2021 NCAA DI Men’s Cross Country Regional Rankings – Week 5

NEW ORLEANS – Well, that was fun!

Here is the Week 5 edition of the 2021 NCAA Division I Men’s Cross Country Regional Rankings, as released on Monday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Seven of the nine regions saw changes among their top-5 teams with the Northeast Region undergoing a total overhaul after a massive weekend of action.

Remember that Regional Championships Friday is set for November 12!

Great Lakes Region

There were a few changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Great Lakes Region.

Notre Dame and Wisconsin remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Michigan, but Indiana jumped into the No. 4 spot, ahead of Butler, which fell another spot to No. 5. Seven of the top-8 teams in the region competed at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational this past weekend. The Badgers posted the most favorable result with a fourth-place finish, while the Wolverines (eighth), Hoosiers (21st) and Bulldogs (22nd) were all behind them in some fashion.

Mid-Atlantic Region

There were no changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Mid-Atlantic Region.

Villanova and Princeton remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Georgetown, No. 4 Navy and No. 5 Penn. The Wildcats won the team title at the Princeton Invitational, while the Tigers took their top team to the FSU Invite/Pre-Nats and finished seventh, three spots ahead of the Hoyas (10th). The Midshipmen cruised to a win over rival Army, which leaves the Quakers, who won the team title at the Panorama Farms XC23 Invitational.

Midwest Region

There were no changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Midwest Region.

Oklahoma State and Iowa State remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Tulsa, No. 4 Minnesota and No. 5 Wichita State. Iowa State, Tulsa and Minnesota went head-to-head-to-head at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational this past weekend and finished in that order, headlined by the Cyclones’ victory, while the Golden Hurricane took third and the Golden Gophers ended up 15th. Wichita State beat No. 6 Bradley head-to-head at the Bradley Pink Classic this past weekend. 

Mountain Region

There were a few changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Mountain Region.

Northern Arizona and Colorado remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 BYU, but Air Force soared into the No. 4 spot with Colorado State right behind at No. 5. Three of the top-5 teams competed at the FSU Invite/Pre-Nats – NAU, Colorado and BYU – while the other two – Air Force and Colorado State – traveled to the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational this past weekend. The Lumberjacks won the team title in Tallahassee, Florida, while the Buffs took runner-up honors with the Cougars in fourth place. The Falcons finished an impressive fifth in Madison, Wisconsin, with the Rams also finding a spot in the top-10 at fifth.

Northeast Region

There were some MASSIVE changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Northeast Region.

Harvard and Providence soared into the top-2 spots at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, while former No. 1 Iona fell to No. 4 and former No. 3 Syracuse dropped to No. 3. Stony Brooks slid down one spot to No. 5 to coincide with those previous changes. Each of the top-4 programs competed at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational this past weekend with the Crimson earning the region’s best finish in 13th place. Providence ended up 19th, one spot ahead of Syracuse (20th) and Iona struggled to a 25th-place showing.

South Region

There were a few changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the South Region.

Florida State and Alabama remained No. 1, and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Ole Miss, but Lipscomb vaulted to the No. 4 spot, followed by No. 5 North Florida. Down in Tallahassee, Florida, at the FSU Invite/Pre-Nats, the Seminoles, Crimson Tide and the Rebels all finished within four places of each other: FSU was eighth; Alabama was ninth; Ole Miss took 11th. The Bison won the team title at the Arturo Barrios Invitational hosted by Texas A&M.

South Central Region

There were a few changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the South Central Region.

Arkansas and Texas remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, but now North Texas is No. 3, with LSU at No. 4 and Texas A&M at No. 5. The Razorbacks had the strongest showing out of the region this past weekend with a third-place finish at the FSU Invite/Pre-Nats. The Longhorns finished sixth down in Tallahassee, Florida, while the Mean Green, Tigers and Aggies were third, fourth and fifth, respectively, at the Arturo Barrios Invitational.

Southeast Region

There were major changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Southeast Region.

Furman held steady at No. 1, but is now followed by No. 2 Duke, No. 3 North Carolina, No. 4 Wake Forest and No. 5 NC State. Three of those top-5 teams competed at the Wisconsin Nuttycombe Invitational this past weekend – Furman, North Carolina and NC State – while the remaining two – Duke and Wake Forest – tried their might at the FSU Invite/Pre-Nats. The Paladins finished ninth in Wisconsin, considerably ahead of the Tar Heels and Wolfpack. Duke took 13th at the FSU Invite, two spots ahead of the Demon Deacons.

West Region

There were a few changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the West Region.

Stanford and Oregon remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, but are now followed by No. 3 Gonzaga, No. 4 Boise State and No. 5 Washington. Each of those top-5 programs competed at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational this past weekend and finished in that order: the Cardinal took runner-up honors; the Ducks were sixth; the Bulldogs finished seventh; the Broncos were 12th; the Huskies ended up 14th, two spots ahead of new No. 6 Portland.