The University of Florida men’s track and field team, the three-time defending NCAA Indoor Champion and 2012 NCAA Outdoor Champion, is ranked No. 2 in the 2013 U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Poll, released Tuesday by the New Orleans-based organization. The 2012 SEC Indoor Champion Gator women enter the season ranked preseason No. 5, continuing to build off a stellar 2012 campaign.

The Gator men claimed the 2012 NCAA Indoor team title, becoming just the third different program in NCAA history to win three consecutive NCAA Indoor Men’s Championships.

The preseason national team computer rankings as calculated by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) projects the preseason rankings based largely on performance bests from returners and early performances from the 2012-13 indoor season.

Led by 2012 USTFCCCA National Indoor and Outdoor Head Coach of the Year Mike Holloway, the Gator men return seven 2012 USTFCCCA Indoor All-Americans, while the women welcome back nine 2012 USTFCCCA Indoor All-Americans to the track in 2013.

The Southeastern Conference reigns supreme on both the men’s and the women’s side of the 2013 conference index, placing seven and six teams in the preseason top-25, respectively.

Florida opens the 2013 indoor season at the Crimson Tide Indoor Opener in Birmingham, Ala. on January 12th before returning home to host the Gator Invite on January 17th.

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