By: Garrett Zatlin
PAST RANKINGS THIS SEASON
Preseason (9/11)
Week 1 (9/20)
Week 2 (9/28)
Week 3 (10/5)
Week 4 (10/12)-- No changes
Week 5 (10/19)
Week 6 (10/26)-- No changes
Week 7 (11/2)
Week 8 (11/9)-- No changes
Week 9 (11/16)
Week 10 (12/5)
KEY
PAST RANKINGS THIS SEASON
Preseason (9/11)
Week 1 (9/20)
Week 2 (9/28)
Week 3 (10/5)
Week 4 (10/12)-- No changes
Week 5 (10/19)
Week 6 (10/26)-- No changes
Week 7 (11/2)
Week 8 (11/9)-- No changes
Week 9 (11/16)
Week 10 (12/5)
KEY
· Bold: Had performance or important piece of news that influenced a strong change in the rankings
· (#/#): First number indicates how much the team has moved in the rankings. A plus (with green) means they have improved in the rankings. A minus (with red) means they have regressed in the rankings. The second number indicates where they were ranked the week before
· (Weren’t Ranked): Was not ranked the week before.
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#25 Oklahoma State Cowboys (-1/24)
#24 Michigan State Spartans (-2/22)
#23 Boise State Broncos (-2/21)
#22 Washington State Cougars (-4/18)
-The Cougars returned to action at the Notre Dame Invite to face a field of competitive teams. Unfortunately, they didn't rise to the occasion like they should have and had to settle for 7th place overall.
Despite the sub-par showing, I still have a lot of faith in the Cougars. I think Whelan and Williams will finish closer together as the season progresses and that the younger pack behind them will begin to tighten up and develop. There is still a lot took be excited about with a team that hit their peak at the right time last season.
Side note: The Cougars also sent a squad to the UW Invite where they had somewhat decent performances. That could be important to note for the future.
#21 UTEP Miners (Wasn't Ranked)
-When UTEP entered the season, they supposedly only had five guys entered on the roster. Now, the UTEP website lists seven. I suppose that's all you need if you're UTEP who pulled off a 2nd place finish at the Notre Dame Invite.
UTEP ran a great race and their scorers matched up pretty well against Mississippi scorer's who seemed to just have a slight edge on each guy. With the emergence of Antony Kosgei, UTEP will have another low-stick to form a 1-2 punch with Jonah Koech.
Even though UTEP had a great performance at Notre Dame, I'm still staying cautious. Let's not forgot that this team has only seven runners. What happens if someone gets hurt? Are the 6th and 7th men good enough to be scorers if one of the top five have an off day? Despite their great scoring, UTEP is definitely one of the more vulnerable teams in the NCAA.
#20 Michigan Wolverines (0/20)
#19 Washington Huskies (0/19)
-The Huskies finished a predictable 3rd place overall as a team. Oregon and Colorado State took the first two spots while Washington was a bit further out in 3rd place with 64 points. They had a decent showing, but they simply couldn't match the firepower and depth that came from Oregon and CSU. If Washington wants to compete with these top teams, that entire scoring five is gonna have to move up into another tier.
#18 Indiana Hoosiers (-1/17)
-Nothing too exciting for the Hoosiers as they easily cruised through the Rim Rock Invite. I'm hoping we can see them at a big meet soon and get a better understanding of just how good they are.
#17 Eastern Kentucky Colonials (-2/15)
-EKU may have lost to Ole Miss and UTEP, but they still ran very well and it was one of their better regular season races I've seen in a while.
We have rarely seen Eastern Kentucky run well or go all out in the regular season. By the time championship races start, EKU is pulling off upsets and peaking at the right time. Just look back at Southeast regionals last year.
They still have a lot of room to improve, but for the Colonials this is a decent start.
#16 Mississippi Rebels (Wasn't Ranked)
-What a race from the Rebels! They completely blew away expectations with an 83 point win at Notre Dame. After last year, I doubted them to be an effective team capable of pulling off wins like this. They're a team of milers after all...right?
Ole Miss took spots 1, 4, 14, 24, and 40 to close out the scoring. The real storyline came from Sean Tobin who took the individual win and helped catapult the team to the title. Having another low-stick paired with MJ Erb (who took 4th) will be a tremendous advantage for the Rebels as they enter the post-season. I will say that the 40th place spot isn't a great position for the final scorer, but there is still plenty of time to address that.
So why are they only ranked 17th? It pains me to think this way, but Ole Miss had a similar result at the Greater Louisville Classic last fall. They ran pretty well in a strong field, but collapsed later on in the season. Of course, the GLC race wasn't nearly as impressive as what we saw this weekend. Maybe Mississippi has found out what they need to tweak...
