The Mississippi State cross country teams will travel to Tuscaloosa, Ala., to compete in the Crimson Classic at the University of Alabama this Friday.
Both teams will compete against about 20 schools, including Ole Miss, Alabama, Arkansas, Southern Miss, Georgia Southern and Jacksonville State.
They especially look forward to facing their rivals in the Southeastern Conference, Alabama, Arkansas and Ole Miss.
Men’s cross country head coach Steve Dudley looks forward to going to Alabama this weekend and competing against their superb team. Alabama is ranked 1st in the region, 2nd in the SEC, and 18th overall in the country.
“We are going to compete hard against one of the best teams in the country,” Dudley sad. “Hopefully we can minimize the gap that time and not having a cross country team for so many years has put between us. We want to level the playing field and possibly pull off an upset.”
The men’s team is still determined to prove themselves, especially after discovering that they were not ranked in their region, even after finishing in the Top 10 in the region last year.
“In cross country, you have to earn your respect,” Dudley said. “They can do all the rankings they want, but it will come down to who crosses the finish line first.”
Dudley will bring 12 runners with him to compete in the men’s 8K race. Senior Travis McKay, who was named the SEC Male Athlete of the Week last week, will be competing this week again. The teammates that will join him are Ashenafi Arega, Zach Greene, Wade Martin, Daniel Simpkins, Robert Scribner, Pad Judd, Phillip Moore, Ryan Irwin, Jonathan Rono, Brandon Smith and Cameron Vincent.
Women’s cross country coach Al Schmidt is also looking forward to the meet after receiving the news that his team is ranked eighth in the South Region.
Out of the three SEC teams competing in the Crimson Classic, MSU will be the highest ranked. They also look forward to facing Alabama on their home course.
“Alabama is a really good team, especially on their home course,” Schmidt said. “This will help us to get a better feel for how we stack up against them.”
Schmidt also feels that his team knows the course well, which will be an advantage both in the meet and in helping him determine where the team’s week spots are.
“We have been running on this course for years now, and it will really help us to see where the girls are fast and where they need to pick up their speed,” Schmidt said. “Our girls also know this course well and know how fast you have to be to be competitive.”
Schmidt also feels that the return of junior Annie Falor, who has been recovering from foot surgery, will make the team stronger. Michelle Corrigan, coming off a win in the Sewanee Invitational, will also be competing in the Crimson Classic.
He is hoping to have senior Joy Griffith, one of their top runners, back by the Notre Dame Invitational in two weeks.
MSU runners Jennifer McPherson, Brittany Detzel, Liz Grube, Nicole Rosetti and Mina Thorstenson will also be competing in the women’s 5K race.