.png)
2021 D1 Freshman Class Rankings: #10-9-8 (Men)
D2 and D3 freshman class rankings are coming after New Years!
Click here to see our ranking criteria.
Despite our research, it is possible that certain names have been erroneously omitted.
Did we miss someone? If so, send us an email at contact@thestridereport.com & let us know!
10. Alabama Crimson Tide
The coaching staff from Tuscaloosa, Alabama has been doing some incredible work over the last few years. Coach Waters and his crew have slowly built one of the top distance powerhouses in the nation on both the men's and women's sides. Their ability to land overseas stars has translated to improved recruiting within the 'States.
Now, when you look at this year's recruiting class, it's hard not to be excited about the future of the Alabama Crimson Tide.
Let's start with the two most obvious names who will / have make a massive impact on this roster. I am, of course, talking about Hillary Cheruiyot and Victor Kiprop.
The two Kenyan standouts were excellent additions this past fall. Cheruiyot finished 53rd at the NCAA XC Championships after a respectable regular season. Meanwhile, teammate Kiprop had a huge regular season, earning multiple top-five finishes and establishing himself as a true low-stick. Unfortunately, he was a DNF at the NCAA XC Championships.
The two Kenyan rookies apparently own 5k personal bests of 13:26 and 13:27, so it's obvious why they make such a major splash for this recruiting class.
Now, admittedly, the ranking of this Alabama freshman class is propped up by the accolades of those two men. However, that's not to say that the Crimson Tide don't have other highly accomplished recruits on their roster.
Being able to land both Brady Barton and Carson Burian is huge. Those two distance standouts predominately thrive in the 1600 meters and the mile, boasting personal bests of 4:11 (1600) and 4:10 (mile), respectively.
And their range? Well, it extends both ways.
Barton has also run 1:52 for 800 meters, giving this freshman class some exciting (and much needed) middle distance speed. Conversely, Burian has run 14:55 for 5000 meters on the track, showing plenty of promise as a true long distance threat.
Burian contributed to Alabama's cross country lineup this past fall, ironing out the learning curve that comes with being a varsity runner on a Power Five team. Still, he has all of the credentials to be a very dangerous name in the future.
We also can't ignore Gavin Saacke. The Texas native may not have the jaw-dropping resume of a few other names, but his 5000 meter personal best of 14:57 is incredibly encouraging. He held his own in the highly competitive state of Texas and even made appearances in Alabama's varsity lineup this past fall.
Saacke still comes with the ups and downs of any true freshman, but once he develops his fitness, he could be a very solid and reliable contributor for Crimson Tide.
Speaking of long distance prowess, how about Arthur Graham and Collin Jones? Graham has run 4:14 for 1600 meters while Jones has run 4:18 for 1600 meters and 9:12 for 3200 meters. Both of those men have shown plenty of promise, showing excellent postseason peaks and ongoing improvements in their final seasons of high school competition.
Other names such as Aubrey Lake and Randy Smith are both respectable talents in their own right, although they may be considered as more developmental pieces for the time being.
Also, how have we not mentioned Ryan Maseman? This is the recruit who ties everything together. Alabama has plenty of distance recruits who thrive in the mile and even more names who can move up to the longer distances and prosper in cross country.
However, Maseman tends to lean towards the middle distances, holding a very exciting personal best of 1:51 for 800 meters. Admittedly, Alabama isn't a team that has thrived in the half-mile. Their recent success in the 1500 meters and the mile is plenty exciting, but they truthfully haven't had as much middle distance success in events lower than those.
Luckily, Maseman could be a major piece of the puzzle for them. If he drops another second or two, then he could potentially be a key member on a monster DMR squad for Alabama.
Overall, this recruiting class has it all. They have two instant-impact megastars, tons of depth, and numerous names who could realistically be high-level contenders once they develop under the direction of this coaching staff.
The future in Tuscaloosa has never been brighter than it is now.
9. Colorado Buffaloes
It feels weird to say this, but Coach Mark Wetmore and his staff don't get enough credit for developing the recruits they land -- and that's saying a lot considering that they're viewed as one of the best developers of talent in the NCAA.
This year's recruiting class as a whole looks like one of the stronger groups of young talent that the Buffaloes have had in some time. Or, at the very least, it's definitely one of the deeper recruiting classes they've had as of late.
Let's start with Alex Baca, the Colorado native how perfectly fits the mold of this roster.
On paper, Baca's marks are very respectable, owning personal bests of 4:18 (1600), 9:08 (3200) and 15:09 (5k XC). However, Baca's resume is arguably just as good on the grass as it is on the track.
During the 2020 cross country season, he won the Colorado 3A XC State Championships. Prior to that, he earned a win in the Division 2 section of NXN Southwest Regional Championships and also placed 29th at the Foot Locker Midwest Regional Championships in the same year.
Baca isn't perfect, but he's very good and he seems to mesh well with the long distance identity of this Colorado roster. His 62nd place finish at the Cowboy Jamboree (unattached) from earlier this fall was a nice step in the right direction for the young Buffalo.
As for the rest of this class, let's talk about Grayden Rauba who may be the best all-around rookie of this group. The newest Buffalo talent has run 1:53 (800), 4:15 (1600), 9:01 (3200) and 14:53 (5k XC).
That is a stacked resume. His speed in the 800 meters paired with his endurance in the 5k is extremely rare and it leads us to believe that he can be a true three-season threat. Plus, at the very least, Rauba still fits into the mold of Colorado's distance-oriented roster structure.
