With nationals in the forefront of every Longhorn’s mind, the NCAA Cross Country South Central Regional Championships just seems like a technicality.

Texas won the South Central Regional title for the first time ever last season and, with the highest ranking in the meet at No. 5, is expected to continue the tradition and do so again Friday at 12:15 p.m. at Agri Park in Fayetteville, Ark.

“The only worry is getting through it healthy, and we want to make sure to save ourselves for the most important meet [nationals]. Obviously, the goal is always to win it, but there’s really no pressure to go out and do something amazing this weekend,” sophomore Craig Lutz, who led the Longhorns at the meet last season with a 10K time of 30:38.6, said.

The top two teams out of the 32 at the meet will advance to the national meet Nov. 17. An upset is always possible from No. 29 A&M, the only other ranked team at the meet. However, assuming Texas can live up to expectations, the team most likely to accompany the Longhorns to the national meet is Arkansas, which is not far behind with a No. 10 ranking.