BATON ROUGE – As the LSU Track & Field program prepares to host the 2012 SEC Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Bernie Moore Stadium this weekend, the Lady Tigers are ranked No. 2 and the Tigers are ranked No. 9 in the latest Top 25 national power ranking released Tuesday morning by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.
The Lady Tigers are up two spots in this week’s ranking as they kick off the championship season with an impressive No. 2 national ranking as the SEC Championships are set to begin Thursday in Baton Rouge.
The Lady Tigers trail only No. 1-ranked Clemson, which has taken over the top spot in the power ranking for the second time in three weeks. Texas has slipped to No. 3 after holding down the top spot a week ago as No. 4 Florida and No. 5 Kansas round out the top five of this week’s women’s rankings.
LSU and Florida are sure to battle one another for the women’s team title at the 2012 SEC Outdoor Track & Field Championships as they have accounted for five-straight wins in the event. The Lady Tigers are the two-time defending SEC Outdoor champions with four victories in the last five seasons in 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2011. The Gators last took home the team title during the 2009 campaign.
The SEC features five women’s programs in the latest USTFCCCA Top 25 national power ranking as No. 11 Arkansas, No. 19 Tennessee and No. 21 Georgia are also poised to join the championship race.
The Tigers have held their Top 10 ranking again this week as they find themselves in the No. 9 position at the start of the championship season. The No. 1-ranked Florida Gators sit atop the list for the second week in a row, followed by No. 2 Texas A&M, No. 3 Texas Tech, No. 4 Florida State and No. 5 Arizona State.
The SEC features a national-leading seven men’s programs among the Top 20 teams in the country in this week’s power ranking as the Tigers and Gators are joined by such SEC contenders as No. 6 Arkansas, No. 11 Ole Miss, No. 12 Mississippi State, No. 13 Auburn and No. 19 Georgia. Only four teams from the Big 12 and Pac 12 conferences are ranked among the Top 20 as they continue to trail the SEC.
USTFCCCA Top 25
WOMEN
Team (Points) Last Week
1. Clemson (283.59) 2
2. LSU (280.08) 4
3. Texas (264.98) 1
4. Florida (246.83) 3
5. Kansas (237.27) 5
6. Texas Tech (190.61) 9
7. Oregon (183.99) 7
8. Texas A&M (180.49) 6
9. Arizona (171.06) 8
10. Arizona State (159.83) 11
11. Arkansas (159.80) 10
12. Louisville (138.37) 19
13. Oklahoma (134.20) 15
14. Stanford (130.74) 12
15. Illinois State (123.34) 14
16. Southern California (114.55) 13
17. Florida State (112.60) 16
18. Central Florida (106.97) 17
19. Tennessee (106.45) 18
20. Iowa State (102.31) 20
21. Georgia (96.51) 21
22. Southern Illinois (96.21) 23
23. Baylor (91.80) 22
24. Ohio State (85.71) 24
25. Kansas State (85.43) 25
MEN
Team (Points) Last Week
1. Florida (258.80) 1
2. Texas A&M (248.81) 2
3. Texas Tech (238.20) 10
4. Florida State (201.68) 5
5. Arizona State (189.74) 3
6. Arkansas (187.11) 11
7. Southern California (183.76) 4
8. Indiana (180.07) 7
9. LSU (171.80) 6
10. Texas (171.17) 12
11. Ole Miss (160.21) 8
12. Mississippi State (159.22) 9
13. Auburn (155.87) 13
14. Arizona (151.81) 14
15. Wisconsin (139.82) 17
16. Virginia Tech (136.16) 16
17. Nebraska (126.97) 15
18. Stanford (124.47) 19
19. Georgia (123.26) 18
20. Oklahoma (113.01) 20
21. Iowa (112.20) 21
22. Oregon (107.68) 22
23. Kansas (87.65) 23
24. Princeton (83.07) 24
25. Minnesota (81.72) 25