17 from 7 p.m.-9 p.m. ET on ESPNU.

LSU Leads Tight Race for No. 1 Spot

LSU is No. 1 for the fourth consecutive week with 163.99 team points, but the Tigers’ hold on the top spot has never been as tenuous as now with a little more than three points separating them from No. 2 Kansas with 160.64 team points. The Tigers will send 10 entries to the Championships, including reigning The Bowerman winner Kimberlyn Duncan at 200 meters (No. 1 seed) and 60 meters (No. 2 seed) and a the nation’s top two runners at 800 meters in Charlene Lipsey and Natoya Goule. LSU will be going for its first indoor team title since 2004, the last of a streak of three straight.

The Kansas Jayhawks, who finished runner-up at last season’s Indoor Championships to the Oregon Ducks, are in position to potentially overtake LSU and claim their first team title in track & field after moving up a spot to No. 2 in the final rankings of the season. With 12 entries in the championships field, Kansas is second to only Oregon and Texas in terms of representation, both of which have 13. Top-ranked long jumper and No. 2 triple jumper Andrea Geubelle and No. 2 long jumper Francine Simpson headline five entries in the jumps events -most of any team in the nation.

Fresh off an SEC team title two weekends ago, Arkansas moved up one spot will enter the weekend No. 3 at 135.22 team points with nine entries into the championships, sixth-most among women’s teams. Indoor pentathlon collegiate record holder Makeba Alcide and top sprinter at 400 meters Regina George will be key for the Razorbacks as they look for their first title in women’s track & field history.

Meanwhile, a title for No. 4 Oregon (134.40 team points) would be their fourth straight, a feat matched only by an LSU program that won five straight between 1993-97. Though only fourth in the rankings after dropping two spots, the Ducks will be represented by 13 entries at the Championships, tied for the most by any team with No. 7 Texas.

Texas A&M rounds out the top five women’s teams with 123.71 team points and 11 NCAA entries. The Aggies will be relying heavily on their nation-leading eight entries in the sprints events in their quest for their first indoor team title in program history.

Arkansas Enters NCAA Meet as Heavy Favorites

The Razorback men have not only opened up a nearly 70-point advantage over three-time defending indoor champ No. 2 Florida in the team score rankings, 241.43-174.04, but more importantly they have 19 entries in the Championship fields – eight more than the Gators. Arkansas has nine top-five caliber entries in eight events, including nation-leaders at 800 meters in Leoman Momoh and in the triple jump in Tarik Batchelor. A title would be the program’s first since 2006.

With 11 qualifiers for the NCAA meet the Gators have the second-most of any men’s team in their quest for a fourth-straight title, but find themselves at a numbers disadvantage to Arkansas’ 19 entries. Like Arkansas, Florida also has a pair of collegiate leaders in 60 hurdler Eddie Lovett and long jumper Marquis Dendy, and feature seven athletes within the top five seeds in six events.

Texas A&M (123.78), looking for its first indoor title, checked in at No. 3 in the final edition of the rankings with nine qualifiers. Seven of those entries come in the sprints and hurdles – most of any team in the nation – including the world leader at 400 meters, Deon Lendore.

Wisconsin (102.55) is the top non-SEC team in the rankings at No. 4 with nine NCAA qualifiers, including four in the distance events, tied with No. 9 Oklahoma State for most in the country. The Badgers also boast the top heptathlete in the field in Japheth Cato, looking for his third 6,000+ score of the season. Wisconsin last won an indoor team title in 2007.

No. 5 Oregon (84.87) will also bring nine entries to Fayetteville, including a nation-best five in the middle-distance events. The Ducks will look to claim its first team title since 2009.