Grant Fisher was supposed to be the 6th American high school runner to break four minutes for a mile. He was supposed to be, undeniably, the best high school distance runner in the nation. 2015 was supposed to be his year. Fisher, however, did not become the 6th high schooler to run under four minutes. Instead, he was 7th. The honor of the 6th all-time spot was granted to a kid from Bend, Oregon. He was talented, no doubt, but he wasn't the first person people thought of when contemplating who would break the legendary four minute mile barrier. I am, of course, talking about Matthew Maton. There was (is?) nothing traditional about Matthew Maton. He was a disruptor, seemingly unconcerned with what others were doing. Remember when he didn't officially run for his high school as a senior? Conflicts with his coach prompted him to leave behind his Summit High School singlet to pursue his own training and racing methods. It was a move that allowed Maton to focus on his individual goals (a decision that many would argue paid off for him). In the spring of his senior year, Grant Fisher was expected to be (without question) the best high school distance runner in the nation. He was supposed to be the 6th (and maybe only?) high school distance runner to break the four minute barrier that season. Fisher was never supposed to share the spotlight with Maton...well, that's at least what the narrative was. Maton, who committed to Oregon in November of 2014, entered Eugene in a unique spot. He was a star recruit, a young freshman who was able to see Edward Cheserek in the second half of his career. In the eyes of many, it was Ches in his prime. The addition of Maton to the Ducks roster could not have come at a better time. While Cheserek accumulated countless titles, Maton was refining his talent, elevating his fitness to a level expected of someone who ran under four minutes in high school. Who better than Cheserek, the greatest collegiate distance runner of all time, to mentor Maton, one of the best high school distance runners of all time? The Ducks were preparing for the future and Maton was going to be the new face of Oregon distance running when the King left his throne. Sure enough, Cheserek and Maton truly emulated the dynamic of a master and his protege. They both qualified for a National Championship in every season of competition they had together. In some ways, they were the Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers of track and field. At first, some of those national qualifiers could be attributed to Cheserek. Maton was in the Ducks lineup when the team qualified for the Cross Country National Championships in 2015. The young freshman later found a spot on Oregon's DMR for the 2016 Indoor National Championships. Naturally, Maton began to mature and develop as a competitor over time. By the spring of his freshman year he had qualified for NCAA's in the 1500 on his own merit and had secured a personal best of 3:39. By his sophomore year, he was 29th in the nation for cross country, becoming an All-American and establishing himself as the future leader of Oregon's distance squad. Cheserek was still having mind-boggling success, but Maton looked more like a capable sidekick than a wide-eyed youngster. Despite all of the success, the 2017 indoor track season was the last time we would see Maton compete. After running personal bests of 3:58 and 7:52, the Oregon sophomore looked like someone who could have another All-American performance and score points for his team. That, however, did not happen. Maton struggled on the big stage, finishing dead last in the 3000 meters and missing All-American in the mile by one place. He looked tired, exhausted even, throughout the entirety of that weekend. His season ended on a rough note and it left fans wondering "what's next"? Fast forward to the following spring track season and Maton was nowhere to be seen. It was the first time in his career that he was absent from collegiate competition. In a cruel twist of fate, Cheserek would miss his final national meet due to injury. In a transition season where the torch was supposed to be passed from Cheserek to Maton, both individuals vanished. Looking back, the coincidence seems almost ominous. With Cheserek gone, the Ducks expected to have Maton leading their team for the 2017 cross country season. Yet, as time passed, we saw never him. We waited the entire cross country season. He never raced. We waited the entire indoor track season. He never showed. We waited the entire outdoor track season. Still nothing. For some, Maton became an afterthought. The idea that he would return looked less and less realistic with each passing week, month, and season. Where was he? What had happened? Was he injured? The former Oregon star was missing in action, leaving many to wonder if he would ever race again. To make matters even more complicated, the Ducks were suddenly thrusted into a massive team renovation after Andy Powell opted to take a position at the University of Washington. With him, he took Oregon's best miler and best cross country runner. In the meantime, Brodey Hasty was released from his National Letter of Intent and signed with Northern Arizona while Josh Hoey jumped ship from the collegiate scene altogether to sign with Adidas. In the wake of Powell's departure, the Ducks roster now looks depleted. The superstars who once held up this roster are now gone, there are no elite recruits to build around, and the new coach must now earn the trust and respect of his recently betrayed athletes. Well, that's what sounds more interesting... If there was a time for Maton to return, now was the time. Of course, we all knew that wasn't going to happen. If Maton was going to return, it was going to be with Powell. It was going to be with his old teammates. It was going to be with an Oregon team that had a clear vision of what their future was going to be. On September 8th, 2018, Chris Hansen of The Register Guard delivered the final blow: Matthew Maton was no longer on the Oregon Ducks roster. Injuries had plagued Maton for far too long and it had (apparently) reached a point where he no longer could find himself in an U of O singlet. It was an outcome we all saw coming, but didn't want to accept. Is this the final chapter of the Maton saga? Is this the last we will hear about him? Or will he transfer elsewhere? Could he reconnect with Powell in an attempt to revive his career? Or will he adapt to life after running? Your guess is as good as mine. In his junior year, Matthew Maton was expected to be (without question) the best distance runner on his team. He was supposed to earn multiple All-American honors, maybe even a national title. Maton was never supposed to step out of the spotlight...at least, that's what the narrative was. It just goes to show, nothing is guaranteed. Not even for the nation's best.

