Interested in running at the next level? Here are some resources to help you on your journey! Keep in mind that the landscape of recruiting in all sports has changed drastically since 2020 (with the NIL movement, roster limits, TV deals, transfer portal changes, etc.) so be prepared to adjust your recruiting journey along the way.
T&F All-Star Recruiting
This website was created by Anahit Aladzhanyan (Occidental College, assistant athletic director and head women’s basketball coach) who noticed a lack of recruiting resources for track and field athletes. Right now it is free to make an athlete account but the price will eventually be a one-time $15 fee.
Runcruit
Runcruit is a website created by friends who ran at the NCAA Division III level to help athletes gauge what athletes colleges were actually signing, not just the standards the schools advertise. You can make an account and put in your PRs and it will give an estimation of what marks you can achieve by the time you graduate to pair with the standards of different schools. Some schools do have official verified standards now which is helpful. I would use this as a baseline when starting your journey to understand what could be possible but not view it as fact.
Coach Vanderah’s Recruiting Spreadsheet
This spreadsheet is mainly a collection of links to team information. Each school is listed with links to their team website, any posted recruiting standards, their TFRRS page, their Runcruit page, and school records. I also noted if I could find information on if the school hosts track and field camps. Let me know if any of the links are broken! Lastly, feel free to make a copy for yourself so you can sort/filter/trim down as you need for your own search.
Note: I am in the process of adding team social account links for X, Instagram, and TikTok.
NCAA Eligibility Center
Early in the journey, athletes should consider creating an NCAA Eligibility account. Students can start creating profiles in 6th grade and can start making certification accounts as early as 8th grade. Athletes competing in NCAA DI or DII need the Academic and Athletics certification account, while for DIII US citizens only need the basic profile account. If you plan on playing in any NCAA division, it is a good idea to start early.
TFRRS
Want data on how teams actually perform? Check out their TFRRS page. TFRRS stands for Track and Field Results Reporting System and is the stats hub of just about every post-secondary team’s results for XC and T&F.