"[The field] is stacked," Penn State men's cross country coach Harry Groves said. "It's like a who's who in the nation -- loaded in terms of running power."
Senior Chris Foster leads the way as the top runner for Lions, finishing first for the team in the previous two meets.
"Chris [Foster] is definitely a leader," Dan Mazzocco, arguably the Lions' most talented runner, said. "He's worked for the ability he has, and it's a testament to him. He's helping everyone out, on and off the track."
Mazzocco, along with senior Joel Moceri will try to give the Lions a formidable top three for the meet. Rounding out the runners headed to South Bend are freshmen Oskar Nordenbring and Brian Fuller, along with senior Matt Lincoln and junior Chris Nirschel. The runners give the Lions a solid group with experience and youthful depth on a team now becoming a cohesive unit.
"As a whole the freshman class is great," Mazzocco said. "They're great guys -- real dedicated. We're getting to be a tight-knit group and you can it shows in workout and races."
While the team has gelled, it must look to pick up crucial at large points against out of district teams and must begin to knock off Big Ten teams and some in-region competition, namely Princeton.
"I think we're going to start to chip away at Princeton," Foster said. "They have a lot of freshman and they got off to a great start -- but the start of the season doesn't mean crap. I think we'll start to chip away."
