Wofford favored in tight SoCon

(STATS) – It almost doesn’t seem fair the newest coach in the Southern Conference – Chattanooga’s Rusty Wright – is being thrown into the gauntlet so quickly.

The Mocs face Eastern Illinois, Jacksonville State, Tennessee and James Madison before they can even think about the SoCon schedule.

After gulping, rest assured most SoCon teams play a similar schedule out of conference because it’s the only way to prepare for each other.

Wofford was installed as the preseason favorite at media day Monday, but most people are expecting a repeat of last season, when conference games always seemed to be decided in the final minutes. Wofford, ETSU and Furman shared the title with Samford only one game back in the standings, and Chattanooga, Mercer and The Citadel only two back.

One week, a SoCon team will face an opponent such as Wofford or The Citadel with a triple option attack, the next week it could be a passing attack at Samford or VMI. If it’s something in between like Western Carolina and quarterback Tyrie Adams, good luck with that.

“One thing in our league, you’re going to see everything,” Furman coach Clay Hendrix said.

Wofford led all teams with nine preseason all-conference selections, Mercer was second with eight, and Furman and ETSU had seven each.

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SOUTHERN CONFERENCE PRESEASON POLLS

Head Coaches Poll

1. Wofford (7 first-place votes), 63 points

2. Furman (1), 55

3. ETSU (1), 44

4. Chattanooga, 40

5. Mercer, 34

6. Samford, 33

7. The Citadel, 22

8. Western Carolina, 21

9. VMI, 12

Media Poll

1. Wofford (21 first-place votes), 253 points

2. Furman (6), 229

3. ETSU (2), 187

4. Mercer, 146

5. Chattanooga, 134

6. Samford, 125

7. The Citadel, 111

8. Western Carolina, 88

9. VMI, 32

SOUTHERN CONFERENCE PRESEASON TEAM

Offensive Player of the Year: Tyrie Adams, QB, Western Carolina

Defensive Player of the Year: Nasir Player, DL, ETSU

First-Team Offense

QB – Tyrie Adams, R-Sr., Western Carolina

RB – Quay Holmes, R-So., ETSU

RB – Tyray Devezin, Jr., Mercer

OL – Bo Layton, R-Jr., Furman

OL – Austin Sanders, R-Sr., Mercer

OL – Nick Nixon, Sr., Samford

OL – Justus Basinger, Sr., Wofford

OL – Michael Ralph, Sr., Wofford

TE – Owen Cosenke, Jr., Western Carolina

WR – Bryce Nunnelly, Jr., Chattanooga

WR – Javeon Lara, Sr., VMI

First-Team Defense

DL – Joseph Randolph II, Sr., The Citadel

DL – Jason Maduafokwa, R-Sr., ETSU

DL – Nasir Player, R-Sr., ETSU

DL – Thad Mangum, Sr., Wofford

LB – Willie Eubanks III, Jr., The Citadel

LB – Adrian Hope, R-So., Furman

LB – Marshall Cooper, Sr., Chattanooga

DB – Tyree Robinson, Jr., ETSU

DB – Brandon Dowdell, Jr., Chattanooga

DB – Jerrell Lawson, R-Jr., Chattanooga

DB – A.J. Smith, Jr., VMI

DB – Ronald Kent Jr., So., Western Carolina

First-Team Specialists

PK – Grayson Atkins, Jr., Furman

PK – Mitchell Fineran, So., Samford

P – Matthew Campbell, So., The Citadel

RS – David Durden, So., Mercer

Second-Team Offense

QB – Reece Udinski, Jr., VMI

RB – Devin Wynn, Jr., Furman

RB – Tyrell Price, Sr., Chattanooga

OL – Haden Haas, R-So., The Citadel

OL – Drew McEntyre, Sr., The Citadel

OL – Ben Blackmon, R-Sr., ETSU

OL – Tre’mond Shorts, R-So., ETSU

OL – Andy Godwin, R-Sr., Furman

OL – Cole Strange, R-Jr., Chattanooga

OL – Blake Jeresaty, Jr., Wofford

TE – Chris Ellington, Sr., Mercer

WR – Thomas Gordon, Sr., Furman

WR – David Durden, So., Mercer

Second-Team Defense

DL – Dorian Kithcart, R-Sr., Mercer

DL – Justin Foster, Sr., Samford

DL – Nelson Jordan, So., Samford

DL – Mikel Horton, Jr., Wofford

LB – Elijah McKoy, Jr., Furman

LB – Will Coneway, R-Sr., Mercer

LB – Jireh Wilson, Sr., Wofford

DB – Jeremy Lewis, Sr., ETSU

DB – Malique Fleming, R-Jr., Mercer

DB – Mason Alstatt, Sr., Wofford

DB – George Gbesee, Sr., Wofford

Second-Team Specialists

PK – Jacob Godek, Sr., The Citadel

P – Luke Carter, Sr., Wofford

RS – Rohan Martin, Sr., VMI