The meet of the year is finally here. The 2025 NCAA XC Championships promises to deliver a clash of titans at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course on November 22.

The best men and teams in the collegiate ranks will descend on Columbia, Missouri to battle over the 10K race distance. Oklahoma State, Iowa State and New Mexico are the favorites on the team-end with a number of individual standouts looking to claim victory.

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Three Team Giants Versus Everyone Else

Oklahoma State, New Mexico and Iowa State are ranked one-two-three in the FloTrack College XC Rankings presented by HOKA. Those three teams are the heavy favorites for the 2025 Team Title.

The Oklahoma State line-up features three men in the top fifteen and six men in the top 48 of the FloTrack individual rankings. If they live up to those projections - they'll be tough to beat.

Oklahoma State is coming off back-to-back wins over No. 3 Iowa State. The Cowboys were victorious at the Big 12 Championships and at the Midwest Region Championships. They'll need Denis Kipngetich and Brian Musau to finish in the top ten, with the rest of their pack performing to expectations.

New Mexico is ranked second - coming off of a win at the Mountain Region Championship. The Lobos have benefited nicely from the return of Habtom Samuel to their line-up. The team has four men ranked inside the top thirty of the ranking-set.

Evans Kiplagat and Collins Kiprotich need to finish as close to Samuel as possible.

Iowa State also has four men in the top 30. Robin Kwemoi Bera, Joash Ruto, Sanele Masondo and Rodgers Kiplimo will headline their pack. They all have plenty of potential and we could find all four in the top 15 before the end of the day on Saturday.

If that happens, Iowa State would be positioned to win the NCAA title.

Is Habtom Samuel The Man To Beat?

On the individual side, public opinion has names Habtom Samuel as the man to beat - and for good reason.

The junior has finished runner-up at the NCAA XC Championships in back-to-back years, with Graham Blanks taking victory on both occasions. But with Blanks making the jump to the professional ranks - the door seems to be open for Samuel to finally snag a cross country title.

He is currently undefeated on the season with wins at Nuttycombe, the Mountain West Championships and the Mountain Region Championships. He also sits atop the FloTrack DI XC Rankings presented by HOKA.

These Men Can Challenge Him

Solomon Kipchoge (Washington State), Denis Kipngetich (Oklahoma State) and Brian Musau (Oklahoma State) could be two of Samuel’s toughest competitors.

You may remember that Solomon Kipchoge was a favorite heading into last year’s championship race. Unfortunately he was an early DNF in that race. He failed to qualify for the outdoor championship in the spring, but since transferring to Washington State (From Texas Tech), Kipchoge has looked like a better version of himself. He finished runner-up to Samuel at Nuttycombe earlier this year.

Kipngetich and Musau are the two threats from Oklahoma State. Kipngetich most recently won the Midwest Region championships and he enters the weekend ranked third.

Don’t overlook Musau because of his 17th place finish at the Midwest Regional. He swept the Indoor and Outdoor 5K Championships in 2025.

Rocky Hansen (Wake Forest) has been on another level in 2025. Undefeated on the 2025 campaign - he has wins at the Panorama Farms Invitational, the ACC Championship and the Southeast Region Championship. 

Kelvin Cheruiyot (Florida), Robin Kwemoi Bera (Iowa State), Bernard Cheruiyot (Tulane), Joash Ruto (Iowa State), Evans Kurui (Washington State), Valentin Soca (CBU) and Gary Martin (Virginia) will be our other notable contenders.

2025 NCAA D1 Cross Country National Championships Schedule

Nov. 22, 2025 

• Women's Race - 10:20 a.m. ET
• Men's Race - 11:10 a.m. ET 

How to Watch 2025 NCAA D1 Cross Country National Championships

Stream the Nov. 22 DI XC national championships on ESPNU from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. ET.

Where is the 2025 NCAA D1 Cross Country National Championships

The 2025 Division I XC national championships will be at Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia , Mo.

Which Teams Qualified for the NCAA D1 Cross Country National Championships

Men’s Automatic Qualifying Teams

• Alabama
• Arkansas
• Butler
• BYU
• California Baptist
• Eastern Kentucky
• Georgetown
• Iona
• Iowa State
• New Mexico
• Notre Dame
• Oklahoma State
• Ole Miss
• Oregon
• Princeton
• Syracuse
• Tulane
• Wake Forest

Men’s At-Large Teams

• Air Force
• Colorado
• Georgia
• Harvard
• Louisville
• Michigan
• Michigan State
• North Carolina
• Northern Arizona
• Oklahoma
• Virginia
• Virginia Tech
• Washington State
• Wisconsin

Women’s Automatic Qualifying Teams

• Boston College
• BYU
• Florida
• Georgetown
• LSU
• NC State
• New Mexico
• Northwestern
• Notre Dame
• Oklahoma State
• Oregon
• Providence
• South Carolina
• Stanford
• Tennessee
• Texas A&M
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin

Women’s At-Large Teams

• Alabama
• Boise State
• Colorado
• Iowa State
• Missouri
• North Carolina
• Northern Arizona
• Penn State
• Utah
• Villanova
• Virginia
• Wake Forest
• Washington
• Washington State

How Do Teams, Runners Qualify For NCAA D1 Cross Country National Championship?

For men's and women's, the top two teams in each regional — there are nine in total — automatically qualify for the championships, which equates to 18 automatic qualifiers. 

The NCAA DI Cross Country Subcommittee will then choose 14 at-large teams to fill out the 32 team field.

Individually, the first four finishers who do not belong to an automatic qualifier or an at-large team automatically advance to the championships. All four finishers have to finish in the top 25 within their region. Altogether, 36 individuals automatically qualify and two are chosen at-large, making 38 the grand total. The two at-large selections are the highest placing individuals at a regional that were not automatic qualifiers.

When and Where Is The NCAA D1 Cross Country Championships 2025

The Cross Country Championships are on Nov. 22 at Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia, Missouri.

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