Admin (Garrett Zatlin)
Sep 6, 20175 min
(Wasn’t Ranked): Was not ranked the week before.
First number indicates how much the individual 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. Colors may not show on mobile.
The second number indicates where they were ranked the week before.
UTEP's failure to field a full squad for the 2017 season was obviously enough to kick them off the list which makes room for a team that clearly deserved a spot, but was robbed during the preseason rankings.
CSU returns a strong team with Mock and Fischer leading the way. With Trent Powell showing promise at the CSU Duals, you have to think that this squad will once again be competitive this fall.
At the Morehead State Eagle Opener, we saw Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky go head-to-head in an underrated matchup. When the dust settled and the results were tallied, EKU emerged victorious with a team score of 30 to Kentucky's 39. However, it's important to note that Kentucky's low-stick (Jacob Thomson) did not race. If he had run and won the race, the score would have flipped in Kentucky's favor, 27 to 35. In fact, Thomson could have placed as low as 8th and the Wildcats still would have won.
18. Mid. Tenn. St. Blue Raiders (+1 / 19)
It was a very strong debut for the Blue Raiders who easily took care of business by taking four of the top five spots. Kigen Chemadi and Jacob Choge look like the strong 1-2 punch that we initially predicted while the depth is beginning to come together. With a team score of 25 points, MTSU was able to shut down an Ole Miss squad that was 2nd with 47 points.
Some may be quick to point out that Sean Tobin didn't run which is the reason why the Rebels lost. However, even if Tobin had won the meet and pushed everyone else down one spot, the Blue Raiders still would have been victorious with a score of 30 points while Ole Miss would have been at 36 points.
This Ole Miss squad will take some time to develop and I'm sure that they will improve as the season goes on, but I think this just goes to show that Middle Tennessee is a sneaky good team.
The Cyclones got the job done at the Hawkeye Invite with an encouraging performance from Festus Lagat who took the overall win. Josef Andrews didn't appear in the results, but that doesn't seem to be too big of an issue with Liberty transfer Stanley Langat finding a spot in the scoring five. I would still like to see how this squad is able to race at a bigger venue, but ISU is certainly trending in the right direction.
Like many teams this past weekend, the Bruins didn't run their full "A" squad at the George Kyte Invite. However, we did get to see guys like Garrett Reynolds and John Carter-Blunt make their debut by finishing 7th and 8th respectively.
The Cowboys ran a few of their guys at the Cowboy Preview, but news that Cerake Geberkidane is still having complications with a herniated disk is what really caught my attention over the past week. With such a crucial low-stick potentially out of the lineup, I had to drop Oklahoma State a few spots in the rankings until we know the full status of their ace.
8. Oregon Ducks (+1 / 9)
I usually don't make too many moves in the first week of competition, but any concerns I had about Colorado's 5th scorer have certainly eased up after this weekend. Ethan Gonzales took home the win with a time of 14:52 while Eduardo Herrera was close behind in 14:54. Colorado had five guys under 15 minutes at 5000 ft of altitude for a season opener (without Dressel). I'm trying to tell myself that it's only the first week and not to get too excited, but these results were strong and I just can't see Furman ahead of Colorado at the moment.
Arkansas' best lineup didn't run at the Cowboy Preview, but Cameron Griffith did lead the way for his squad with a 4th place finish. The Razorbacks may have won, but let's not get too excited about the first race of the season where no one ran a full "A" squad.
It's hard not be impressed with the Lumberjacks after they pulled off a perfect score at the George Kyte invite by taking the top five spots. Cory Glines had an off day by dropping to 11th overall, but that was balanced out with Peter Lomong earning a victory. It just goes to show how deep NAU's roster is.
Colorado State Rams
UTEP Miners
Virginia Tech Hokies
Ole Miss Rebels
Michigan Wolverines
NC State Wolfpack
Florida State Seminoles
Bradley Braves
Eastern Kentucky Colonels
UTEP Miners
Illinois Fighting Illini'
Washington Huskies
Portland Pilots
Utah State Aggies
Texas Longhorns
Eastern Michigan Eagles
Georgia Bulldogs
UTEP Miners: I am shocked to see that Coach Paul Ereng couldn't find at least two more guys to join his squad. He had to have known that Korir was going pro while the rest of his guys were graduating. Is UTEP seriously going to have only three men on their roster this year? The team that qualified for NCAA's in 2016 won't even having a full lineup in 2017.
Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders: The Blue Raiders got the job done by defeating an Ole Miss squad while putting four in their top five. They proved that they'll have a competitive team in 2017. They are not to be slept on.