#15 Iowa State Cyclones (+1/16)
#14 Virginia Cavaliers (0/14)
#13 Portland Pilots (0/13)
#12 Wisconsin Badgers (0/12)
#11 Furman Paladins (0/11)
#10 Colorado State Rams (0/10)
-It was a great rebound race for the Rams who really needed a confidence booster after a poor showing at Roy Griak (they placed 7th). They really turned things around at the Washington Invite where they took down the Washington Huskies and got relatively close to Oregon in the scoring.
The Rams weren't successful this weekend because of their low-sticks, but rather their depth. Eric Hamer and Cole Rockhold (both sophomores) placed 9th and 11th overall with Jefferson Abbey sandwiched between them in 10th. Grant Fischer had one of the better races of his career by placing 7th overall when the team really needed him to step up. CSU ended up placing two more in the top 20.
This is a great team that finally showed the potential I believed they had. They are young, but experienced at the same time. Although I am a big fan of them, I have to point out that Jefferson Abbey hasn't been running up to par lately. He's going to need to improve and get back to where he was last season if CSU is really going to have during a splash during conferences/regionals/nationals.
#9 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (0/9)
#8 Arkansas Razorbacks (0/8)
-Nothing too exciting at the Chile Pepper Festival as the Razorbacks cruised through an easy field to get the win. Still not sign of Ronoh. I'm hoping we see him soon.
#7 Colorado Buffaloes (0/7)
-Colorado ran most of their top guys at the Rocky Mountain Shootout, but Dressel and Saarel ran unattached. I'm really interested in the possibility of Wetmore redshirting Dressel and Saarel. It's tough to say exactly what his plan is for those two so I guess we'll have to wait and see.
Nonetheless, the Buff's looked really solid as they took the top seven spots for those who weren't running unattached. One thing's for sure, Coloardo will always be competitive
Side note: Where was Phillip Rocha? No sign of him in the results.
#6 BYU Cougars (-1/5)
#5 Iona Gaels (+1/6)
-No Chartt Miller, no problem. The Iona Gaels easily took care of business at the Paul Short Invite with a score of 35 points. Georgetown was 2nd place with 115 points. The Gaels took spots 2, 3, 7, 10, and 12 all without their top-ranked ace (Chartt Miller). Yes, Georgetown did have an off day, but Iona showed that they could all run well on the same day and that was a big concern of mine entering this season.
Iona has developed a solid group behind their low-sticks and they look poised for a take over of a top-spot. Let's see how they do at Wisconsin before they make any big moves in the rankings.
#25 Oklahoma State Cowboys (-1/24)
#24 Michigan State Spartans (-2/22)
#23 Boise State Broncos (-2/21)
#22 Washington State Cougars (-4/18)
-The Cougars returned to action at the Notre Dame Invite to face a field of competitive teams. Unfortunately, they didn't rise to the occasion like they should have and had to settle for 7th place overall.
Despite the sub-par showing, I still have a lot of faith in the Cougars. I think Whelan and Williams will finish closer together as the season progresses and that the younger pack behind them will begin to tighten up and develop. There is still a lot took be excited about with a team that hit their peak at the right time last season.
Side note: The Cougars also sent a squad to the UW Invite where they had somewhat decent performances. That could be important to note for the future.
#21 UTEP Miners (Wasn't Ranked)
-When UTEP entered the season, they supposedly only had five guys entered on the roster. Now, the UTEP website lists seven. I suppose that's all you need if you're UTEP who pulled off a 2nd place finish at the Notre Dame Invite.
UTEP ran a great race and their scorers matched up pretty well against Mississippi scorer's who seemed to just have a slight edge on each guy. With the emergence of Antony Kosgei, UTEP will have another low-stick to form a 1-2 punch with Jonah Koech.
Even though UTEP had a great performance at Notre Dame, I'm still staying cautious. Let's not forgot that this team has only seven runners. What happens if someone gets hurt? Are the 6th and 7th men good enough to be scorers if one of the top five have an off day? Despite their great scoring, UTEP is definitely one of the more vulnerable teams in the NCAA.
#20 Michigan Wolverines (0/20)
#19 Washington Huskies (0/19)
-The Huskies finished a predictable 3rd place overall as a team. Oregon and Colorado State took the first two spots while Washington was a bit further out in 3rd place with 64 points. They had a decent showing, but they simply couldn't match the firepower and depth that came from Oregon and CSU. If Washington wants to compete with these top teams, that entire scoring five is gonna have to move up into another tier.
#18 Indiana Hoosiers (-1/17)
-Nothing too exciting for the Hoosiers as they easily cruised through the Rim Rock Invite. I'm hoping we can see them at a big meet soon and get a better understanding of just how good they are.
#17 Eastern Kentucky Colonials (-2/15)
-EKU may have lost to Ole Miss and UTEP, but they still ran very well and it was one of their better regular season races I've seen in a while.
