BIRMINGHAM, Ala. The Gulf South Conference announced its 2026 Men's Cross Country Runners to Watch List on Thursday, with Mikey Banks, JT Mathison, and Caleb Yoder, earning recognition for the Warhawks.
AUM was selected to finish fourth in the 2026 GSC Men's Cross Country Coaches Preseason Poll, receiving 59 points. Lee claimed the top spot with 81 points, followed by Alabama Huntsville with 72 and Mississippi Christian with 63.
The Warhawks are coming off a strong 2025 campaign, finishing fourth at the GSC Championships before tying the best regional finish in program history with an eighth-place showing at the NCAA Division II South Regional Championships. AUM scored 230 points at the regional meet, marking the program's third consecutive eighth-place finish.
Mikey Banks
Banks, a junior from Wolverhampton, United Kingdom, returns to the Warhawks after competing in six meets during the 2025 season. He placed 48th in the 10K at the NCAA South Regional Championships with a time of 33:55.60, helping AUM tie the best regional finish in program history with an eighth-place showing.
Banks recorded a personal-best 8K time of 25:09.40 at the GSC Championships, finishing 29th overall and helping the Warhawks place fourth as a team. During the regular season, he recorded a pair of top-15 finishes, placing fourth at the Montevallo Falcon Classic with a time of 25:50.10 and 11th at the UNA Invitational in 25:39.50.
JT Mathison
Mathison, a sophomore from Pike Road, Alabama, competed in six meets for the Warhawks during the 2025 season and earned USTFCCCA All-Academic Team honors.
Mathison placed 30th at the GSC Championships with a collegiate-best 8K time of 25:10.90, helping AUM finish fourth as a team. He followed that performance with a personal-best 10K time of 34:20.70 at the NCAA South Regional Championships, placing 59th overall.
Mathison also recorded a top-25 finish at the UNA Invitational and a top-30 finish at the Montevallo Falcon Classic during the regular season.
Caleb Yoder
Yoder, a sophomore from Centre, Alabama, returns to the Warhawks following a strong freshman campaign that earned him USTFCCCA All-Academic Team and GSC All-Academic Team honors.
Yoder led AUM with a 14th-place finish at the GSC Championships, recording a personal-best 8K time of 25:02.90. He also posted a collegiate-best 10K time of 33:28.80 at the NCAA South Regional Championships, placing 40th overall and helping the Warhawks tie their best regional finish in program history.
During the regular season, Yoder recorded multiple top-25 finishes, highlighted by a fifth-place performance at the UNA Invitational in his collegiate debut.
2026 GSC Men's Cross Country Coaches Preseason Poll
1. Lee (9), 81 points
2. UAH (1), 72 points
3. Mississippi Christian, 63 points
4. AUM, 59 points
5. Union, 44 points
6. Montevallo, 34 points
7. Christian Brothers, 33 points
8. West Alabama, 32 points
9. Trevecca Nazarene, 20 points
10. Valdosta State, 12 points
First-place votes in parentheses
2026 GSC Men's Cross Country Runners to Watch
Dakota Frank, Jr., UAH
Conner Patterson, R-Sr., UAH
Mikey Banks, Jr., AUM
JT Mathison, So., AUM
Caleb Yoder, So., AUM
Ryan Cabreira, Fr., Christian Brothers
Migual Cantarero, Fr., Christian Brothers
Pierre Chauveau, Lee
Stephen Clark, Lee
Tucker Wright, Lee
Baxter Friedman, Sr., Mississippi Christian
Matthew Singletary, Sr., Mississippi Christian
Aaron Fynnardt, Sr., Union
Johnathan Lewis, Fr., Union
Luke Winkleman, Sr., Union
Lorenzo Pelusi, So., West Alabama
Jonathan Phillips, 5th, West Alabama
The men's cross country program opens the season on Friday, September 18, at the Southern Showcase in Huntsville, Alabama, hosted by Jacksonville State.
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