The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Men's and Women's Cross Country both rank in top-10 of SEC preseason poll
08.27.2024 | Track & Field / Cross Country
Texas men enter first season in the SEC ranked third in the league's preseason poll.
AUSTIN, Texas – The Texas cross country program opens the SEC season with both men's and women's teams ranked in the top 10.
The men's program leads the way at No. 3 of 14 teams, while the women begin the year at No. 8 of 16. Arkansas garnered 11 first place votes in the men's poll, while Alabama had three. Florida earned nine first place votes in the women's poll, and Alabama had seven.
The SEC cross country season is set to begin the weekend of Aug. 30, and the 2024 SEC Cross Country Championships are slated to take place Friday, Nov. 1 in Bryan-College Station, Texas.
The Longhorn men return 2023 USTFCCCA Cross Country All-American Rodger Rivera and two USTFCCCA South Central Region runners in Isaac Alonzo and Nathanael Berhane. The men finished seventh at the NCAA Cross Country Championships last season, the best team finish since 2006. On the women's side, Olivia Howell the 2023 indoor NCAA mile champion, will return for her final season with Texas joined by Eva Jess.
2024 SEC Cross Country Coaches' Preseason Poll - first-place votes in ()
MEN WOMEN
Rank Team Points Rank Team Points
1 Arkansas (11) 15 1 Florida (9) 21
2 Alabama (3) 23 2 Alabama (7) 27
3 Texas 47 3 Arkansas 50
4 Ole Miss 62 4 Tennessee 61
5 Texas A&M 71 5 Ole Miss 84
6 Auburn 73 6 Texas A&M 92
7 Tennessee 78 7 LSU 107
8 Florida 96 8 Texas 119
9 Missouri 102 T9 Auburn 139
10 Kentucky 117 T9 Vanderbilt 139
11 Oklahoma 124 11 Missouri 148
12 Georgia 147 12 South Carolina 160
13 LSU 150 13 Kentucky 178
14 Vanderbilt 169 14 Oklahoma 182
15 Mississippi State 193
16 Georgia 220
Players Mentioned