We then come to Charlie Robertson who thrives in the longer distances. He's run 8:32 for 3000 meters and 14:48 for 5000 meters during cross country. Not only that, but Robertson has championship experience, making an appearance at the 2019 Foot Locker National Championships. He also finished 9th at the 2019 NXN Northwest Regional Championships.
Robertson is a top-notch name who has the postseason accolades to validate the quick marks that he's run. On paper, him and Colorado are the perfect athlete/program pairing.
As we move away from Robertson, we come to Lukas Haug. His track times, admittedly, don't catch your attention in any dramatic way. However, he actually boasts the fastest 5k time of this entire class with a mark of 14:44 for 5000 meters.
Much like Robertson, Haug is a guy who is at his best when he's on the grass and the dirt. He was the 12th place finisher at the 2020 RunningLane XC National Championships, taking down some top names in the process.
Overall, Robertson, Haug, Baca and Rauba look like a wildly impressive contingent of freshmen who could offer major firepower once they develop under the direction of Coach Wetmore.
However, we can't forget to talk about James Overberg. He has a respectable resume, but the one mark that truly catches our attention is his 8:59 personal best for 3200 meters. That is probably the most impressive time that we have seen out of this entire group of recruits on the track.
But don't be mistaken, Overberg can still produce during cross country. He finished 14th at the 2019 Nike Desert Twilight Festival and placed 5th at the Colorado 4A XC State Championships last year.
As we look through the rest of this class, it's crazy to think that we haven't even talked about some of these guys yet.
Charlie Welch brings a strong middle distance presence to this team with his 1:53 personal best for 800 meters.
Josh Medina is quietly great on the cross country course and also owns personal best marks of 1:54 (800) and 4:13 (1600).
Ben Green is in a similar situation, also running a time of 4:13 for 1600 meters.
Zach Gacnik's track resume, admittedly, doesn't standout amongst other recruits, but he's incredibly underrated during cross country. In fact, at the 2020 Colorado 4A XC State Championships, Gacnik finished ahead of fellow Colorado recruits Grayden Rauba, James Overberg and Charlie Welch.
Overall, this class is loaded. Colorado's current freshman class is littered with cross country specialists who fit the roster identity of this program. They are incredibly deep, are highly experienced and hold a handful of underrated names who are much better than some people may give them credit for.
Watch out for this group over the next few years. There is a very good chance that we see multiple men from this class contribute in a major way to a podium cross country team in the very near future.
8. Arkansas Razorbacks
The Razorbacks have a unique group of rookies this year. On paper, this isn't the deepest contingent of recruits, but the men they do have are highly accomplished and nationally competitive names.
Let's start with Reuben Reina, an American-based recruit who quietly worked his way into the "nationally competitive category" over the past year.
Reina is one of the recruits who excites me the most, mainly because I think he's only now beginning to realize his true talent and because I think his best racing is still ahead of him. Since May, the Arkansas native has earned personal bests of 4:09 (1600), 4:07 (mile) and 8:58 (3200).
His cross country credentials are solid, but they don't fully reflect what he is likely capable of producing on the grass.
As we move down the list of recruits, we come to Ben Shearer, a Texas native who has emerged as one of the biggest rising threats in the distance world, at least for his age group.
The current Razorback freshman has run 1:53 for 800 meters, but he really catches your attention with personal bests of 4:08 (1600) and 4:07 (mile). He's run at some of the most competitive invitationals in the country and has been wildly consistent every time he toes the line.
However, for as strong as his middle distance marks are, Shearer's best times come in the longer distances. His 3200 meter PR of 8:48 is a huge mark that could make him a competitive name in the SEC as soon as he steps foot on the indoor and outdoor ovals later this year. That is a lethal amount of firepower that not all top programs are able to score via their recruiting efforts.
With a 5k personal best of 14:39, which resulted in a major win at the Desert Twilight XC Festival, Shearer looks like someone who is going to play a pivotal role for the Razorbacks moving forward. Arkansas will, after all, lose many of their top veterans to expired eligibility in the near future.
We also can't ignore Elias Schreml, the Germany native who owns personal bests that may make him the best name of this recruiting class as a whole.
Now, admittedly, Schreml is 21 years old, but both Arkansas' roster and recent TFRRS results suggest that he is a freshman. So, given that information, he qualifies as an eligible name to be considered in our rankings.
On paper, Schreml is elite as far as recruits are concerned.
The European star has run 1:52 for 800 meters and 3:43 for 1500 meters. The latter mark puts him in the territory to scare the sub-four minute mile barrier as soon as this academic year. That could be huge for the Razorbacks this winter if they plan on attacking a DMR and attempting to avoid having certain names double back from their individual events at the national meet.
However, Schreml is arguably just as good in the longer races, maybe even better.
The German rookie has run 8:05 for 3000 meters and 13:58 for 5000 meters, two top-tier marks that should make him one of the more competitive names in the SEC this winter if he's able to fully translate his success to the indoor oval.
The Razorbacks final recruit is Jack Williams, a runner who may not get the main spotlight in this recruiting class, but who has tons of potential. Boasting personal bests of 4:18 (mile) and 9:12 (3200), Williams has proven to be a solid talent, but he may be someone who is better suited for the grass.
During the 2020 cross country season, Williams never finished outside of the top-three in any of his races. He won the Arkansas 6A XC State Championships and later finished runner-up at the Arkansas vs Oklahoma All-Star XC Invitational.
Williams may not have been a high school superstar, but he's shown glimpses of exciting potential and could develop into a very reliable talent in the future.
