USTFCCCA News & Notes
It’s Not How You Start: USTFCCCA Preseason Rank vs Championship Finish
“It’s not how you start; it’s how you finish.”
You’ll hear that phrase ad nauseum over the next few weeks.
A high preseason rank shows respect from the electorate.
But winning when it counts is what leaves a legacy.
With that in mind, the USTFCCCA will begin rolling out its preseason National Coaches’ Polls for the upcoming cross country season next week. The NCAA Division I poll will be released on Tuesday, August 26, followed by NCAA Division III on Wednesday, August 27. The NCAA Division II poll will arrive one week later, with the NAIA and NJCAA polls released at various points in between.
Did preseason prognostications project success for the top-5s in 2024? Let’s see. Men’s teams are on the left. Women’s teams are on the right.
NCAA DI XC: Preseason Ranks vs. Finish |
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| Men’s Poll | Women’s Poll | |||||
| Team | Preseason | Finish | Team | Preseason | Finish | |
| Oklahoma State | 1 | 8 | NC State | t-1 | 8 | |
| BYU | 2 | 1 | Northern Arizona | t-1 | 4 | |
| Arkansas | 3 | 3 | Notre Dame | 3 | 16 | |
| Northern Arizona | 4 | 5 | Oregon | 4 | 5 | |
| Iowa State | 5 | 2 | Washington | 5 | 13 | |
NCAA DII XC: Preseason Ranks vs. Finish |
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| Men’s Poll | Women’s Poll | |||||
| Team | Preseason | Finish | Team | Preseason | Finish | |
| Wingate | 1 | 2 | Adams State | 1 | 1 | |
| East Central (Okla.) | 2 | 8 | Grand Valley State | 2 | 4 | |
| Colo. School of Mines | 3 | 1 | Western Colorado | 3 | 12 | |
| West Texas A&M | 4 | 4 | Augustana (S.D.) | 4 | 10 | |
| Grand Valley State | 5 | 5 | CSU Pueblo | 5 | 3 | |
NCAA DIII XC: Preseason Ranks vs. Finish |
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| Men’s Poll | Women’s Poll | |||||
| Team | Preseason | Finish | Team | Preseason | Finish | |
| UW-La Crosse | 1 | 1 | NYU | 1 | 4 | |
| Wartburg | 2 | 2 | UChicago | 2 | 2 | |
| UW-Whitewater | 3 | 4 | Claremont-Mudd-Scripps | 3 | 11 | |
| Pomona-Pitzer | 4 | 3 | SUNY Geneseo | 4 | 9 | |
| Lynchburg | 5 | 12 | Lynchburg | 5 | 27 | |
NAIA XC: Preseason Ranks vs. Finish |
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| Men’s Poll | Women’s Poll | |||||
| Team | Preseason | Finish | Team | Preseason | Finish | |
| Milligan (Tenn.) | 1 | 2 | Saint Mary (Kan.) | 1 | 3 | |
| Saint Mary (Kan.) | 2 | 6 | Milligan (Tenn.) | 2 | 4 | |
| Cumberlands (Ky.) | 3 | 3 | The Master’s (Calif.) | 3 | 1 | |
| Indiana Wesleyan | 4 | 5 | Taylor (Ind.) | 4 | 2 | |
| College of Idaho | 5 | 1 | Cumberlands (Ky.) | 5 | 6 | |
NJCAA DI XC: Preseason Ranks vs. Finish |
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| Men’s Poll | Women’s Poll | |||||
| Team | Preseason | Finish | Team | Preseason | Finish | |
| Salt Lake (Utah) CC | 1 | 1 | Salt Lake (Utah) CC | 1 | 1 | |
| Iowa Western CC | 2 | 2 | New Mexico JC | 2 | 3 | |
| Butler (Kan.) CC | 3 | 4 | Iowa Western CC | 3 | DNQ | |
| Iowa Central CC | 4 | 19 | Southern Idaho | 4 | 4 | |
| New Mexico JC | 5 | 7 | Iowa Central CC | 5 | 2 | |
NJCAA DII XC: Preseason Ranks vs. Finish |
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| Men’s Poll | Women’s Poll | |||||
| Team | Preseason | Finish | Team | Preseason | Finish | |
| Mesa (Ariz.) CC | 1 | 5 | Mesa (Ariz.) CC | 1 | 1 | |
| Cowley (Kan.) | 2 | 8 | Paradise Valley CC | 2 | 2 | |
| Paradise Valley CC | 3 | 4 | Des Moines Area | 3 | 3 | |
| Daytona State (Fla.) | 4 | 6 | Cowley (Kan.) | 4 | 8 | |
| Lansing (Mich.) CC | 5 | 1 | Daytona State (Fla.) | 5 | 16 | |
Five preseason No. 1 teams would win their respective championship in November: Adams State’s women in NCAA Division II, UW-La Crosse’s men in NCAA Division III, both squads from Salt Lake (Utah) CC in NJCAA Division I, as well as Mesa (Ariz.) CC in NJCAA Division II.
Notably, the top-3 women’s teams from the 2024 NCAA DI Cross Country Championships – BYU, West Virginia, and Providence – were ranked No. 6, RV, and No. 9 in the USTFCCCA Preseason National Coaches’ Poll.