NCAA Polls: Gopher Women Open at #8; Gopher Men's Start Season Ranked #18

The University of Minnesota women's cross country team opens the 2007 season ranked #8 in the inaugural U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association NCAA Division I poll announced today.

Two-time defending NCAA champion Stanford is ranked #1.

Big Ten rivals Michigan (#2), Wisconsin (#5), and Illinois (#6) are ranked ahead of the Gopher women.

The Gopher men open the season ranked #18. Last year's NCAA runner-up Wisconsin -- the only Big Ten team rated ahead of the Gopher men -- is ranked #1 in the first poll of the season.

Full women's rankings can be found HERE.

There's a preview of the 2007 Gopher women's team from GopherSports.com HERE.

Full men's rankings are HERE.

There's a preview of the 2007 Gopher men's team from GopherSports.com HERE.

Additionally ... Gopher women's coach Gary Wilson offered his reaction to his team's high national ranking as well as the Big Ten's depth in a U of M media release: "The Big Ten this season is stupid tough this season,” he said. “Needless to say we are thrilled with the ranking, but what really counts is how we run at the end of the season.”

Finally ... It bears noting that 43% of DtB poll voters (see results to the right) put the #8 Gopher women in the same slot in the poll as did the USTFCCCA voters. Our voters were a little more bearish on the #18 Gopher men than the official voters -- 40% of them ranking the team in the #21-25 slot.