SEC cross country teams set for NCAA Regionals

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (Nov. 9, 2023)-----The cross country programs of the Southeastern Conference will compete in the NCAA Regional Championships Friday at various sites around the country.

Eighteen teams will automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships by finishing as one of the top two teams at any of the nine regional races. The remaining 13 at-large teams for the final site are selected by the NCAA Division I Cross Country Subcommittee. Thirty-six individuals automatically qualify for the championships races by being one of the top four regional finishers not on an advancing team.

Two additional individuals are selected at large by the committee. The NCAA Championships will be held Nov. 18 in Charlottesville, Va.

Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Tennessee and Vanderbilt will compete in the South Region Championship in Gainesville, Fla. The women's 6K race is schedule to start at 8:30 a.m. ET, while the men's 10K follows at 9:30 a.m. ET.

Arkansas, LSU and Texas A&M will run in the South Central Region Championship in Fayetteville, Ark. The women's race will begin at 10:30 a.m. CT, followed by the men's race at 11:30 a.m. CT.

Kentucky and South Carolina will compete in the Southeast Region Championship in Spartanburg, S.C. The women's race is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. ET, followed by the men's race at 12 p.m. ET.

Missouri will run in the Midwest Region Championship in Stillwater, Okla., with the women's race slated for a 10:30 a.m. CT start time, followed by the men's race at 11:30 a.m. CT.

Florida is the highest ranked SEC women's team at No. 6, while Arkansas is No. 11, Tennessee is ranked 15th, Alabama is 16th and Ole Miss is 24th. Three SEC men's teams are ranked in the most recent top-25: Arkansas at No. 7, Alabama at No. 18 and Tennessee at No. 21.

Arkansas won the SEC men's title earlier this season, while Florida claimed the women's championship.