Its been a few years since the men of Princeton have made the trip to Terre Haute in November.  Last season things came undone a bit in cross, losing Heps by a single point to Columbia, and falling to 6th at a regional meet more fit for a swamp rat than an Ivy Leaguer.  That finish deserves an asterisk, as they would have been 3rd (albeit a ways in back of G'town and 'Nova) with Brian Leung.  Its hard to imagine Leung not finishing a race he starts barring anything short of a bullet, kryptonite or something along those lines.  It would appear as though he fell victim to a bobcat mauling, the big cat being annoyed at the rain and mud and disoriented as to why a Mid-Atlantic Regional meet would be so far down there on the DelMarVa Peninsula.  Anyway, things turned around on the oval for the school for smarties in NJ, and although cross-country is run neither on an oval or on paper...

Read more: Another day, another team...

No they aren't going to be #1, but how about these guys?  Martin Smith has taken the men's x-c program pretty far up the ladder already.  The Sooners were 3rd at Big 12 and 12th at NCAA's with zero seniors lining up that day.  OkState is the defending NCAA Champ and probably still better than OU, and Colorado is also very good again, but this is a program that should start getting some attention.

Read more: Grote Poll 2010 Team Capsule #1

Who's the man with the plan...to beat Chelanga?  Who's the team with the dream...to stand atop the podium in Terre Haute on the last Monday before Thanksgiving?  I have meditated and contemplated these issues extensively as the 2010 Grote Poll campaign approaches.  Most recently, a trip to Seattle stirred up memories of past decades, early inspiration for The Grote Poll and some insights as to how things will turn out in November. 

Read more: Curtain Lifter, Tent Pitcher for The Preview of The Grote Poll Preview