Unlike in previous seasons, Duke's freshman class will have its work cut out to even make the starting squad.
The Blue Devils return their top ten runners from last year, including All-ACC and NCAA qualifier junior Bo Waggoner, All-Southeast Region senior James Osborne and junior Cory Nanni, who ran a 3:43 1500 meters on the track at the USA Track and Field National Championships in June, a time that roughly equates to a 4:01 mile.
Head coach Norm Ogilvie said the strength of Duke's veteran runners will spur the team to improve this season.
"I think in a lot of years at Duke, we have to rely on freshmen to contribute," Ogilvie said. "But I think on this year's team it will be a bonus if they contribute. All the ingredients are here for a great season. We've had three tremendous recruiting classes back-to-back-to-back, and we've got a bunch of seniors who are going to provide some really great leadership for us."
The top returning runners share a single goal: place at the top of the ACC, qualify for team NCAA Nationals, finish near the front of the pack individually and help Duke to score among the top teams in the country.
And after his individual trip to the NCAA meet last year, Waggoner brings back an understanding of the importance of every place's value to the score in a large race.
"It's very hard to stay focused, because you don't really know where you are," Waggoner said. "You don't really know how you're doing, there's so many good runners. But if, as a team, each of us goes out there, stays hungry and picks up five seconds where they might normally drop back, that five seconds might be ten places or more, they're packed so tight together.
"You spread that out over five to seven guys, and all of a sudden that... turns into a whole bunch of team points. So yeah, I'm remembering my experience being in a big pack. If you fight to move up, every place counts. That will make a big difference for us."
Osborne, meanwhile, is determined to join Waggoner at the NCAA meet this year, and hopes it will be as a team rather than as individual qualifiers.
"Since I came to Duke almost four years ago now, this is the season I've been waiting for," Osborne said. "For whatever reason, we haven't gotten it done in the past three years for me. This season is different... I have similar goals to Bo's: get All-ACC, be one of the major players in the ACC, and I know that my team's counting on me to be up there for the NCAA meet.
"I also want to be one of those top 50 guys, shoot for All-American, and I'm ready to go. I'm really excited, and I think the rest of the team is too."
And having proven himself on the track last year, Nanni hopes to catch up off the track and be equally competitive in cross country. His two IC4A titles are proof that Duke athletes can win championships, which Ogilvie hopes will inspire the rest of the team.
"What we're trying to do in the training this fall is come out of the gates at a little higher level," Ogilvie said. "And we're going to aim high. I talk about not settling for less than winning the conference, sending a bunch of guys to Nationals, and seeing them perform at the level they're capable of."
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