Automatic Qualification
Teams
The top two teams at each regional championship meet automatically qualify for the championship meet.
Individuals
From each NCAA regional meet, the first four student-athletes not on a qualifying team will be automatic qualifiers to the
NCAA championship meet. All individual automatic qualifiers must finish in the top 25 within their region.
At-Large Selection — Team
Thirteen (13) at-large teams will be selected by the NCAA Division I Cross Country Subcommittee. This selection will be
conducted on the Saturday following regional competition unless extraordinary circumstances arise.
The committee reviews regular-season results to apply the selection criteria as detailed below. The committee will use any
available resources to track a team’s finish at regular-season meets, including TFRRS-XC.
Course Length Requirements: Please note that in order for results achieved before the regional championships to count
toward at-large selection, the course length must be no less than 75 percent of the championship race distance. Races
contested on courses that are less than 75 percent of the championship distance will not be eligible for consideration for
at-large qualification.
The committee will determine at-large berths by examining the following selection criteria in order:
1. Regional finish. Teams will come under consideration in the order of their regional finish.
a. As an example, a fourth-place team may not be selected for an at-large berth ahead of a third-place team from the
same region. However, a fourth-place team from a region may be selected ahead of a third-place team from another
region if the committee decides that the selection criteria favor the fourth-place team.
b. This criterion does not mean that any or all third-place teams must be selected into the championships before the
committee considers fourth-place teams, etc.
c. When a team from a region is selected as an at-large team for the championships, the committee moves the next
team from that region based upon the order of regional finish into consideration. At all times during the selection
process, the committee is reviewing no fewer than two teams from each region (total of 18 teams on the board) so
as to be able to identify any potential “push†situations.
d. The Push Process: The situation may arise when the next team under consideration based upon regional finish from a
specific region (Team X) does not have enough wins (points) to earn an at-large bid, but the team immediately behind
Team X in regional finish (Team Y) does have enough wins (points) to be the next at-large team selected. In this case,
both teams X and Y will receive at-large bids (Team Y “pushes†Team X into the championships) if:
(1) The push process has not been used within that specific region earlier in the at-large selection process, and
(2) There are two or more at-large positions available in the selection process, and
(3) Team Y would not be able to receive an at-large berth on its own -- in other words, when Team X is permanently
blocking Team Y. There have been occasions when Team Y has the most wins of the teams under consideration,
but the committee can determine that Team Y will receive an at-large berth later in the process. In these cases
a “push†is not absolutely necessary and would not be applied.
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e. Teams still under consideration for at-large selection will not be awarded wins (points) for having defeated any Team
X advancing to the championship finals by virtue of the “push process.â€
2. Wins (points) against teams already in the championships. Once the automatic qualifiers (AQs) have been
confirmed, and the teams from each region are placed under consideration by their regional finish, the committee
reviews two teams from each region (a total of 18 teams) for the wins against teams already in the championships.
a. In order to maintain seven competition opportunities, institutions must accumulate wins (points) between the
seventh weekend before the NCAA regional meet (i.e., Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 25-27, 2015) through
the conclusion of NCAA Regional Cross Country Championships (scheduled for Nov. 13, 2015).
b. The committee begins the selection process by analyzing the win totals the third- and fourth-place finishers
in each region have accumulated against the 18 automatic qualifiers. The next at-large berth is awarded
to the team with the highest win total. As each at-large team is selected into the championships, the win
totals of all teams under consideration are adjusted to reflect any victories over all the teams selected to the
championships (e.g., the 18 automatic qualifiers and any at-large selections). This process continues until all
the at-large teams are selected.
c. During the at-large selection process, institutions can only accumulate wins against any opponent’s “A†team. (See
“A†Teams/â€B†Teams information below.)
3. Head-to-head competition between teams under consideration. If there is a tie among teams under consideration
for total wins, the committee reviews head-to-head results.
a. In order to maintain seven competition opportunities, the head-to-head competitions must have taken place between
the seventh weekend before the NCAA regional meet (i.e., Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 25-27, 2015) through
the conclusion of NCAA Regional Cross Country Championships (scheduled for Nov. 13, 2015).
b. If teams under consideration are tied in total wins against the teams already in the championships, the committee
will not select the team with a head-to-head loss over the team with the head-to-head win. This is important when
there are more than two teams tied with total wins against the teams already in the championships.
c. In situations where the head-to-head wins and losses are equal between teams under consideration (e.g., two
teams with 1-1 or 2-2, etc., records against each other), the committee may give greater consideration to the
competition conducted closest to the regional championship date.
d. The committee will break regular-season ties between teams under consideration for the sole purpose of awarding
wins (points) for the at-large selection process. The committee will apply the tie-breaking procedures outlined below.
4. Records of the teams under consideration against common opponents. If the committee cannot make a decision
based upon head-to-head competition, it reviews results against common opponents.
a. In order to maintain seven competition opportunities, results versus common opponents must have occurred between
the seventh weekend before the NCAA regional meet (i.e., Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 25-27, 2015) through the
conclusion of NCAA Regional Cross Country Championships (scheduled for Nov. 13, 2015).
b. The committee evaluates the cumulative record against common opponents, including multiple wins and/or losses
against an opponent(s).
c. In situations where the record against common opponents’ data is equal between teams under consideration, the
committee may give greater consideration to the competition conducted closest to the regional championship date.
5. Top individuals on the teams under consideration. If the committee cannot make a decision based upon records
against common opponents, it reviews the individual runners from the teams under consideration. The committee may
give the advantage to the team whose individual(s) is most likely to score highly at the championships, as determined
by the committee.
“A†Teams/â€B†Teams. The committee recognizes that coaches experiment with lineups during the year, especially
early in the season, as well as the impact injuries may have on establishing a team’s top seven runners. During the
at-large selection process, institutions can only accumulate wins against any opponent’s “A†team. An “A†team is
considered to have competed if four or more of those individuals who compete at the regional qualifying meet finished
the regular-season race. Any team that finishes three or fewer of the institution’s top seven runners is designated as
a “B†team. The committee defines each institution’s top seven runners as those student-athletes who compete at the
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Division I cross country
NCAA regional meet. Designation of “A†teams or “B†teams can only be accomplished after the results of the NCAA
regional meets have been completed.
Coaches’ polls and/or any other outside polls or rankings are not used as a criterion by the Track and Field and
Cross Country Committee for selection purposes.
Breaking Ties
Team ties in regional championship meets shall be broken by comparing the place finish of each team member 1-5 versus his
or her respective competitor on the opposing team (Team A’s first finisher vs. Team B’s first finisher, etc.). The advancement
advantage goes to the team winning the majority (best of five) of the comparisons.