I was looking how the top 5 Syracuse guys ran in 2015 vs 2014 both at Wisconsin and Beantown. They are way better in 2015. Can they actually be the favorites for NCAA?
I was looking how the top 5 Syracuse guys ran in 2015 vs 2014 both at Wisconsin and Beantown. They are way better in 2015. Can they actually be the favorites for NCAA?
Yes, they are better than in 2014. That has been clear since before the season started. No, they cannot be the favorites, unless something goes very wrong with Colorado. Syracuse is darn good, but Colorado can probably put three in the top 10 at nats and all 5 in the top 20. Syracuse isn't at that level.
Syracuse's number 5 guy ran a 28:46 10,000m last outdoor season ( he was 45th at NCAA last year and he improved a bunch in 2015). That's a very decent number 5.
They could pull an upset for sure.
On paper, they are better than Colorado. Of course, if Colorado peaks for XC (as they always do), then they can still win, but...
Here is how I see it:
Syracuse #1 and #2 are better than Colorado #1
Colorado #2 is better than Syracuse #3
Colorado #3 and #4 are in par with Syracuse #3
Syracuse #4 is better than Colorado #5
Syracuse #5 is on par with Colorado #5
Vuyyvgvgyyvgyvy wrote:
Here is how I see it:
Syracuse #1 and #2 are better than Colorado #1
Colorado #2 is better than Syracuse #3
Colorado #3 and #4 are in par with Syracuse #3
Syracuse #4 is better than Colorado #5
Syracuse #5 is on par with Colorado #5
Pretty hard to agree to that considering CU's top 2 returners were top 8 last year and they have two other guys that could be in those same slots this year (obviously they won't put 4 in the top 10, but they do have 4 guys that are all capable of single digits).
Syracuse has two very legit guys, but will they both be top10? I would bet against it for any amount of money.
Right now I would say their top 2 are even, but will give the edge to CU's top guys given their interchangeability. They have room for error/injuries and the cuse have to be perfect on the day.
You do realize that Colin Bennie (Syracuse #3) was less than 2 seconds behind Hehir at Wisconsin yesterday (...and came 6th). He has improved by leaps and bounds. So Syracuse has a bit more than a one , two punch
Their #4 is no slouch either. He has run a 4 minute mile indoor in 2015 and is a good 5000m runner
Their #5 is a 28:46 10,000m runner
So even though Syracuse's number 4 and 5 will not come in top 25, they certainly do damage
I did not realize that. However, I still think CU can/will put two in the top 10 and the Cuse will not. Knight will probably be single digits. I could see Hehir in the 15-25 range and I guess the other kid too.
You Know Me wrote:
I did not realize that. However, I still think CU can/will put two in the top 10 and the Cuse will not. Knight will probably be single digits. I could see Hehir in the 15-25 range and I guess the other kid too.
You see 14 to 24 guys beating Hehir? That's a lot of guys. Yes, he could have a bad race. But in a normal situation, I have trouble listing out 14 guys (I really couldn't list 24) who would beat Hehir. At this point in the XC season, only 4 guys have beaten him (none by more than a couple of seconds).
Also, remember that Hehir had the second fastest time in the NCAA last summer at 10,000m (behind Witt who is no longer competing in the NCAA), so a 10K suits him very well. Not sure why you see him as far as 15th to 25th... There can't be that many guys that are going to come out of the woodwork.
Overall I'm just amazed at the program Syracuse has built. When Chris Fox first got to Syracaue I think prevailing sentiment was if they podiumed at Big East they would have made tremendous in roads.
Whatever result they earn in November kudos to the Cuse.
Jesse Hamer wrote:
Overall I'm just amazed at the program Syracuse has built. When Chris Fox first got to Syracaue I think prevailing sentiment was if they podiumed at Big East they would have made tremendous in roads.
Whatever result they earn in November kudos to the Cuse.
I went to a party at the Syracuse track house a few years ago. It was nuts! Lube wrestling man! Fox should be proud of that too.
Tray wrote:
Jesse Hamer wrote:Overall I'm just amazed at the program Syracuse has built. When Chris Fox first got to Syracaue I think prevailing sentiment was if they podiumed at Big East they would have made tremendous in roads.
Whatever result they earn in November kudos to the Cuse.
I went to a party at the Syracuse track house a few years ago. It was nuts! Lube wrestling man! Fox should be proud of that too.
Just to clarify, that should be "Lube wrestling, man!"
Unless they blow up like last year, logic would say:
Knight: single digits
Hehir: single digits
Bennie: mid teens
The number 4 and 5 are the question marks, but I would say somewhere in the 40s or 50s. Lennon, their number 5 guy came 45th at NCAA last year. He ran better at Beantown this year than he ran last year, but did not run as we'll at Wisconsin this year than he ran last year.
Syracuse is just a great Cross-Country/Running city....Fayetteville-Manlius is a Syracuse suburb, Hometown to Jerry Lawson, Jennifer Rhines, Don Page and a handful of Olympic trials qualifiers, plus that chic who infiltrated the once male only Boston Marathon. Fleet Feet Syracuse was the #1 running store in the country. A mess of races, running groups and running clubs...S.U. X-C will just add to the whole legacy. What a great running city!
...with a couple of seniors on the team, they will need good recruiting. Voting for Brendan Hoff to join the team next year.