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Earlier today, The Stride Report confirmed that Penn State's Ryan Foster and Kara Foster (spouses) have been hired as the next distance coaches at Auburn. The move comes shortly after Leroy Burrell left Auburn to join Texas A&M as the school's next Director of Cross Country and Track & Field last month. Since then, Ken Harnden has been promoted to the Director role at Auburn, thus creating staff turnover. With their move, the Fosters are expected to replace Aaron Kindt, the program's most recent distance coach. At Penn State, Ryan Foster oversaw the men's and women's 800-meter groups, as well as the women's 1500-meter runners. Separately, Kara Foster has overseen the the development of the women's 5000-meter and 10,000-meter squads. During their time in Happy Valley, the Fosters had fantastic success while working under and alongside Coach John Gondak. While under Ryan Foster, the Nittany Lion men and women not only maintained their (occasionally debated) title as "800U," but further established their dominance in that event. This past winter, the Penn State men had five athletes run 1:47 or faster at the half-mile distance. Four of those men -- Handal Roban, Allon Clay, Yukichi Ishii and Niko Schultz -- qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships in that event, with the former three names earning All-American honors. On the outdoor oval, the Penn State men produced similar levels of both fast times and middle distance depth -- all without Handal Roban, who redshirted the 2026 outdoor track season. This time, Clay, Ishii and Schultz all qualified for the national meet, with the former and latter names earning All-American honors. When it comes to the women's middle distance group, Ryan Foster was also responsible for developing superstar ace, Hayley Kitching. The Aussie star ran 1:57.65 over 800 meters at the NCAA Outdoor Championships this past spring, earning a silver medal as well as an NCAA #2 all-time mark. Kitching also produced an excellent result of 4:05 for 1500 meters this past spring. Other notable middle distance women to come through Penn State's program over the last few years includes Allison Johnson, Boh Ritchie, Tayissa Buchanan, Kileigh Kane, Madaline Ullom, Victoria Vanriele, Rachel Gearing and Victoria Tachinski. Hayley Kitching (center) jumps off the 800m starting line at the NCAA Outdoor Championships // Photo via Andrew LeMay Under Kara Foster, the Nittany Lion's women's long distance group showcased tremendous growth, both on the grass and the track. The ladies of Penn State advanced to the NCAA XC Championships (as a team) three times under Kara Foster. Last fall, the State College-based women were fantastic, securing 10th place on the national stage one year after taking 15th place. Individually, Florence Caron thrived over 5000 meters and 10,000 meters. Not only did she run times of 15:25 (5k) and 32:23 (10k), but Caron also earned two top-20 All-American finishes in three appearances at the NCAA XC Championships. The current Hoka pro also qualified the NCAA Indoor & Outdoor Championships multiple times, even earning 8th place All-American honors in 2024 via Penn State's DMR. Other notable long distance women to come out of Penn State in recent years includes Faith DeMars, Charlotte Costich and Sophia Toti. Florence Caron competing over 10k at the 2025 NCAA Outdoor Championships // Photo via Andrew LeMay Seeing the Fosters venture south leaves plenty of questions in the wake of their decision. Who will Penn State hire to replace the Fosters? And what role(s) will the replacement(s) have with the program? When it comes to Auburn, what kind of impact will the Tigers see under Ryan and Kara Foster, both immediately and over the long-term? Will the Fosters be given greater recruiting resources for the middle and long distances than the previous coaching regime at Auburn had? And is it fair to wonder if we'll see certain Penn State athletes follow the Fosters to the SEC? Only time will tell how this coaching shake-up reshapes the futures of both programs.

Production via Wyatt Barnsley On this week’s episode of The Stride Report Podcast, Ben and Garrett react to another busy week in the transfer portal as several programs land major additions ahead of the cross country season. The guys break down Isca Chelangat’s move to Arkansas, Nickson Kogei transferring to Louisville, and Justine Kipkoech heading to Iowa State. They also analyze Ryan Hagan’s transfer to Virginia Tech and Drew Rogers’ move to New Mexico before shifting to the coaching carousel, where Adam Smith takes over as the new Director of Cross Country and Track & Field at William & Mary and Leroy Burrell is named the next Director of Cross Country and Track & Field at Texas A&M. From blockbuster transfers to significant coaching hires, Ben and Garrett cover all of the biggest offseason storylines shaping the NCAA landscape. Be sure to listen, subscribe and review! (3:16) Isca Chelangat Transfers to Arkansas (16:45) Nickson Kogei Transfers to Louisville (24:57) Justine Kipkoech Transfers to Iowa State (32:55) Ryan Hagan Transfers to Virginia Tech (36:52) Drew Rogers Transfers to New Mexico (38:29) Adam Smith Hired as William & Mary Director of XCTF (44:44) Texas A&M Hires Leroy Burrell as Next Director of XCTF You can listen to that episode (and others) on our PODCASTS page! You can also find the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Soundcloud. If you like it, be sure to leave us a rating and a review! Note: If you're having issues loading the episode on the site via mobile, try refreshing the episode page. We will look into this issue for future episodes.