KEY (Wasn’t Ranked) Was not ranked the week before. (#/#) First number indicates how much the team has moved in the rankings. The second number indicates where that team was ranked the week before. 25. Washington State Cougars (0/25) The WSU men held a home meet (where they were the only team) for a 6k race. Six of their men were under the 18 minute mark with Nathan Wadhwani taking the win 17:33. It's nothing special, but it shows that they are healthy and in-shape. Still no sign of transfer Wesley Kirui though... 24. Air Force Falcons (Wasn't Ranked) I suppose we owe the Air Force men an apology. They were snubbed from a Preseason Top 25 spot after simply being overlooked on our end. Whoops... The Wyoming Invite was a difficult race to gauge. However, it seemed clear that the Falcons were not ready to go all out just yet. Davey and Bilvado settled for 7th and 8th while Trevor Siniscalchi was the top team finisher in 6th. Having Siniscalchi near the top group should be an encouraging result after racing only twice last fall. Could he be the replacement for recent graduate Andrew Johnston? It's very possible. 23. Georgetown Hoyas (0/23) The Hoyas ran their B squad at Spiked Shoe, so we weren't able to see any of their top five in action (yet). We will likely see that group at the Wisconsin Invite. 22. Washington Huskies (0/22) We didn't see most of the Huskies top runners at the Sundodger Invite, although Tibebu Proctor and Andy Snyder did toe the line. Admittedly, their performance was underwhelming as Proctor placed 8th and Snyder placed 23rd. However, I think it's fair to say that this was a conservative effort and nothing to take too seriously. 21. Arkansas Razorbacks (0/21) 20. Charlotte 49ers (0/20) 19. NC State Wolfpack (0/19) 18. Ole Miss Rebels (0/18) We didn't see the Rebels top lineup at the Auburn Invite, although Michael Coccia and Cade Bethmann looked good after finishing 2nd and 3rd behind Tennessee's Zach Long. The Rebels took the win by four points over 6000 meters. Freshman Dalton Hengst was 10th in his college debut and although we had him as a projected top five scorer, we still think that's possible. The season is young and this is his first collegiate race ever. 17. Virginia Cavaliers (0/17) 16. Oregon Ducks (0/16) The Ducks comfortably took the win at the Oregon XC Preview with West and Mestler finishing 1-2. Haney placed 4th, Thomet was 6th, and Jack Yearian rounded out the scoring in 9th. However, both Teare (5th) and Brown (11th) were running unattached. Does that mean they'll be redshirting this season? If so, the Ducks may be forfeiting any major success over the next three months. With Maton no longer in the equation and Austin Tomagno not in the lineup, Coach Thomas will have very limited resources as he attempts to reconstruct a squad capable of qualifying for Nationals. 15. Colorado State Rams (0/15) The Rams handled business at the Wyoming Invite and did so without running all-out. Hamer, Rockhold, and Barton took 2nd, 3rd, and 4th while Hume and Powell finished 11th and 12th. There's not a whole lot to talk about, but Barton looks like he'll be that key fifth scorer for Colorado State this fall. 14. Furman Paladin (0/14) 13. Texas Longhorns (0/13) 12. Syracuse Orange (0/12) They cruised through the Spiked Shoe Invite without Aidan Tooker by taking spots two through five, 7th, and 9th. There were a few key freshmen not the in the lineup (Lawler and Witkowicz), but it's still possible that they make an appearance later this fall. 11. Campbell Camels (0/11) 10. UCLA Bruins (0/10) 9. Boise State Broncos (0/9) The Broncos season opener at the Sundodger Invite produced a number of exciting results. They took the top seven spots as well as 9th and 11th. Yusuke Uchikoshi was the top finisher, sophomore Ahmed Muhumed was close behind in 2nd, Elijah Armstrong looks like he hasn't lost any fitness with his 3rd place finish, and the rest of the lineup appears to be healthy. It was basically a race against teammates, but there is a lot to like if you're a Boise State fan right now. 8. Wisconsin Badgers (0/8) 7. Colorado Buffaloes (0/7) The Wyoming Invite was just an easy rust-buster for the Buffs who only ran Ethan Gonzales from their projected scoring five. The rest of the team was scattered throughout the field. Take these results with a grain of salt. 6. Portland Pilots (0/6) They didn't run their top runners at the Oregon XC Preview, but Stuart McCallum looked strong with his 3rd place finish. Is he someone who will contend for a top seven spot in Portland's lineup? 5. Alabama Crimson Tide (0/5) 4. Iowa State Cyclones (0/4) The Hawkeye Invite told us a lot about this squad. It looks like Coach Martin Smith will run freshman superstar Chad Johnson this year and opt to not redshirt him. It looks like the Cyclones believe that he could be a key scorer this season. Thomas Pollard finished 19th overall, 12 spots back from the next Iowa State finisher. That's not a great sign for someone who is expected to be a key scorer, but it's so early in the season and there is plenty of rust to shake off. I'm not too concerned about that finish. We didn't see Milo Greder race, so hopefully he isn't injured. Maybe he's taking a redshirt season? All of that is speculation, so we won't truly know for another two weeks. Overall, the depth is there for Iowa State everyone seems healthy (for the most part). 