From the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Assocation (USTFCCCA): The men of Florida and the women of Oregon will begin the 2012 outdoor track & field season as the top teams in the country according to the National Team Computer Rankings posted Thursday by the USTFCCCA. Both squads are coming off the indoor season where they claimed respective NCAA Championships for the third straight year.
Florida is the pre-season men’s outdoor favorite for the third straight year. Oregon is the outdoor favorite for the first time in the five years in which pre-season computer rankings have been used. The women’s pre-season No. 1 has went on to win the last four national titles.
Texas A&M is the three-time defending championship team on both the men’s and women’s sides. The Aggies open at No. 6 and No. 7 in the men’s and women’s rankings, respectively.
Pre-season national team rankings are calculated using data from previous seasons as a base of evaluation. Marks gained in the early part of this season will supersede previous-year marks if they are superior.
Florida’s men finished third at the 2011 outdoor championships with 53 points, two behind Texas A&M (55) and one behind runner-up and Florida State (54). The Gators lost jumping extraordinaire Christian Taylor and Will Claye to the professional ranks, but return several national scorers including quarter-miler Tony McQuay, sprinter Jeff Demps, decathlete Gray Horn and national indoor triple jump champ Omar Craddock.
No. 2 Florida State lost 2011 winner of The Bowerman Ngoni Makusha to the pros, but keep Maurice Mitchell for the 2012 campaign. Mitchell won the 200 meters at last year’s outdoor championship and was third in the 100.
On the women’s side, Oregon placed second at last year’s NCAA Outdoor Championship with 45 points, four behind Texas A&M’s 49.
The Ducks return three-time indoor pentathlon champion Brianne Theisen for her senior campaign and will also lean heavily on distance standouts Jordan Hasay, Anne Kesselring and Becky Friday. Oregon also has been effective in the sprints as English Gardner won the indoor 60-meter crown.
LSU is second in the women’s rankings and third on the men’s side. The Tiger women will have several in the mix in the sprints, hurdles and relays.
Among conferences, the SEC leads with 1,287.71 ranking points and seven teams in the nation’s top 25. The Big 12 isthe top women’s conference with 1,261.75 ranking points and also seven teams in the top 25.
NCAA Division I | |||||
Men’s Outdoor Track & Field National Team Computer Rankings |
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2012 Preseason — March 22 | |||||
next ranking: April 3 | |||||
Rank | School | Points | Conference | Coach |
2011 FINAL |
1 | Florida | 273.50 | SEC | Mike Holloway |
3 |
2 | Florida State | 261.88 | ACC | Bob Braman |
2 |
3 | LSU | 232.63 | SEC | Dennis Shaver |
4 |
4 | Texas Tech | 225.30 | Big 12 | Wes Kittley |
9 |
5 | Arkansas | 222.28 | SEC | Chris Bucknam |
10 |
6 | Texas A&M | 204.01 | Big 12 | Pat Henry |
1 |
7 | Texas | 183.06 | Big 12 | Bubba Thornton |
12 |
8 | Indiana | 162.12 | Big Ten | Ron Helmer |
20 |
9 | Georgia | 157.89 | SEC | Wayne Norton |
54 |
10 | Virginia Tech | 157.60 | ACC | Dave Cianelli |
5 |
11 | Arizona | 156.80 | Pac-12 | Fred Harvey |
7 |
12 | Baylor | 143.09 | Big 12 | Todd Harbour |
32 |
13 | Southern California | 138.04 | Pac-12 | Ron Allice |
12 |
14 | Mississippi State | 136.67 | SEC | Steve Dudley |
20 |
15 | Nebraska | 135.59 | Big Ten | Gary Pepin |
38 |
16 | Oregon | 134.63 | Pac-12 | Vin Lananna |
10 |
17 | Stanford | 124.11 | Pac-12 | Edrick Floreal |
6 |
18 | Iowa | 119.62 | Big Ten | Larry Wieczorek |
46 |
19 | Wisconsin | 107.79 | Big Ten | Ed Nuttycombe |
NR |
20 | Arizona State | 107.50 | Pac-12 | Greg Kraft |
25 |
21 | Mississippi | 98.75 | SEC | Joe Walker |
19 |