Earlier today, New Mexico superstar Habtom Samuel announced via Instagram that he will be turning pro. The Stride Report has confirmed with Samuel that he has not yet officially signed a professional contract. The Lobo superstar previously held a "Name, Image & Likeness" (NIL) deal with Hoka during his time in the NCAA. Samuel, who was announced as a finalist for The Bowerman last week, initially told media at the NCAA Outdoor Championships last month that he would return for the 2026 NCAA cross country season. A native of Eritrea, Samuel ends his collegiate career as a five-time NCAA champion between all three seasons of competition (one via cross country, one via the indoor 5k, one via the outdoor 5k and two via the 10k). In total, he has collected 13 All-American honors. The aerobic-centric distance star also produced the NCAA outdoor 5000-meter record earlier this spring in a time of 12:57 to pair with his NCAA indoor two-mile record of 8:11.47 from the Millrose Games. He also sits at NCAA #3 all-time over 10,000 meters with a 26:53 mark. Samuel's departure from the NCAA is a massive one as it changes the NCAA landscape both in terms of the cross country individual title and the cross country team title. The New Mexico men were expected to be favorites (or one of the favorites) to win NCAA gold as a team this coming November. With Samuel, the Lobos would have returned four top-20 All-Americans from last fall. However, with Samuel's departure, the path to the top of the podium will be noticeably more challenging for New Mexico. Both Oklahoma State and Iowa State are expected to be major threats for the national title (again) in the coming months. Samuel leaving the NCAA also means that we are guaranteed to see a new individual national champion at the NCAA XC Championships this fall. Names such as Rocky Hansen (Wake Forest), Solomon Kipchoge (Washington State), Elsingi Kipruto (Louisville), Brian Musau (Oklahoma State) and others are expected to battle for individual gold come November.

Written by Aimee Morganti, edits & additional commentary via Garrett Zatlin The 2025-2026 academic calendar year is a wrap! And naturally, that means a large handful of the most elite track and field stars within the NCAA are graduating to the next level -- specifically, the pro level. Not only that, but many major shoe brands are finalizing "Name, Image and Likeness" (NIL) deals with a handful of still-active collegians. At The Stride Report, we put together any and every pro and NIL signing we could find and listed them below. Come back to this page later this summer should any additional pro and NIL signings come to light! Colin Sahlman (Northern Arizona) Pro Sponsor: Nike Pro Group & Coach(es): Nike Swoosh Track Club Accolades: Seven-Time First-Team All-American (800m, 1500m, mile, 3k, DMR, cross country) 2026 NCAA DMR champion 2026 NCAA indoor 300-meter champion 2026 NCAA outdoor 800-meter champion NCAA indoor 800-meter record holder (1:44.70) NCAA #6 All-Time for outdoor 800 meters (1:44.22) NCAA #14 All-Time for indoor mile (3:52.30) NCAA #10 All-Time for outdoor 1500 meters (3:33.96) NCAA #11 All-Time for indoor 3000 meters (7:36.71) 15-Time BIG Sky Champion (800m, 1500m, mile, DMR, 4x400m, cross country) Sanu Jallow-Lockhart (Arkansas) Pro Sponsor: Brooks Pro Group & Coach(es): Brooks Beasts Track Club // Danny Mackey Accolades: Eight-Time First-Team All-American (800m, 4x400m, DMR) NCAA indoor 600-meter record holder (1:24.19) NCAA outdoor 800-meter record holder (1:56.85) 2026 NCAA outdoor 800-meter champion Three-Time NCAA Championship runner-up (800m & 4x400m) Two-Time NCAA 4x400m champion (indoor & outdoor) Represented Gambia at the 2024 Olympic Games over 800 meters Three-Time Gambian National Record holder (400m, 800m, mile) Four-Time SEC champion (800m & 4x400m) Six-Time SEC Championship runner-up (800m & 4x400m) Marco Langon (Villanova) Pro Sponsor: Diadora Pro Group & Coach(es): Boston-based // Rob DeFillipis & Matt Valeriani Accolades: Seven-Time First-Team All-American (3k, 5k, cross country) 2026 NCAA Indoor Championship 5000-meter runner-up Two-Time 3rd place finisher at the NCAA Championships (3k & 5k) 11-Time NCAA Championship qualifier NCAA #2 All-Time for outdoor 1500 meters (3:32.79) NCAA #3 All-Time for indoor 3000 meters (7:34.00) NCAA #4 All-Time for indoor 5000 meters (13:05.21) Seven-Time BIG EAST champion (1500m, 3k, 5k, DMR) Three-Time BIG EAST Championship runner-up (3k, 4x800m, cross country) Wilma Nielsen (Oregon) Pro Sponsor: Nike Pro Group & Coach(es): Nike