nah not a down year, california is still very strong this year despite their losses. We have two teams capable of placing top 5 nationally. The problem is these teams have no depth past their top 5 runners. So if 1 guy has an off day, they are not going to do so well at nationals.
San Clemente looks a lot stronger this year than they were last year, and they were 7th nationally last year. 5 guys under 9:25. my guess? top 5 this year, but they have no depth past their 5th runner.
Ventura is another strong CA team this year. Even though they have been dealing with injuries, their head coach left, and one of their top runners (DeGeorge) is hurt. They have enough depth to cover it because of the two Sloan brothers transfering in from Newbury Park. 4 guys under 9:27 + 1 guy 9:30 as a freshman (Sloan brother). Top 5 are very strong here too but no depth