It has been a long time since the varsity cross country team has found itself in an underdog position in a dual meet, but this will be the case when the Crimson harriers race against Heptagonal champion Cornell this afternoon at Ithaca.

While the Crimson did not race against the Big Red in a dual meet last year, it finished third behind them in the Heptagonals, while Navy ended in second. Cornell's fine team is back almost intact this year, while the varsity has lost four of its best men, including Pete Reider and French Anderson.

The varsity's two top men this year include Captain Dyke Benjamin, who won the University handicap race last Friday and who is back for his third year of varsity racing, and Bill Thompson, another senior letterman who has run well in practice and is hoped to be one of the top varsity finishers.

Varsity coach Bill McCurdy's squad has also had its share of injuries, which only served to diminish further the number of top-flight runners. Jim Schlaeppi and Ed Martin have just recovered from leg injuries and their performance this afternoon will have a large bearing on the outcome of the meet. Mac Brown and Will Julian are also expected to place well for the Crimson. McCurdy's most promising sophomore is Jed Fitzgerald who, as a freshman, broke the Yardling record for the mile and two-mile run.