Swoosh Track Club Accolades: Seven-Time First-Team All-American (800m, 1500m, mile, DMR) Two-time NCAA mile champion (2025 & 2026) 2026 NCAA DMR champion 2025 NCAA DMR runner-up NCAA #4 All-Time over indoor 1000 meters (2:38.95) NCAA #2 All-Time for indoor mile & Swedish National Record Holder (4:21.04) 2021 European U23 Championship bronze medalist (800m) Three-time World Indoor & Outdoor Championships qualifier via Sweden Four-time Swedish national champion over 800 meters Gary Martin (Virginia) Pro Sponsor: Brooks Pro Group & Coach(es): Brooks Beasts Track Club // Danny Mackey Accolades: Seven-Time First-Team All-American (1500m, mile, 3k, DMR, cross country) 2025 NCAA DMR champion 2025 NCAA Indoor Championship 3000-meter runner-up Three-Time ACC champion (3k & cross country) NCAA #7 All-Time for outdoor 1500 meters (3:33.71) NCAA #2 All-Time for indoor mile (3:48.82) NCAA #7 All-Time for indoor 3000 meters (7:36.09) NCAA #5 All-Time for indoor 5000 meters (13:05.57) 6th place over 1500 meters at the 2025 USATF Outdoor Championships 12-Time NCAA Championship qualifier Elliott Cook (Oregon) Pro Sponsor: Nike Pro Group & Coach(es): Nike Swoosh Track Club (Eugene) // Jerry Schumacher Accolades: Five-Time First-Team All-American (1500, mile, DMR) NCAA #25 All-Time, All-Dates for outdoor 1500 meters (3:33.84) 2024 NCAA Outdoor Championship 1500-meter runner-up Eight-Time NCAA Championship qualifier 2022 & 2024 PAC-12 outdoor 800-meter champion 2024 PAC-12 outdoor 1500-meter champion Three-Time conference meet runner-up over mile & DMR (PAC-12 & BIG 10) Ellaney Matarese (Harvard) Pro Sponsor: Hoka (Trail) Accolades: First-Team All-American (DMR) 12-time top-eight finisher at Ivy League Track & Field Championships (800m, 1k, 1500m, mile, steeple, 4x800m) 13th place at the 2024 Ivy League XC Championships 2025 East Regional Championship 3000-meter steeplechase qualifier 15th place at the 2025 Kodiak Ultra Marathons 2:41:16 at the 2025 California International Marathon 16th place in 100-mile debut at the 2026 Western States Endurance Run Rosemary Longisa (Iowa State) NIL Sponsor: Brooks Accolades: Three-Time First-Team All-American (1500, mile, cross country) 2026 NCAA outdoor 1500-meter champion 2026 NCAA Indoor Championship indoor mile runner-up 2026 Bryan Clay Invitational 1500-meter champion 2025 West Coast Conference individual cross country champion 3rd place at the 2025 Nuttycombe Invitational NCAA #6 All-Time, All-Conditions for indoor 800 meters (1:59.71) NCAA #5 All-Time, All-Conditions for indoor 1000 meters (2:38.26) NCAA #6 All-Time, All-Conditions for indoor mile (4:24.59) NCAA #2 All-Time for outdoor 1500 meters (4:02.55) Julia David-Smith (Washington) NIL Sponsor: Nike Accolades: First-Team All-American (DMR) 2026 FISU World University Games outdoor 5000-meter champion Six-time NCAA Championship qualifier (5k, DMR, cross country) Two-Time top-80 finisher at NCAA XC Championships 2026 BIG 10 Outdoor Championship 5000-meter runner-up Elsingi Kipruto (Louisville) NIL Sponsor: On Accolades: Four-Time First-Team All-American (5k, 10k, cross country) 2026 NCAA Outdoor Championship 10,000-meter runner-up NCAA #11 All-Time for 10,000 meters (27:29.83) 2026 ACC outdoor 5000-meter champion Two-time 3rd place finisher at ACC Championships (3k & cross country) Trent McFarland (Michigan) NIL Sponsor: On Accolades: Three-Time First-Team All-American (1500, mile, DMR) 2026 NCAA Outdoor Championships 1500-meter runner-up 2026 NCAA Indoor Championship mile bronze medalist NCAA #4 All-Time (tied) for outdoor 1500 meters (3:33.17) Four-Time BIG 10 champion (1500, mile, DMR) Six-Time NCAA Championship qualifier 7th over 1500 meters at the 2024 U20 World Championships Aniya Mosley (via Ohio State & Virginia Tech) NIL Sponsor: Brooks Accolades: First-Team All-American (800m) Two-Time top-100 finisher at NCAA XC Championships Five-time national qualifier (800m, 1500m, cross country) Two-time BIG 10 Championship runner-up over 800 meters 2026 BIG 10 Outdoor Championship bronze medalist over 1500 meters Bethany Michalak (NC State) NIL Sponsor: Altra Accolades: Two-Time First-Team All-American (DMR & cross country) NCAA #12 all-time indoor DMR (10:46.00) 17th place at 2026 NCAA Outdoor Championships (5k) Five-time top-10 finisher at ACC Championships (all three seasons) Boh Ritchie (Penn State) NIL Sponsor: On Accolades: 11th place at 2026 NCAA Indoor Championships (800m) Five-Time New Zealand representative at World Championships (U20 & senior) 11-Time New Zealand national champion (4x400m, 800m, 1500m, mile, 3k, 5k, cross country) New Zealand women’s U20 record holder over 800 meters 3rd place place in DMR at 2026 BIG 10 Indoor Championships 4th place over 800 meters at 2026 BIG 10 Indoor Championships 17th place over 800 meters at East Regional Championships