3. Stanford Cardinal (0/3) Thomas Ratcliffe is back and healthy. That's a HUGE sign for the Cardinal as they attempt to build even more firepower. The men of Stanford used the San Francisco Invite as a workout, but we didn't see any of their top runners toe the line (unless you want to include Ratcliffe). 2. BYU Cougars (0/2) 1. Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (0/1) The George Kyte Classic simply told us that the Northern Arizona men are fit and that Peter Lomong is looking to make a statement. The 8th place finisher from last year took the win with his teammates close behind. ADDED Air Force Falcons (#24) KICKED OFF Southern Utah Thunderbirds (#24) JUST MISS (in no order) Oklahoma State Cowboys Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders Illinois Fighting Illini' Butler Bulldogs Army Black Knights Michigan State Spartans Villanova Wildcats Utah State Aggies Princeton Tigers WHO TO WATCH (in no order) Indiana Hoosiers Columbia Lions Purdue Boilermakers Michigan Wolverines SURPRISE OF THE WEEK Ohio Bobcats The Bobcats pulled off a big win over the Kentucky men at the Bluegrass Invite. To beat a Power Five team in your season opener on their home turf has to be an exciting feeling if you're on that Ohio team. It doesn't mean a whole lot from a Kolas perspective, but kudos are in order. TEAM OF THE WEEK Syracuse Orange They didn't have Tooker and a handful of star freshmen. That, of course, didn't matter. They absolutely dominated the competition at the Spiked Shoe Invite. Granted, the field wasn't insanely strong, but it shows that the Orange are ready to go for the 2018 season. NOTES We didn't find out about the transfers to Oklahoma State and Middle Tennessee State until halfway through our preseason rankings. However, we will hold them out of our Top 25 until we see that they are as good as they are expected to be.

Can you at least act surprised? It's no secret that the Northern Arizona men are going to be ready for yet another title run this fall. They return five of their top six from last year, giving them another ultra-stacked lineup that looks nearly untouchable. In 2018, the Lumberjacks will look to do something that only four other programs in the NCAA have ever accomplished: win their third straight national title. Considering they return so many superstars from last year's team, it may be best to revisit their 2017 season and understand how truly dominant they were. Their first legitimate race last fall began at the Louisville Classic. However, it was hardly a test of fitness as they took the top four spots in the meet. Baxter, Day, Trouard, and Beamish were the first four finishers (in that order) while Luis Grijalva closed out the scoring with a strong 11th place finish of his own. NAU would crush their competition, defeating a talented Furman squad by over 60 points. Did Coach Smith's squad just face weak competition or was this team really that good? The answer turned out to be the latter. Five other teams in that field would eventually qualify for Nationals... Despite the early season dominance, the Lumberjacks would face much harder competition at the Wisconsin Invite (in theory). Of course, this seemed like just another day at the office for the men from Flagstaff. Trouard, Baxter, and Day battled with Knight and Fisher for the individual win, eventually settling for 3rd, 4th, and 5th. Beamish and Grijalva would have strong performances of their own, placing 17th and 21st respectively. To no one's surprise, NAU walked away with the win, scoring 50 points and defeating second place Portland by 73 points. Northern Arizona looked unstoppable, but they had not yet faced a BYU team that was gaining national attention for their dominance at Pre-Nats. Was there really another team in the country capable of scaring NAU? The BIG Sky Championships would prove to be a simple workout for the NAU men. They silenced a Southern Utah team who was having one of the best seasons in program history. We would continue to see more dominance at the Mountain Regional Championships as NAU took the win once again. However, most teams opted to save their best efforts for the National Championships which would take place two weeks later. NAU may have won, but they knew BYU was going to be a much bigger problem at Nationals...right? Wrong. Northern Arizona continued what they did all season and cruised through the best competition that the country had to offer. Baxter and Day secured silver and bronze while Peter Lomong had a huge breakout race to finish 8th overall. Andy Trouard had a slight off day, but still managed to finish 35th overall. He was followed by teammate