NCAA Cross - Would you trade in your 45th place finish in Div. I for a 2nd place finish in Div. III?

I'd switch to D III in a second (speaking strictly for the running aspect, not academics). I'm tired of being beaten to a pulp in D I and never seeing the course in front of me. It'd be great to be up in the lead pack or thereabouts.

I think my opinions on the matter vary a bit. I ran at a DII school (Good academics and good running) and I was able to run at nationals my freshman year in cross and in indoor and outdoor every year after my freshman year. I was glad that I was able to run at nationals and experience that while I was young in college and able to be an all american. Also those years I was able to run against the big dawgs of DI so I could compare myself and it was fun when we ran against them because we were never expected to do well against them but we (my team and I) competed fairly well against a lot of good DI schools (arkansas). When it got to be my senior year and I could have made a run at qualifying for DI nats was the time when I wish I would have been in DI. For me though I am glad I went to DII overall the experience of being able to run at nationals and travel all over the US beats going to a DI school and wishing one year I might run at nationals.

Top athletes generally fare better in Division I. However, if Division I is over someone's head, then it will probably be true that they will have a better experience at a good Division III program.

But, to answer the original question, placing 45th. in Division I xcountry is damn good running. You lined up against the best.

you think a side stitch will bring you from 30th to 45? that is probably only 5 to 10 seconds. my guess is you couldnt keep pusing with the rest of them. if the side stitch was that bad, it would have affected you more than 5-10 seconds, and wouldnt have came out of nowhere with 1k to go.

good excuse though. tell your kids you would have been an all american if it werent for the side stitch (or better yet, that you would have been an all american if they told you before the race that it was only a 9k race and not a 10k).

man up.

think about it wrote:

you think a side stitch will bring you from 30th to 45? that is probably only 5 to 10 seconds.

well the gap from 30th to 41st was only 10 seconds, and to 44th 12 seconds...that sounds pretty close to right.

think about it wrote:

you think a side stitch will bring you from 30th to 45? that is probably only 5 to 10 seconds. my guess is you couldnt keep pusing with the rest of them. if the side stitch was that bad, it would have affected you more than 5-10 seconds, and wouldnt have came out of nowhere with 1k to go.

good excuse though. tell your kids you would have been an all american if it werent for the side stitch (or better yet, that you would have been an all american if they told you before the race that it was only a 9k race and not a 10k).

man up.

All it did was keep me from kicking (like the groups of people who passed me were doing), maybe even back off a percent or two. I finished with tears from the pain. I don't have to tell the kids I would have been an all american, because I already had been.

I like how you sound really tough though, it's a nice character to play.

im not saying you arent a solid runner, cause obviously you are. my point is, everyone has to deal with something. ibet there were guys running with stress fractures and shit. you ran thru pain just like everyone else. dont blame your not being an all american (again) on a stitch. and since you are already an all american, who cares about what it would have been like to run d3. you got the AA in d1

Dude, a stitch that tears muscle tissue is not your usual pain. I have gotten one in race and had to drop out eventually (my only dropout ever). As far as I know, most people are not racing with those, and most people are not racing with those on a regualar basis. I think you might be thinking of a slight cramp, like the one in your brain.

Recognition is better than being the best you can be? Cool. If you rather be recognized for running slow, do it.

Define: Best

I was never bashing D1 by any means and yea, I made some generalizations but it was just to make a point. I mean clearly people like Chris Solinsky were amazing in highschool and got that much better in college. And yea, there are people who went to college and don't live up to their potential (see performance of NC state at nationals this year). It all depends on where you fit in. Truth is when I was deciding on colleges I looked at one from all 4 divisions.

NAIA-Shawnee State

D1- Ohio University

D2- Ashland University

D3- Otterbein college

I chose on the latter because it's simply where I felt I had the greatest chance to improve as a runner and it felt like a great fit.

If you want to go to D1, do it. Who cares if you never finish better than top 50 in a race as long as you are happy running.

I have a friend running Junior College D3 and I'd find it hard to say that he likes running any less than a D1 runner simply because the division is probably the least competitive division in all the United States

To be honest, unless your an absolute stud, there really is no point in singling out what division you want to run in.

d1 has its powerhouse teams, just like in every division, and those are the teams everyone wants to run for. So, if you're good enough to run for colorado, stanford, wisconsin, ark.. etc... than by all means, go for it.

Where I get frustrated is the guys who go div 1 to an average d1 school and talk like their the real deal when it comes to racing d3.

I've seen plenty of great d3 teams mop up on average d1 teams, just as i've seen great individuals d3 mop up on better d1 guys.

Its not to say that we're underated, its just to say that the further you get from that top 25 d1 teams, the less and less divisions have to do with your improvement.

Example, a guy who runs for say, UW-Milwaukee, can say he runs d1, but the reality is, there are probably 3 WIAC teams any given year that are more than capable of beating them.

So, to answer your question, if you were shooting for top 35 in d1, then you probably belong there, even if you ended up 50th. But I think for guys who are finishing 35th in the region, then d1 isn't a neccesity, just a preference of school or program.

Plus, d3 gives guys that wouldn't have a shot in hell of ever making nationals d1 a chance to contribute and a chance to shine. Its less talented pool overall, but its just as competitive when put into perspective.

I think d3 rules.

I always saw DIII as attractive as a decent high school runner (4:22/9:25) because the thought of actually getting to compete at a national meet in track, being all-american, and possibly even having a shot at winning a national title if I had success was very inviting. I could go to a good DI program and struggle to make varsity junior and senior years, and then get overwhelmed at Nationals, or I could go to a DIII program, and still have lots of competition at my level from DI and DIII guys, but also have a shot at being at the top level.

Yea, good point.

Last year's D3 XC national champ only ran 9:43 in high school and wasn't a state champ in the smallest division D3 in ohio.

Talk about being undertrained in high school.

think about it wrote:

if you dont want to be controlled by your school and forced to train your entire college career, go d3. if you want to make running your life, go d1. d2 is pretty much a waste of time. not sure who would chose those schools. academics arent good, and running isnt good. What is the perk?

Yeah right, D2 is a waste of time as far as academics go just ask the average Colorado School of Mines graduate. Last I saw they averaged just over $54,000 as an undergraduate out of school. And I bet you couldn't make their top 7 in Cross.