Earlier today, William & Mary announced that they have hired Adam Smith as the program's next Director of Cross Country and Track & Field. Smith had previously overseen the men's and women's middle and long distance events at Ole Miss since he was hired in the summer of 2022. Smith's move from Ole Miss to William & Mary admittedly comes as a surprise. That, however, is not to say that there aren't good reasons for the change. The Stride Report spoke to Smith over the phone regarding his hiring... "William & Mary were the ones to reach out," Smith told The Stride Report. "I'm familiar with the area -- I was with Reebok Track Club as a coach in Charlottesville. Plus, we wanted to be closer to family. It began to make sense." Despite leading the distance events across all three seasons and being dubbed as the "Associate Head Coach" for the Rebels in cross country, Smith will now move into a Director role which gives him full control of a collegiate program. The William & Mary men and women have been a respectable group within the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) across all three seasons for the last few years. However, they have struggled to become nationally relevant for well over the last decade. In recent years, the Tribe have consistently finished in the top-half of the team standings at conference championships and have been fairly solid at the regional level during cross country. The William & Mary men finished 12th at the Southeast Regional XC Championships last fall. William & Mary men competing at the Southeast Regional XC Championships // Photo via William & Mary Athletics Even so, elevating the Tribe men and women to a nationally competitive level will be a hefty task, one that may require far more effective recruiting and potentially more scholarships. And according to Smith, that was seemingly addressed in his conversations with the university... "They [William & Mary] are putting some resources towards it to be pretty good." Smith explained regarding resources and funding. "The goal coming in is to win conference championships and get back to the NCAA XC Championships," And yet, this is a program that has historically been limited with funding for it's track and field and cross country programs. In fact, the Tribe's athletic department initially cut their men's track and field team in September of 2020 (citing the pandemic as the catalyst) before reinstating the program a few months later. The William & Mary women last qualified for the NCAA XC Championships as a team in 2014 // Photo via William & Mary Athletics When asked if there were any concerns regarding the recent past, Smith explained that he mentioned that exact topic in his interview wth the university... "Yeah, that's something I asked about in the interview. That was a really dark time for everyone around the NCAA. But the resources and funding that they are putting into it [the program] now make it really, really safe. I wouldn’t take the job if it wasn't." Maybe just as importantly, Smith's departure from Ole Miss leaves open a fairly desirable distance coaching role in the SEC. The Rebel men and women have proven that they can field nationally competitive cross country teams that are capable of qualifying for the NCAA XC Championships. And when it comes to the oval, Ole Miss (specifically the men) have found tremendous success in the middle distances, specifically over 800 meters.

Rankings construction & analysis via Abby Waddington, Morgan Boonshaft, Ethan Moore & Garrett Zatlin Welcome, ladies and gentlemen! Every year, we craft rankings for the top-50 distance recruits from the senior class across the United States. Then, at the end of every season, we update our lists to include any new names who have suddenly risen to national prominence. This is our fourth (and final) ranking update for the Class of 2026. Remember, these lists are for current high school seniors who specialize over 800 meters and/or higher. As always, our rankings take a wholistic approach. We look at results across all three seasons of competition and also evaluate a multitude of intangibles such as consistency, experience, progression, momentum, range, etc. Oh, and fast times help...a lot. CLICK HERE TO SEE OUR FULL RANKINGS