Wisconsin and Michigan Ann Arbor, last year's men's and women's National Champions, topped the NIRCA preseason poll.
After running away with the national title last year, Wisconsin opened the 2009 season with a strong performance at the UW Cross Country Classic, returning many of their top five from last year's young team. Behind them are the 2006 national champions Michigan, which returns its leading running from last year Moses Peters, along with three more from their top five. Next is Oregon, the 2007 champions. The west coast team, which lost three of its top five runners last year, will be relying on younger runners this year.
On the women's side, the perennial contender Michigan led the way behind last year's championship performance led by runner-up Rachel White. Next, losing no seniors, is last year's third-place team Oregon, led by senior Kristen Mohror along with several newcomers. Penn State, one of NIRCA's largest clubs, is ranked third after last year's second-place performance. The team's top returnee is Kelsey Markham after losing its top two runners to graduation.
