The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Men’s Cross Country’s Torres, McCullough earn SEC weekly honors
09.15.2026 | Track & Field / Cross Country
Torres is the first Longhorn named SEC Men’s Runner of the Week; McCullough earns second consecutive Freshman of the Week honor.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Texas Men's Cross Country's Aidan Torres has been named the Southeastern Conference Men's Runner of the Week, while freshman Kai McCullough earned his second consecutive SEC Men's Freshman of the Week honor, the conference announced on Tuesday. Torres is the first Longhorn to earn the conference's runner of the week honor.
Torres won the men's 8K at the Texas A&M Invitational on Friday at Watts Cross Country Course in 23:53.1, finishing 3.1 seconds ahead of the runner-up. The victory marked his second consecutive individual win to open the season and helped the Longhorns finish second in the team standings with 58 points.
McCullough finished seventh in the 8K in 24:18.6 to help Texas to its second-place finish. The Austin native opened the season with a fourth-place finish at the Floyd Farms Invitational on Sept. 4 in 16:15.9, helping the Longhorns sweep the top seven spots and earn a perfect 15-point team score.
Torres also won at Floyd Farms, completing the 3.11-mile course in 16:15.3. He led Texas to its perfect team score as all seven Longhorns finished within 0.8 seconds of one another.
A USTFCCCA All-Region selection, Torres won the men's 8K championship race at the 2025 USATF U20 Cross Country Championships and represented the United States at the 2025 World Athletics Cross Country Championships.
McCullough became the first Longhorn to earn the SEC Men's Freshman of the Week honor for cross country last week.
Torres was also named the USTFCCCA NCAA Division I Men's National Athlete of the Week on Monday, becoming the first Longhorn to earn the national cross country honor.
Texas returns to competition Sept. 25 at the Gans Creek Classic in Columbia, Missouri.
2026 Texas Cross Country Weekly SEC Awards
Sept. 8: Kai McCullough (Men's Freshman)
Sept. 15: Aidan Torres (Men's Runner), Kai McCullough (Men's Freshman)
