Oklahoma State has claimed the top spot in the NCAA Division I Men’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Pre-Season Poll for the 2024 season. The Cowboys, who are the defending national champions, are ranked No. 1 unanimously. BYU, Arkansas, Northern Arizona and Iowa State rounded out the Top 5.

Here’s what you need to know:

– Oklahoma State returns six of the seven athletes from their 2023 championship team, where they dominated with four runners in the top 10 at the NCAA Championships.

– Senior Casey Clinger, who has two top 10 individual NCAA finishes, leads BYU to the No. 2 pre-season ranking. Clinger was fifth in the 10,000m at the U.S. Olympic Trials this summer.

– Arkansas’ No. 3 ranking is its highest preseason ranking since 2006. The Razorbacks’ hopes are bolstered by returning stars Patrick Kiprop and Kirami Yego, both top-15 finishers last year.

– NAU heads into its final year under the leadership of coach Mike Smith with the pre-season No. 4 ranking. They have won five national titles under Smith and never finished worse than second at the NCAA Championships since 2017.

– Iowa State, ranked at No. 5, is making an early season appearance in the top-5 for the first time since 2019. The Cyclones return five athletes from last year’s top-5 NCAA finish.