The New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) released its preseason football coaches poll, selecting Morrisville State College to finish eighth overall in league play in 2012.
The Mustangs compiled a 1-9 overall record in 2011, 1-8 in the NJAC, posting the league win over Western Connecticut State.
Opening preseason camp Tuesday, Morrisville State returns 17 to the starting lineup this season, including all-conference selections Nate Ryan (Staten Island, N.Y.) on the offensive line and Jeremy Stewart (Moravia, N.Y.) in the secondary.
An experienced upper class, along with several incoming players at key positions, will help drive the Mustangs to a quick start this season as they open the 2012 schedule against non-conference opponents Wilkes University and Hartwick College in early September.
Cortland was selected as the preseason favorite in the conference poll, posting a 9-2 overall record last season (7-2 NJAC), as the NJAC moved to a nine-team conference following the departure of Buffalo State College in 2011.
2012 NJAC Football Preseason Poll
(first-place votes in parenthesis)
- Cortland (5)
- Montclair State (1)
- Kean (1)
- Rowan (2)
- The College of New Jersey
- William Paterson
- The College at Brockport
- Morrisville State
- Western Connecticut