Geordie Beamish in 40th. In case you didn't notice, all five of NAU's scorers were All-Americans last fall. They easily took the title, scoring 74 points and beating a second place Portland team by 53. BYU was 91 points back. It was their second straight title, but it was their first without Eric Heins who led them to their first team gold in 2016. As if things couldn't get any better, Matthew Baxter would later announce that the NCAA had granted him another season of eligibility, allowing him to return for the 2018 cross country season. It's hard to comprehend just how good this team will be over the next three months. Even without Andy Trouard, this is still the best team in the nation (and by a significant margin). We're not saying that they can't lose, but it will be just as tough to beat them this year as it was last fall. Matthew Baxter and Tyler Day are the greatest pair of true long-distance runners we've seen since Edward Cheserek and Eric Jenkins went 1-2 at the National Championships in 2014. Not only are they currently the top duo in the NCAA, but they are simply the two best cross country runners in the nation (according to our preseason rankings). They're consistent, experienced, and extremely talented. What more could you ask for? Many people may have Peter Lomong as this team's third scorer, but we like Geordie Beamish to take that role throughout the season. The rising redshirt junior is an incredibly underrated piece of this squad despite being such a crucial scorer for them throughout the 2017 season. Baxter, Day, and Trouard were a great 1-2-3 punch, Lomong had a breakout race at Nationals, and Grijalva was a superstar freshman. However, Beamish was quietly doing his job without a dramatic storyline. He was 4th at Louisville, 17th at Wisconsin, and 40th (All-American) at Nationals. Those are finishes that most teams can only dream of having in their top runner. There is no denying that Peter Lomong is a big-time talent. Placing 8th at Nationals is undoubtedly a clear indication of fitness. However, some may question if he'll be able to reignite that magical performance in 2018. He had a solid 2017 season, but didn't have a performance that suggested he was going to be in the top 10 (or even top 20) at NCAA's that year. In fact, we have yet to see him break either 14 minutes for 5000 meters or 30 minutes for 10,000 meters. Those are traditional barriers that are easily broken for some of the nation's best top distance runners. The final scorer we have in NAU's projected scoring five is rising sophomore Luis Grijalva who was considered one of the top freshmen in the nation last fall. Placing 11th at Louisville and 21st at Wisconsin are huge performances for someone as young as himself. It's amazing that his "worst" race of the season was when he finished 60th at the national meet. At that same meet, there were 10 other teams who didn't have their top guy run that well. It would be criminal to ignore the rest of this roster. Other guys like Harvey Nelson, Cade Burks, and Ryan Wolff were on the outside looking in at last year's top seven. They might not get all of the attention that the varsity lineup does, but they'll provide some respectable depth in case injuries arise. The person on this roster I'm most interested in seeing is Blaise Ferro. The CBA grad has yet to run cross country, but his 13:50 personal best on the track shows us that he could be the real deal in 2018. It's impossible to say where he is currently at in his fitness, but he has the potential to emerge as a scorer if he has the breakout season we think he will. NAU's recruiting class was talented to begin with, but the addition of Brodey Hasty makes this one of the best set of incoming freshmen in the nation. There are a number of former high school stars who could have an instant impact (such as Collin Ullrich and Ryan Raff). However, stealing Hasty from Oregon has positioned NAU for a promising future. Hasty could enter the lineup this season, but this team is already so deep that they may not need him. Don't be surprised if they decide to redshirt him in order to preserve his eligibility. It's exhausting to detail all of NAU's achievements and scoring weapons. They are, without a doubt, the best team in the NCAA and I think almost everyone would agree. Still, nothing is guaranteed. Andy Trouard, the 3rd place finish at the Wisconsin Invite, is gone and most people seem to ignore that fact. Could you imagine losing an individual national champion from your team and think "eh, that's no big deal"? This team isn't unbeatable, but there are minor vulnerabilities that only the best teams will be able to exploit. When Coach Eric Heins stepped down from his coaching position in 2016, he left in his wake the building blocks of a dynasty. With the 2018 season fast approaching, Coach Mike Smith will look to earn that coveted third title and establish Northern Arizona as one of the greatest collegiate cross country teams ever. Prepare yourselves. We're about to witness history.