FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The defending national champion Arkansas Razorbacks are ranked third in the latest MONDO men's national cross country rankings released on Tuesday. The Hogs garnered 362 points including one first place vote.
Colorado is the nation's top-ranked team after earning 398 points and 14 of 16 first place nods. Stanford is ranked second with 377 points and the other first place vote.
"I think they look at our tradition and rank us based on that," Arkansas head coach John McDonnell said. "We have only one guy back from our national championship team, but we have some guys fighting to fill the gap. We will continue to work and hopefully at the end of the season we will be ranked at the top. That is when it really counts."
Arkansas is slated to compete at the Cowboy Jamboree in Stillwater, Okla. this weekend after nearly a three-week layoff. The Razorbacks ran away from the field in the Arkansas Invitational on Sept. 8, but haven't competed since that time. Arkansas was scheduled to compete in the Missouri Southern Stampede on Sept. 15, before the Southeastern Conference cancelled all competition for that weekend in response to the recent terrorist attacks in New York, Washington, D.C. and Pennsylvania.
The Hogs will take to the course on Saturday morning at the Cowboy Jamboree, a meet hosted by Oklahoma State. Arkansas will return to competition at home on Oct. 13, when the Hogs host the Chile Pepper Invitational.
MONDO MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY RANKINGS Rank-Team (First Place Votes)-Points 1. Colorado (14) - 398 2. Stanford (1) - 377 3. Arkansas (1) - 362 4. Notre Dame - 343 5. Providence - 327 6. Wisconsin - 318 7. Villanova - 310 8. North Carolina State - 299 9. Northern Arizona - 264 10. Georgetown - 222 11. William & Mary - 216 12. Arizona - 215 13. Portland - 185 14. Michigan - 173 15. BYU - 170 16. Oregon - 160 17. Iona College - 148 18. Weber State - 125 19. Indiana - 120 20. Minnesota - 80 21. Alabama - 78 22. Arizona State - 66 23. Wake Forest - 63 24. Eastern Michigan - 41 25. Air Force - 39