We have rarely seen Eastern Kentucky run well or go all out in the regular season. By the time championship races start, EKU is pulling off upsets and peaking at the right time. Just look back at Southeast regionals last year.
They still have a lot of room to improve, but for the Colonials this is a decent start.
#16 Mississippi Rebels (Wasn't Ranked)
-What a race from the Rebels! They completely blew away expectations with an 83 point win at Notre Dame. After last year, I doubted them to be an effective team capable of pulling off wins like this. They're a team of milers after all...right?
Ole Miss took spots 1, 4, 14, 24, and 40 to close out the scoring. The real storyline came from Sean Tobin who took the individual win and helped catapult the team to the title. Having another low-stick paired with MJ Erb (who took 4th) will be a tremendous advantage for the Rebels as they enter the post-season. I will say that the 40th place spot isn't a great position for the final scorer, but there is still plenty of time to address that.
So why are they only ranked 17th? It pains me to think this way, but Ole Miss had a similar result at the Greater Louisville Classic last fall. They ran pretty well in a strong field, but collapsed later on in the season. Of course, the GLC race wasn't nearly as impressive as what we saw this weekend. Maybe Mississippi has found out what they need to tweak...
#15 Iowa State Cyclones (+1/16)
#14 Virginia Cavaliers (0/14)
#13 Portland Pilots (0/13)
#12 Wisconsin Badgers (0/12)
#11 Furman Paladins (0/11)
#10 Colorado State Rams (0/10)
-It was a great rebound race for the Rams who really needed a confidence booster after a poor showing at Roy Griak (they placed 7th). They really turned things around at the Washington Invite where they took down the Washington Huskies and got relatively close to Oregon in the scoring.
The Rams weren't successful this weekend because of their low-sticks, but rather their depth. Eric Hamer and Cole Rockhold (both sophomores) placed 9th and 11th overall with Jefferson Abbey sandwiched between them in 10th. Grant Fischer had one of the better races of his career by placing 7th overall when the team really needed him to step up. CSU ended up placing two more in the top 20.
This is a great team that finally showed the potential I believed they had. They are young, but experienced at the same time. Although I am a big fan of them, I have to point out that Jefferson Abbey hasn't been running up to par lately. He's going to need to improve and get back to where he was last season if CSU is really going to have during a splash during conferences/regionals/nationals.
#9 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (0/9)
#8 Arkansas Razorbacks (0/8)
-Nothing too exciting at the Chile Pepper Festival as the Razorbacks cruised through an easy field to get the win. Still not sign of Ronoh. I'm hoping we see him soon.
#7 Colorado Buffaloes (0/7)
-Colorado ran most of their top guys at the Rocky Mountain Shootout, but Dressel and Saarel ran unattached. I'm really interested in the possibility of Wetmore redshirting Dressel and Saarel. It's tough to say exactly what his plan is for those two so I guess we'll have to wait and see.
Nonetheless, the Buff's looked really solid as they took the top seven spots for those who weren't running unattached. One thing's for sure, Coloardo will always be competitive
Side note: Where was Phillip Rocha? No sign of him in the results.
#6 BYU Cougars (-1/5)
#5 Iona Gaels (+1/6)
-No Chartt Miller, no problem. The Iona Gaels easily took care of business at the Paul Short Invite with a score of 35 points. Georgetown was 2nd place with 115 points. The Gaels took spots 2, 3, 7, 10, and 12 all without their top-ranked ace (Chartt Miller). Yes, Georgetown did have an off day, but Iona showed that they could all run well on the same day and that was a big concern of mine entering this season.
Iona has developed a solid group behind their low-sticks and they look poised for a take over of a top-spot. Let's see how they do at Wisconsin before they make any big moves in the rankings.
#4 Stanford Cardinals (0/4)
#3 Georgetown Hoyas (0/3)
-Georgetown may have lost to Iona (and had a terrible race all together) but I think there are actually a lot of good things that came out of this race.
First off, I think it's clear that Green and Clevenger had pretty poor races. Green is (apparently) getting over a minor injury from this summer while Clevenger is still adjusting to the new program. I'm all for giving these two another chance and I think when the time comes, they will prove to us why they are ranked ranked among my top 50 individuals.
I also love the fact that Scott Carpenter won the race and has provided Georgetown with yet ANOTHER low-stick. That's a big deal for Georgetown and it goes to show that their depth can pick up the slack when it's needed.
Finally, how about Darren Fahy not running? He's ranked in the Etrain Top 50 and if he's not injured, he is yet another guy who could have an impact on this already dynamic program.
This may not have been Georgetown's weekend for glory, but their future is still very, very bright.
-Georgetown may have lost to Iona (and had a terrible race all together) but I think there are actually a lot of good things that came out of this race.
