Men's Cross Country ranked No. 9 in USTFCCCA preseason coaches' poll

For the 10th consecutive year, the BYU Men’s Cross Country program will start the year ranked in the top 10 in the country in the USTFCCCA Preseason Coaches' Poll

Author Ben Ward
Men's Cross Country ranked No. 9 in USTFCCCA preseason coaches' pollMen's Cross Country ranked No. 9 in USTFCCCA preseason coaches' poll
Emma Thomas/BYU Photo

PROVO, Utah -  For the 10th consecutive year, BYU Men’s Cross Country starts the season ranked in the top 10 in the USTFCCCA Preseason Coaches' Poll.

USTFCCCA Preseason Coaches' Poll
No. 1 Oklahoma State
No. 2 New Mexico
No. 3 Iowa State
No. 4 Alabama
No. 5 Oregon
No. 6 Colorado
No. 7 Northern Arizona
No. 8 Wake Forest
No. 9 BYU
No. 10 Wisconsin

BYU comes in at No. 9 in this year’s preseason rankings, just three days before its season kicks off in Orem for the Utah Valley Invitational on Friday, Sept. 4. The rest of the top 25 can be viewed on the USTFCCA website.

Three Big 12 teams join the Cougars in the top 10: Oklahoma State (1), Iowa State (3), and Colorado (6). BYU slots in at No. 4 in the Mountain Region, trailing New Mexico, Colorado, and Northern Arizona, which rank No. 2, No. 6, and No. 7 nationally. The competitive Mountain Region is the only region with four schools ranked in the top 10.

The Cougars are looking to bounce back after an 11th-place finish in last year’s NCAA Championship, their lowest finish since the 2015 season. They return four of their five scoring runners from the championship race, as well as an exciting group of freshman and transfers.

KEY RETURNERS

TAYVON KITCHEN

TAYVON KITCHEN

Entering his sophomore season, Tayvon Kitchen finished his freshman cross country season as BYU’s No. 1 placer in each of the last three meets. Hailing from Central Point, Oregon, Kitchen earned All-America honors with a 32nd-place finish at last year’s NCAA Championship. He will look to build off an impressive freshman year in which he also broke the school record in both the indoor 3,000 meters and the outdoor 5,000 meters.

NOAH JENKINS

NOAH JENKINS

Noah Jenkins, entering his senior year, was one of the team’s most consistent performers last season. He finished among BYU’s top-three runners in all six meets he competed in last fall. He capped his season with a personal-best 29:08.5 in the 10k at the NCAA Championship, missing an All-America spot by just three finishers. The All-Mountain Region honoree also put his name in the track record books in the winter, setting the seventh-best mark in the indoor 5,000 meters and the No. 9 all-time record in the indoor 3,000 meters.

JAMES CORRIGAN

JAMES CORRIGAN

The fifth-year senior out of Los Angeles, California, is set to be a crucial contributor in his final season of collegiate eligibility. James Corrigan, the only member of the 2024 national championship team still running for the Cougars, was a top-five finisher in each of BYU’s three postseason races last season. A 2024 All-American and U.S. Olympian in the 3,000-meter steeplechase will provide veteran leadership to a young Cougar team looking to take the next step.

MAX DAVIS

MAX DAVIS

Max Davis made a big impact in his first collegiate cross country season in 2025, crossing the line as one of BYU’s scorers in both the NCAA Mountain Regional and NCAA Championship races. The junior from Flagstaff, Arizona, also turned in a successful track season, highlighted by a top-eight finish in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Big 12 Outdoor Championships in May.

EXCITING NEWCOMERS

MALACHI SCHOENHERR - Another chapter in the BYU-Oregon pipeline that includes teammates Tayvon Kitchen and Carter Cutting, Malachi Schoenherr is looking to make a big impact in his freshman season. Hailing from Eugene, Schoenherr was a four-time state champion, seven-time conference champion and five-time All-American during his time in high school. He chose BYU over Oregon, Oklahoma State, Wake Forest and New Mexico.

DANNY SIMMONS - Danny Simmons returns from serving a two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Atlanta, Georgia, ready to help lift the Cougars in his freshman season. Another highly decorated high school runner, Simmons was a two-time national Gatorade Cross Country Player of the Year at American Fork High School in Utah, as well as a national record holder in the indoor and outdoor 5,000 meters. He committed to the Cougars over Oregon, Wake Forest, Oklahoma State, North Carolina, Stanford and Utah State.

UP NEXT

The Cougars head to Scera Park in Orem, Utah, to compete in the Utah Valley Invitational on Friday, Sept. 4. The men’s race will begin at 10:45 a.m. MDT. The race will not be streamed.