NEW ORLEANS, La. (March 22, 2022) – On Tuesday, the USTFCCCA announced the mid-year standings for the John McDonnell Program of the Year Award, naming the Northern Arizona men at the top of the list with a score of five points.
The USTFCCCA Program of the Year Award honors the institution that has achieved the most success in each academic year (spanning the cross country, indoor track & field and outdoor track & field seasons) based on the institution's finish at the NCAA Championships.
In order to be eligible for the award, teams must qualify for each of the NCAA Championships; scoring is based on the team's finish at each NCAA Championship (i.e. 1st = 1 point, 2nd = 2 points … 31st = 31 points) with the lowest total score for all three championships combined determining the award winner. Ties among schools split points for positions taken.
Most recently, the Lumberjack men finished fourth indoors to earn their first indoor podium finish, and in November, the team earned the NCAA Cross Country Championship, garnering a total of five points.
The NAU men currently lead by a comfortable margin of six points, as Arkansas ranks second with 11 points, followed by Texas (15), Stanford (17), and Ole Miss (25.5).
Historically, the best the Lumberjack men have finished in the program of the year standings was third in 2010.
