Minnesota's men's and women's cross country teams announced their full 2026 slate, a seven-meet stretch running from September 4 through November 21 that features just one home date for the Gophers.
That lone home meet is a big one. The Gophers will host the 40th annual Roy Griak Invitational on September 18, and the longtime staple of the Minnesota cross country calendar is moving to a new venue for the occasion: Fort Snelling Golf Course. It's a notable shift for a meet that's built a reputation as one of the premier early-season gatherings in the country, drawing programs from well beyond the Big Ten.
The season opens September 4 with the Cyclone Preview at Iowa State, then swings back to Minnesota for the Griak meet two weeks later. From there it's back on the road: the Sean Earl Loyola Lakefront Invitational at Loyola Chicago on September 25, followed by the Nuttycombe Invitational at Wisconsin on October 9, a meet that regularly features some of the toughest fields in the sport.
The postseason stretch is set as well. The Big Ten Championships land at Wisconsin's Thomas Zimmer Championship Course on October 30, with the NCAA Midwest Regional back at Iowa State on November 13. If the Gophers advance, the season would wrap at the NCAA Championships in Terre Haute, Indiana, on November 21.
With the Griak move to Fort Snelling now official, Gophers fans have a new venue to circle for the one home date on the calendar, and a full road slate stacked with some of the sport's marquee invitationals in between.