Florida’s Men & Women Take Over the Division I National Team Rankings

NEW ORLEANS – With the indoor regular season in the books, Florida’s men and women are now the new top-ranked teams in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division I National Team Computer Rankings released Monday.

Men’s Top Five
1)	2)	3)	4)	5)
Florida 161.12 pts	Arkansas 150.90 pts	Texas A&M 124.69 pts	Oregon 111.72 pts	Wisconsin 109.19 pts
View Complete Men’s Rankings

Based on the final descending order lists, the Gator men leapt past newly crowned SEC champion and defending NCAA indoor champion Arkansas into the driver’s seat for its fourth NCAA title in the past five years, while the Gator women moved past the four-time defending NCAA Indoor Champion Oregon Ducks.

Both defending champions moved down to No. 2.

One more set of rankings remain prior to the NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships in Albuquerque, N.M., during the weekend of March 14-15, to be released next Monday. Only entries into the championships – which are announced Tuesday by 10 p.m. ET –will be considered for that final edition.

Women’s Top Five
1)	2)	3)	4)	5)
Florida 174.53 pts	Oregon 169.06 pts	Texas A&M 155.21 pts	Georgia 121.67 pts	Arkansas 116.44 pts
View Complete Women’s Rankings

In the meantime, it was mainly the collegiate-leading 20.55 at 200 meters posted by Dedric Dukes – along with No. 7 and  No. 8 performances at 400 meters by Hugh Graham, Jr., and Najee Glass – that drove the Gators’ team rankings score of 161.12 past SEC Champion Arkansas’ 150.90.

Florida won three consecutive NCAA indoor team titles from 2010-2012 before Arkansas interrupted their streak a year ago. Its last title came in 2012, when it took over the top spot in week six from Arkansas.

The Razorbacks, despite winning the SEC team crown, fell to No. 2 with a 25.14-point reduction in its team score. This marks the first time since the final pre-championships rankings in 2012 Arkansas hasn’t occupied the top spot.

Florida’s SEC champion women (174.53) loaded up on season-best performances on their way to the conference title, with 14 new marks that crocked the individual event rankings. Chief among them was No. 3 Shayla Sanders at 60 meters and the No. 7 mile by Cory McGee.

The Gators haven’t won a women’s NCAA indoor title since 1992, with a runner-up showing in 2003.

Meanwhile, the Oregon Ducks (169.06) were conservative with their contingent to the MPSF meet, and recorded few season-best performances. No. 3 Texas A&M (155.21) also still looms well within striking distance.

On the men’s side, Texas A&M (124.69) held firm at No. 3, with No. 4 Oregon (111.72) and Big Ten champion No. 5 Wisconsin (109.19) swapped spots from a week ago to complete the top five.

Lawi Lalang’s 5000 meters debut for 2014 at No. 4 boosted Arizona (81.87) up three spots to No. 6, while ACC champion No. 7 Florida State (69.07) and No. 8 Penn State (69.07) both dropped one spot.

Another big mover was No. 9 Villanova (59.77), up five spots from a week ago behind its third-ranked DMR.

Southern California (58.65) dropped two spots to round out the top 10.

Other teams making waves post-conference championships included No. 15 Colorado (up 18), No. 21 Purdue (up 16) and No. 22 Michigan State (up 17).

Rounding out the women’s top five were No. 4 Georgia (121.67) – up three spots from last week – and No. 5 Arkansas (116.44).

Big 12 champion No. 6 Texas (108.76) and No. 7 Kentucky (99.23) both dropped a spot, while No. 8 Providence held firm.

New to the top-10 was No. 9 Maryland (71.35), which improved 17 positions from a week ago behind former National Athlete of the Week Thea LaFond’s top-10 marks in the pentathlon (No. 3) high jump (No. 6) and triple jump (No. 6).

Stanford (68.42) dropped one spot to complete the top 10.

Maryland wasn’t the only ACC team on the move: ACC champ No. 13 Florida State improved 14 slots, while No. 20 Miami was the biggest gainer with a 37-position jump.

Other notable improvements included No. 18 Alabama (up 13) and No. 23 Michigan State (up 14).

The national team rankings are complied by mathematical formulae based on national descending order lists. The purpose and methodology of the rankings is to create an index that showcases the teams that have the best potential of achieving the top spots in the national team race. Rankings points do not equate with NCAA Championships team points. A full description of the rankings can be found here.

The USTFCCCA National Team Computer Rankings should not be referred to as a “poll” as no voting occurs during the process.