Earlier today, Twitter users, Jonathan Gault of LetsRun, and multiple TSR contributors pointed out an interesting caveat in the Kolas projections which could change the teams who end up qualifying for the NCAA Championships.
As of 2019, the NCAA Rules Committee chose to adopt a rule regarding DNF's and how they are recorded in results. You can read the official ruling here...
The ruling is admittedly vague, as it brings into question whether teams should be entered into the results when a DNF occurs (at first glance, it seems that they should). More so, the ruling does not specify whether or not DNF's will be considered as countable Kolas wins for other teams in that race.
Earlier this season, NC State recorded a DNF at the Nuttycombe Invite with only three of their top seven runners finishing the race. The other four dropped out.
If NC State's DNF result were put into the results - and more importantly considered as a last place finish - all of the teams ahead of them would earn a Kolas point.
As a result, Gonzaga and Princeton would qualify for Nationals.
Florida State and Alabama will not.
This is a huge technicality which will be clarified today at 5:00 PM when the NCAA Selection Committee decides who will be going to the National Championships.
Jonathan Gault of LetsRun offered a similar explanation (click here).
The Stride Report still believes that the current projections that we have in place are accurate and that these will be the teams that the NCAA Selection Committee has going to the National Championships.
However, it will mainly depend on how the Committee views NC State's DNF result...