Liam Jopling

Did not race. Won Nights of Thunder on the Apalachee Regional Park state course in 10:25.0 and ran 10:01.3 at state last November. He sits directly above Jobe on a common opponent: Jack Ilea finished 30 seconds behind Jopling at Nights of Thunder and 29 behind Jobe at the Horse Park. Jobe's win this week did not change that reading.

Did not race. Won Nights of Thunder on the Apalachee Regional Park state course in 10:25.0 on September 12; ran 10:01.3 at the FLYRA state meet last November, the fastest returning time in Florida. Sits directly above Jobe on the common-opponent reading made a week ago (Jack Ilea 30 seconds behind Jopling at Nights of Thunder, 29 behind Jobe at the Horse Park) and below the four boys above him, none of whom he has raced.

Won the Nights of Thunder middle school 3K at Apalachee Regional Park, the high school state course in 10:25.0, twelve seconds ahead of teammate Cael Rusmisel, in his first race of the season. He ran 10:01.3 at the FLYRA state meet last November, the fastest returning time in Florida, and he sat on that seed for three weekends. Saturday's run projects 10:15.9, which is thirteenth on the arithmetic, and we are ranking him third. The common opponent says the course reading is wrong, not the runner: Jack Ilea of Red Sea finished 30 seconds behind Jopling on Saturday, and a week earlier the same Jack Ilea finished 29 seconds behind Colton Jobe at the Horse Park, where Jobe ran 10:05.2. The same margin over the same kid puts Jopling where Jobe is, and the 10:01.3 breaks the tie. He has not raced anybody else on this list. Destremps and Lomoriello have raced each other and raced more, and they stay above him until he meets one of them.

The fastest returning state time in Florida, three tenths quicker than Destremps ran the same day. Two weekends have now gone by without Ruckel opening. His seed gives him nothing for ten months of growth, so read it as a floor and expect it to look conservative when he finally runs.

The fastest returning state time in Florida — 10:01.3 last October as a 7th grader — and the top-ranked boy who hasn't raced yet. The projection gives him nothing for ten months of growth. When Ruckel opens its season, expect this seed to look conservative.