2021 NCAA DI Men’s Cross Country Regional Rankings – Week 6

NEW ORLEANS – Let the postseason begin!

Here is the final edition of the 2021 NCAA Division I Men’s Cross Country Regional Rankings, as released on Monday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Conference Championships Weekend shook up the rankings, as three of the regions had wholesale changes among their top-5 teams and several others jostled around.

Remember that Regional Championships Friday is set for November 12!

Great Lakes Region

There was one change to the order of the top-5 teams in the Great Lakes Region.

Notre Dame and Wisconsin remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Michigan, but Butler leapfrogged Indiana into the No. 4 position (The Hoosiers are now ranked No. 5). The Irish finally debuted their top roster and won the team title at the ACC Championships going away. The Badgers won the team title at the Big Ten Championships with the Wolverines taking runner-up honors. The Bulldogs hauled in the team title at the BIG EAST Championships.

Mid-Atlantic Region

There were some notable changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Mid-Atlantic Region.

Princeton and Georgetown both leapfrogged Villanova into the No. 1 and No. 2 spots, respectively, while the Wildcats tumbled to No. 3. Navy and Penn both held steady at their previous spots: No. 4 for the Midshipmen, No. 5 for the Quakers. The Tigers continued to impress the ranker as they finished a strong seventh at the FSU Invite/Pre-Nats two weeks ago and most recently rolled to the team title at the Ivy League Heptagonal Championships. The Hoyas jumped Villanova after a head-to-head victory at the BIG EAST Championships.

Midwest Region

There were no changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Midwest Region.

Oklahoma State and Iowa State remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Tulsa, No. 4 Minnesota and No. 5 Wichita State. The Cowboys wrangled the Cyclones at the Big 12 Championships this past weekend, while the Golden Hurricane made it look easy at the American Athletic Conference Championships with the Shockers a clear second. The Golden Gophers fared well at the Big Ten Championships, as they finished a strong third.

Mountain Region

There was one change to the order of the top-5 teams in the Mountain Region.

Northern Arizona and Colorado remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 BYU and No. 4 Air Force, but Southern Utah jumped three spots from No. 8 to No. 5. The Lumberjacks rolled to the team title at the Big Sky Championships with the T-Birds taking clear runner-up honors. The Buffs got back on top in the Pac-12 Conference, while the Falcons soared to a team title at the Mountain West Championships.

Northeast Region

There were some big changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Northeast Region.

Syracuse leapfrogged both Harvard and Providence into the No. 1 spot, slotting the Crimson and the Friars at No. 2 and No. 3, respectively. Iona held steady at No. 4, but UMass Lowell swapped spots with Stony Brook (The River Hawks are now No. 5; the Seawolves are now No. 6). The Orange ran well at the ACC Championships, taking clear runner-up honors behind Great Lakes No. 1 Notre Dame. UMass Lowell beat Stony Brook head-to-head for the team title at the America East Championships, 26-55.

South Region

There were some big changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the South Region.

Ole Miss leapfrogged both Florida State and Alabama into the No. 1 spot, which dropped the Seminoles to No. 2 and the Crimson Tide to No. 3. North Florida climbed one spot to No. 4 and Middle Tennessee worked its way to No. 5. The Rebels finished runner-up to Arkansas at the SEC Championships this past weekend, beating Alabama head-to-head in the process. Florida State was third at the ACC Championships, while the Ospreys won the team title at the Atlantic Sun Championships over former South Region No. 5 Lipscomb, among others.

South Central Region

There were a few changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the South Central Region.

Arkansas and Texas remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 North Texas, but Rice and Texas A&M swapped spots around No. 5 Texas A&M (The Owls went to No. 4; the Tigers dropped to No. 6). The Razorbacks won the team title at the SEC Championships going away, while the Longhorns finished third at the Big 12 Championships. The Mean Green beat the Owls head-to-head by five points at the Conference USA Championships. The Aggies had a tough day at the SEC Championships, ending up in ninth place.

Southeast Region

There were major changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Southeast Region.

Furman held steady at No. 1, but is now followed by No. 2 Wake Forest, No. 3 North Carolina, No. 4 NC State and No. 5 Duke. Of those five teams, the Paladins were the only ones not to compete at the ACC Championships in Notre Dame, Indiana. Instead, Furman romped to victory at the SoCon Championships. But it was in the Land of the Golden Dome, where that quartet of ACC teams went 3-4-6-7 behind meet champion Notre Dame and runner-up Syracuse.

West Region

There were a few changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the West Region.

Stanford held steady at No. 1, but is now followed by No. 2 Washington, No. 3 Oregon, No. 4 Gonzaga and No. 5 Boise State. The Cardinal finished a strong runner-up at the Pac-12 Championships this past weekend, while the Huskies showed signs of life with a third-place finish and the Ducks were close behind in fourth place. The Broncos turned in a solid effort at the Mountain West Championships, earning runner-up honors behind Air Force.