2 time runner up Oregon women's team not even mentioned in the preview?
Women
Florida State
No one could ever catch Texas Tech's Sally Kipyego during her illustrious career. But now that she's graduated and moved on, could the Seminoles Susan Kuijken take over the mantle as the top female runner in the country? Kuijken finished second to Kipyego at last year's NCAA Championships and helped pace Florida State to a third place finish. The senior-to-be will be one of five returning runners from last year's top seven championship team.
Stanford
The Cardinal is a four-time national champion this decade meaning they are always a threat. While they took a backseat to Washington's dominance in the Pac-10 and national scene last year, 2009 could very well be their year. A squad that only featured only three seniors and plenty of freshmen last fall finished eighth at the NCAA Championships. But five of the top seven from last year's championships should be back on campus this fall.
Villanova
The Wildcats lose only one senior from their top seven runners at last year's NCAA Championships. They'll miss Frances Koons and her 16th place individual finish, but right behind her last year were some talented underclassmen in Amanda Marino and Boganda Mimic, just a sophomore and freshman, respectively. The 2008 Big East Champs might have a tough time defending their conference crown this fall, but they won't go down without putting up a big fight.
Washington
If you didn't know, the Huskies swept the Pac-10 Championships in unprecedented fashion and then blew away the competition at the NCAA Championships for the program's first national title last year. When the season was all said and done, five Huskies had been named All-Americans and four of them are returning this fall. They also have the reigning Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year in Greg Metcalf back for a run at title No. 2.
West Virginia
The Mountaineers did not feature any seniors in their top seven so that makes this squad a legit contender in 2009. WVU should troll out three seniors and juniors this season, including Keri Bland who finished 10th in the individual NCAA Championship. Bland earned All-America honors for the second-straight year while WVU had three runners finish among the top 50 on its way to a fourth place team finish.