#2 American Fork
American Fork is back and looks poised to take another trip to Oregon. After losing 3 All-Americans the Cavemen bounced back and have inserted themselves into the national rankings - again. They are currently ranked 13th in the nation and 2nd in the Southwest Region. After winning the class 6A State title, this AF squad has now shifted their focus towards NXR.
Does need to happen.
American Fork has produced many of the best runners this state and country have ever seen. They work hard and put in the miles to be at where they are right now. The biggest key to American Fork's success will be having everyone present. AF has been without one of their top runners Aaron Steed for basically the last half of the season. Steed should be able to make a large enough impact to take the team to NXN. Steed raced just this past weekend at the UHSTCA Pre-Foot Locker Invitational. He finished 4th on his team and should be a dark horse for NXR.
Can't happen.
There's not much to worry about for AF because of how consistent this school is. If they want to win the meet, then AF will have to deviate off their normal racing strategy to have a chance at threatening the Red Devils. The main thing would be just making sure that every guy gives it their all, does their part and stays healthy. Even the 6th man, because I've got a feeling that in a large and competitive field, ties could be made and it could all come down to the placement of the 6th runner.
