The Michigan men's cross country team has been looking forward to the Big Ten championship for months.
This Saturday in Bloomington, the Wolverines will attempt to do what they haven't in three years by beating Wisconsin in the championship.
"This is what we've trained for the whole season," Michigan coach Ron Warhurst said. "This is the championship of the midwest. We're fighting for our own back yard now."
Wisconsin, ranked No. 8, has won the last two Big Ten titles and 11 out of the last 14. The 10th-ranked Wolverines have finished second to them most of those years.
"They are a very good team," Warhurst said. "But they are not better athletes than us."
Michigan has two of the best runners in the Big Ten: John Mortimer and Scott MacDonald. The pair should place in the top five along with Wisconsin's Pasquel Dobert, Illinois' Jason Zieren, and Michigan State's Kyle Baker.
"The top five runners will have pulled away from the rest of the pack by the four mile mark," Warhurst said. "Then Mortimer should win the whole thing.
"MacDonald knows the course at Indiana well. He ran the two best races of his freshman year there."
Still, the Wolverines will have their hands full. Mortimer and MacDonald may beat every Badger at the head of the pack, but Wisconsin will try to clump its runners near the top, similar to North Carolina State's strategy at the Michigan Interregional two weeks ago.
"Three out of our next seven runners will have to run the way they are capable of," Warhurst said. "That hasn't happened yet this season. We all have to be on at the same time to beat Wisconsin."
Those latter seven are Steve Lawrence, Jay Cantin, Todd Snyder, Dave Barnett, Ryan Burt, Nic Watson and Jeff Beuche. Of those seven, three will join Mortimer and MacDonald in the points race.
Recent weather patterns in the midwest may raise questions about the conditions this weekend.
"The wind could be the biggest factor Saturday," Warhurst said. "It'll slow everybody down, so we've gotta run smart."
The terrain, on the other hand, shouldn't pose any big problems for Michigan this weekend.
"It's a tough, rolling course," Warhurst said. "But it's not as difficult as ours."
The Wolverines ran their last varsity race two weeks ago, giving them plenty of time to build up strength for Saturday.
"I think we are as prepared as we can be," Warhurst said. "Our past three workouts have been the best all year, individual and as a group."