First off, I think it's clear that Green and Clevenger had pretty poor races. Green is (apparently) getting over a minor injury from this summer while Clevenger is still adjusting to the new program. I'm all for giving these two another chance and I think when the time comes, they will prove to us why they are ranked ranked among my top 50 individuals.
I also love the fact that Scott Carpenter won the race and has provided Georgetown with yet ANOTHER low-stick. That's a big deal for Georgetown and it goes to show that their depth can pick up the slack when it's needed.
Finally, how about Darren Fahy not running? He's ranked in the Etrain Top 50 and if he's not injured, he is yet another guy who could have an impact on this already dynamic program.
This may not have been Georgetown's weekend for glory, but their future is still very, very bright.
#2 Oregon Ducks (0/2)
-Oregon showed that their program was more than just one amazing low-stick at the UW Invite this past weekend. Prakel, Maton, and Anderson all had incredible races by taking spots 3, 4, and 6. I wasn't expecting that kind of race from Prakel even though he won the Bill Dellinger Invite in his season debut. It looks like he'll be a solid number two man behind Cheserek
Meanwhile, Maton and Anderson seem to be meeting expectations and they continue to be lethal scorers for Oregon.
Others like Blake Haney and Bryan Fernandez ran very well placing 12th and 13th, but I was hoping to see better performances from Neuman and Leingang. The two seniors had unimpressive performances, especially Neuman who finished all the way back in 45th place.
Oregon is deep and now has a few more low-sticks to match up with Cheserek. Is there a team more dangerous than the Ducks right now? My answer is no.
-Oregon showed that their program was more than just one amazing low-stick at the UW Invite this past weekend. Prakel, Maton, and Anderson all had incredible races by taking spots 3, 4, and 6. I wasn't expecting that kind of race from Prakel even though he won the Bill Dellinger Invite in his season debut. It looks like he'll be a solid number two man behind Cheserek
Meanwhile, Maton and Anderson seem to be meeting expectations and they continue to be lethal scorers for Oregon.
Others like Blake Haney and Bryan Fernandez ran very well placing 12th and 13th, but I was hoping to see better performances from Neuman and Leingang. The two seniors had unimpressive performances, especially Neuman who finished all the way back in 45th place.
Oregon is deep and now has a few more low-sticks to match up with Cheserek. Is there a team more dangerous than the Ducks right now? My answer is no.
#1 Syracuse Orangemen (0/1)
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Just Missed
-Illinois Fighting Illini
-Penn Quakers
-UCLA Bruins
-Providence Friars
-Eastern Michigan Eagles
-Tulsa Golden Hurricanes
-UCLA Bruins
-Providence Friars
-Eastern Michigan Eagles
-Tulsa Golden Hurricanes
Who To Watch
-Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders
-Virginia Tech Hokies
-Florida State Seminoles
-Dartmouth Big Green
Kicked Off
-Eastern Michigan Eagles (Last Ranked 23rd)
-Tulsa Golden Hurricanes (Last Ranked 25th)
-Eastern Michigan Eagles (Last Ranked 23rd)
-Tulsa Golden Hurricanes (Last Ranked 25th)
New Additions
-UTEP Miners
-Mississippi Rebels
-UTEP Miners
-Mississippi Rebels
Biggest Surprise of the Week
-Mississippi Rebels
-Mississippi Rebels
Team of the Week
-Iona Gaels
-Iona Gaels
Notes
-Mississippi wins "Biggest Surprise of the Week" after winning the Notre Dame invite despite being unranked by in our top 25. They showed that they were more than just a team of milers.
-Iona wins "Team of the Week" after crushing the competition at Paul Short and having all of their runners run well on the same day without Chartt Miller.
-Eastern Michigan had a really poor showing at Notre Dame (12th) and that was enough to have them off the list
-Tulsa was ranked 25th last week. With Ole Miss and UTEP both running well enough to be ranked in the top 25, Tulsa was the next team to get kicked off.
-Iona wins "Team of the Week" after crushing the competition at Paul Short and having all of their runners run well on the same day without Chartt Miller.
-Eastern Michigan had a really poor showing at Notre Dame (12th) and that was enough to have them off the list
-Tulsa was ranked 25th last week. With Ole Miss and UTEP both running well enough to be ranked in the top 25, Tulsa was the next team to get kicked off.
really interesting take on Georgetown. was unsure of what to think about them after their race this past weekend. i'm just not as convinced as you are that guys like Green and Cleavenger will bounce back into All-American form after their performances, but i do see your point with the increased upside of Carpenter taking the win.
ReplyDeleteI'm really loving the Gails right now. Chartt Miller will be ready to roll and this squad looked fantastic in their WOW on flotrack with that 10 miler. Honestly it blew my face off. I would be shocked not to see them on the podium this season. This top 5 team race is reminding me quite a bit of PA's top 5 to be honest. Going to be a tight and exciting battle!!!