The University of Florida men’s track and field team, the two-time defending
NCAA Indoor Champion, is ranked No. 1 in the 2012 U.S. Track and Field and
Cross Country Coaches Association Poll, released Tuesday afternoon by the New
Orleans-based organization.
The Gator men won their second-straight NCAA crown in 2011, scoring 52
points at the national championships to home team Texas A&M’s 40.
The preseason national team computer rankings as calculated by the U.S.
Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) projects the
Gator men and the Oregon women as the early paper favorites based largely on
performance bests from returners.
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DID YOU KNOW?
The Gator men’s track and field program is the third Florida squad to
be named preseason No. 1 in the 2011-2012 season. The 2011 NCAA Champion
women’s tennis team and the 2011 CWS runner-up baseball squad also earned
preseason No. 1 rankings.
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Led by 2011 USTFCCCA National Indoor Head Coach of the Year Mike
Holloway, the Gator men return eight 2011 USTFCCCA Indoor All-Americans,
while the women welcome back four 2011 USTFCCCA Indoor All-Americans to the
track in 2012.
The Southeastern Conference reigns supreme on both the men’s and the
women’s side of the 2012 conference index. The SEC and Big Ten each have six
squads in the preseason top 25 among men’s squads, while the women’s side
boasts three SEC programs in the preseason top 25.
Florida opens the 2012 indoor season at the Alabama Invitational in
Birmingham, Ala. on January 14th before returning home to host the Gator Invite
on January 22nd.
