NCAA D1 Cross Country Championships 2013

Flotrack NCAA XC Men's Team Predictions and Who'll be on the Podium

Nov 20, 2013 by Isaac Wood

The men's team race will be tighter than most people think. Oklahoma State is good and is the favorite to win, but there have been very few years where there are four or five quality teams that should all be looking at at least three maybe four All-American performances at NCAAs. As much as this is difficult to predict, this is my best prediction based on actually scoring the meet as objectively possible.

Click here to view the predictions for all 31 teams.
Click here to view the predictions for the men's individual race.

#1 OK State 121
This may seem like the cliche or easy pick, but let's be real. The amount of talent on this team that has been there and done that on the biggest stage three of the past four years is scary.

It may come down to how well Craig Nowak performs in his first Big Dance. Also, Joseph Manlifasha will need to peak the way he did last season to overcome some irregular sub-par performances earlier in the year.

Who's the number one team in the country?

#2 Colorado 149
The Buffs will be looking at a very tight spread 1-5 and will be 15th at 3k,10th at 6k, and competing for the title with 1k to go. If Morgan Pearson and Ammar Moussa have big days, CU is definitely capable of knocking off Oklahoma State.

#3 BYU 166
The addition of Jared Ward instantly gives BYU three potential All-Americans. The Cougars could be the deepest team in the NCAA and their 4-7 did not even run at the Mountain Regional. If Coach Ed Eyestone can get two top 75-80 performances out of their 4-7, they will be looking at an easy podium spot.

#4 NAU 177
This may not be a popular choice, especially considering how well NAU ran at the Regional meet, but the scores are so tight that I do believe the places on the podium will come down to low sticks. Futsum Zeinasellassie and Brian Shrader are definitely All-Americans. The question comes down to Matt McElroy. If he has a top-40 day (more like top 30), he could quite possibly get his team a national trophy. That's how close the final scores will be.

Team Predictions

Place	Team 	     Points
1	OK State     121
2	Colorado     149
3	BYU	     166
4	NAU	     177
5	Oregon	     233
6	Portland     257
7	Stanford     262
8	E. Kentucky  311
9	Columbia     388
10	Syracuse     395
11	Arkansas     399
12	New Mexico   407
13	Texas	     411
14	Iona	     427
15	Wisconsin    427
16	Tulsa	     436
17	Princeton    437
18	Harvard	     446
19	Indiana	     476
20	NC State     497
21	Villanova    497
22	Providence   503
23	Virginia     517
24	Notre Dame   518
25	Michigan     547
26	Colorado St. 553
27	Florida	     576
28	UNC          589
29	Air Force    607
30	Dartmouth    635
31	Georgia	     703