22 | Princeton | 97.99 | Ivy | Fred Samara |
32 |
23 | Oklahoma | 93.90 | Big 12 | Martin Smith |
20 |
24 | Auburn | 92.77 | SEC | Ralph Spry |
NR |
25 | Ohio State | 83.22 | Big Ten | Robert Gary |
NR |
Men’s Conference Index Top 10 | |||||
Rank | Conference | Points |
Top 25 Teams |
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1 | SEC | 1287.71 |
7 |
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2 | Big 12 | 1085.74 |
5 |
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3 | Pac-12 | 884.33 |
5 |
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4 | Big Ten | 883.64 |
5 |
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5 | ACC | 648.29 |
2 |
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6 | Big East | 173.12 | |||
7 | Southland | 160.96 | |||
8 | Mountain West | 157.23 | |||
9 | Ivy | 141.19 |
1 |
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10 | MEAC | 127.85 | |||
NCAA Division I | |||||
Women’s Indoor Track & Field National Team Computer Rankings |
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2012 Pre-season — March 22 | |||||
next ranking: April 3 | |||||
Rank | School | Points | Conference | Head Coach |
2011 FINAL |
1 | Oregon | 354.70 | Pac-12 | Vin Lananna |
2 |
2 | LSU | 291.71 | SEC | Dennis Shaver |
3 |
3 | Southern California | 279.91 | Pac-12 | Ron Allice |
6 |
4 | Clemson | 264.83 | ACC | Lawr. Johnson |
7 |
5 | Arkansas | 221.81 | SEC | Lance Harter |
14 |
6 | Oklahoma | 201.41 | Big 12 | Martin Smith |
4 |
7 | Texas A&M | 197.31 | Big 12 | Pat Henry |
1 |
8 | Texas | 186.89 | Big 12 | Bev Kearney |
8 |
9 | Texas Tech | 167.80 | Big 12 | Wes Kittley |
54 |
10 | Kansas | 159.21 | Big 12 | Stanl. Redwine |
23 |
11 | Florida | 155.72 | SEC | Mike Holloway |
34 |
12 | UCF | 134.46 | Conference USA | C. Smith Gilbert |
17 |
13 | Baylor | 131.66 | Big 12 | Todd Harbour |
38 |
14 | Tennessee | 127.20 | SEC | J.J. Clark |
11 |
15 | Auburn | 117.66 | SEC | Ralph Spry |
14 |
16 | Georgia | 115.82 | SEC | Wayne Norton |
40 |
17 | Arizona State | 115.50 | Pac-12 | Greg Kraft |
19 |
18 | Arizona | 111.74 | Pac-12 | Fred Harvey |
5 |
19 | Kansas State | 110.72 | Big 12 | Cliff Rovelto |
13 |
20 | Nebraska | 100.74 | Big Ten | Gary Pepin |
32 |
21 | Stanford | 99.72 | Pac-12 | Edrick Floreal |
8 |
22 | Southern Miss | 83.57 | Conference USA | Kevin Stephen |
10 |
23 | UTEP | 80.32 | Conference USA | Mika Laaksonen |
NR |
24 | West Virginia | 78.38 | Big East | Sean Cleary |
20 |
25 | Florida State | 78.09 | ACC | Bob Braman |
20 |
Women’s Conference Index Top 10 | |||||
Rank | Conference | Points |
Top 25 Teams |
||
1 | Big 12 | 1261.75 |
7 |
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2 | Pac-12 | 1227.12 |
5 |
||
3 | SEC | 1168.77 |
6 |
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4 | ACC | 574.64 |
2 |
||
5 | Big Ten | 501.43 |
1 |
||
6 | Conference USA | 442.62 |
3 |
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7 | Big East | 390.08 |
1 |
||
8 | Mountain West | 226.15 | |||
9 | Missouri Valley | 151.18 | |||
10 | WAC | 105.30 |
The NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held June 6-9 in Des Moines, Iowa, and hosted by Drake University. Preliminary rounds will be conducted May 24-26 in Austin, Texas (West site) and Jacksonville, Fla. (East site).
Outdoor Pre-season Rankings in Past Years:
MEN | Pre-season No. 1 | NCAA Finish | NCAA Champ | Pre-season Rank |
2008 | Florida State | 1st | Florida State | 1st |
2009 | Texas A&M | 1st | Texas A&M | 1st |
2010 | Florida | 2nd | Texas A&M | 2nd |
2011 | Florida | 3rd | Texas A&M | 2nd |
2012 | Florida | ??? | ??? | ??? |
WOMEN | Pre-season No. 1 | NCAA Finish | NCAA Champ | Pre-season Rank |
2008 | LSU | 1st | LSU | 1st |
2009 | Texas A&M | 1st | Texas A&M | 1st |
2010 | Texas A&M | 1st | Texas A&M | 1st |
2011 | Texas A&M | 1st | Texas A&M | 1st |
2012 | Oregon | ??? | ??? | ??? |