DARDANELLE, AR – After finishing second at last year's Great American Conference Championship and advancing to its first-ever NCAA Championship, Oklahoma Baptist men's cross country has been picked to finish third in the GAC Preseason Coaches poll.
The Bison tallied the second-most number of first-place votes (2) and finished just a single point behind Harding, which had one first-place vote. East Central, the four-time defending champion, came in at the top spot with five first-place votes.
Ouachita Baptist came in fourth, while Northwestern Oklahoma State, Southern Arkansas, Southern Nazarene, and Arkansas-Monticello rounded out the poll.
The Bison return a pair of All-GAC performers in
Emery Crayton and
Zachary Williams, while adding depth with several key newcomers. OBU went out to finish seventh at the NCAA Central Regional and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Championship, where it finished 25th nationally.
Oklahoma Baptist will run its first meet of the season on Sept. 3 at the Rogers State Distance After Dark. This year's GAC Championship is set for Nov. 7 in Enid, OK.
2026 GAC Preseason Coaches Poll
| Rk |
School |
Pts |
FPV |
| 1 |
East Central |
46 |
5 |
| 2 |
Harding |
42 |
1 |
| 3 |
Oklahoma Baptist |
41 |
2 |
| 4 |
Ouachita Baptist |
31 |
- |
| 5 |
Northwestern Oklahoma State |
22 |
- |
| 6 |
Southern Arkansas |
21 |
- |
| 7 |
Southern Nazarene |
14 |
- |
| 8 |
Arkansas-Monticello |
7 |
- |
FPV = First-Place Votes
