The 1973 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships were the 35th annual cross country meet to determine the team and individual national champions of NCAA Division I men's collegiate cross country running in the United States. Held on it was hosted by Washington State University at Hangman Valley Golf Course, near Spokane, Washington.
The distance for this race was , and the approximate average elevation was above sea level. The temperature during the race was .
The team national championship was won by the Oregon Ducks, their second title.
The individual championship was won by Oregon's Steve Prefontaine, with a time of 28:14.80. This was Prefontaine's third individual title in four years. Along with Gerry Lindgren (1966, 1967, and 1969) and Henry Rono (1976, 1977, and 1979), both from Washington State, Prefontaine is one of only three Division I collegiate runners with three individual titles.
Washington State hosted the championship again four years later in 1977, also at Hangman Valley, south of the city.
Qualification All Division I members were eligible to qualify for the meet. In total, 22 teams and 210 individual runners contested this championship. This was the first championship after the NCAA rebranded the former University Division as Division I in 1973. On a related note, the inaugural NCAA Men's Division III Cross Country Championship was held this year at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois.
Men's title Distance: Team Result (Top 10) Rank Team Points Oregon 89 UTEP 157 Washington State 166 William & Mary 174 Colorado 198 Oklahoma State 204 East Tennessee State 247 Wisconsin 251 Penn State 253 Indiana 254
See also NCAA Men's Division II Cross Country Championship NCAA Men's Division III Cross Country Championship (began in 1973)
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