Trust The Process 2.0

Stop me if you've heard this before.

The year is 2015, and Northern Arizona looks to have a strong squad. Futsum Zienasellassie has become one of the best distance runners in the nation while the rest of the roster has shown flashes of brilliance. Most would agree that the Lumberjacks had a promising group, but it would also be fair to say that they weren't title favorites.

When NAU announced that both Zienasellassie and veteran scorer Nathan Weitz would be redshirting the 2015 cross country season, many were left scratching their heads and simply wondering "why"? It wasn't until the 2016 cross country season where many fans began to connect the dots and realize what was taking place. Zienasellassie and Weitz maintained their eligibility for one more year while Cory Glines and a slew of talented youngsters gained a heavy portion of experience throughout the 2015 season. NAU also made two huge additions in Geordie Beamish and Matthew Baxter.

All of the sudden, Northern Arizona was a national title favorite.

The rest of the 2016 season needs no storytelling. NAU won the NCAA title, established a dynasty, and gave coach Eric Heins the best "retirement" gift a coach could ask for. However, while Northern Arizona was gaining all of the attention, Furman was emulating their game plan and preparing for an all-out assault on the NCAA.

The Paladins redshirted four different varsity runners during the 2016 season to give guys like Frank Lara, Josh Brickell, and a select few youngster to gain experience. In the meantime, the redshirt low-sticks were upping their fitness to an entirely new level.

2017 was arguably be the greatest year Furman has ever had. They were runner-ups at the Greater Louisville Classic, 5th at the Wisconsin Invite, and took home the Southeast regional title. They did have a rare off-day at Nationals, but for the most part, the Paladins had a wildly successful season.

Almost one year ago to the day, we published an article called Trust The Process which further details the storylines mentioned above. It explains the new trend of teams redshirting their top athletes, sacrificing a year of success, and quietly building for a season of domination which wouldn't take place until 365 days into the future.

First it was Northern Arizona, then it was Furman. Is there a team in 2018 capable of overpowering the NCAA with unsuspecting returners and a young core of distance studs? In my eyes, that team is the Wisconsin Badgers.

Mick Byrne's group has been through a roller coaster ride of success over the past few seasons. After breaking their streak of 43 consecutive NCAA Championship appearances in 2015, Wisconsin bounced back to put together a strong 8th place finish at the 2016 National Championships. With a heavy portion of their group returning in 2017, the expectations were just as high for the squad to replicate their success.

Unfortunately, we never saw that highly anticipated success last year. Wisconsin ace Morgan McDonald was nowhere to be seen and Olin Hacker was sidelined with an injury which led to him being redshirted for the entire 2017-2018 academic year. The only options that the Badgers had left were Oliver Hoare, Joe Hardy, and a group of untested freshmen. Despite the success from their low-sticks, Wisconsin simply didn't have enough in their arsenal to stay in the hunt for a national qualifying spot. They would finish 3rd in the Great Lakes region and miss qualifying for the national championships for the second time in 46 years.

Yet, this failure to qualify didn't seem to matter as much. Compared to 2015, the criticism was far more mellow and the pain felt by fans wasn't as poignant. Maybe that's because the qualifying streak was already broken. Or maybe it was because the future outweighed the present...

In 2018, the Badgers have a chance to erupt back into the NCAA as a national contender. The loss of Joe Hardy will admittedly be a tough pill to swallow, but the firepower that this team returns may make up for his loss (and then some).

Unlike the 2016 Northern Arizona squad (or even Furman in 2017), the Badgers return two low-sticks in 2018. Aside from Matthew Baxter and Tyler Day, the duo of Morgan McDonald and Oliver Hoare may end up being the best 1-2 punch in the country.

Olin Hacker is going to be a huge returner for this squad after being completely absent for the entirety of last year. His 12th place finishes at BIG 10's and Great Lakes in 2016 makes him a valuable asset to this team. Having Hacker back in the lineup almost ensures that the Badgers will become an NCAA qualifying team. When you add in McDonald, the lineup becomes problematic for any team that toes the line against them.

Zack Snider and Ben Eidenschink will be big two question marks entering this season, although they have the potential to be breakout performers. Snider had a very average cross country season in 2017 after not racing during the regular season and finishing no better than 32nd at BIG 10's. However, his recent success on the track (13:54 / 29:15) shows that Snider may have been a few seasons removed from being the scoring threat that the coaching staff thinks he can be. I'm not someone who likes to translate track times to cross country, but I can at least recognize when someone makes a large jump in their fitness.

Meanwhile, Eidenschink has shown plenty of promise after placing 20th at BIG 10's and 14th at Great Lakes last fall. His poor performances at Louisville and the Wisconsin Invite shows that he lacks consistency, but that shouldn't discount the talent he has.

Although the Wisconsin lineup is stacked with experienced scorers, it is the rising sophomores who could have the biggest impact after gaining valuable racing experience throughout the 2017 season. Whether it was NAU's Tyler Day in 2015 or Furman's Mason Coppi and Ryan Adams in 2016, sophomores have been proven to do quite well after being exposed to top-tier competition as freshmen.

Coach Byrne's will hope that the same can be said for Finn Gessner, Tannor Wagnor, and Seth Hirsch after being thrown into multiple lineups last fall. Although they rarely had an impact on the scoring, it was their growth as competitors that became the major focus. One of these three (or more) will be key x-factors for the Badgers 2018 cross country season.

Collectively, Wisconsin may be the most well-rounded team in the NCAA. They have multiple low-sticks, solid middle scorers, individuals with promising potential, and a deep roster filled with young talent. Say what you want, but the 2017 season was simply Wisconsin's way of buying time. In 2018, they will unleash an overwhelming group of scorers capable of competing with nearly anyone in the country.

That's just what happens when you Trust The Process.