Tristan Murray

GRANVILLE, Ohio — The Wittenberg University football team welcomes 51 letterwinners, including 18 starters, back into the fold following last year's 7-3 season, facts that helped boost the Tigers into the top spot in both preseason polls announced at the 22nd annual North Coast Athletic Conference media day in Granville, Ohio.

NCAC Release (With Full Poll Results)

In the media poll, a total of 26 ballots were cast and 21 of them had Wittenberg at the top of the list, while arch-rival Wabash, the only NCAC team with a .500 or better record in conference action against the Tigers (4-4), received two first-place votes and Ohio Wesleyan, which tied with the Tigers for second place a year ago, picked a trio of top nods. Wittenberg, which has seven NCAC titles since joining the conference in 1989, was picked to end a three-year title drought by virtue of a 255-point total, compared to 219 points for Wabash and 210 for Ohio Wesleyan.

In the coaches poll, Wittenberg claimed six first-place votes, while Wabash finished with three votes and Ohio Wesleyan took home one vote. Again the total points determined the order of finish in the preseason poll, and the Tigers topped the field with 93 points, followed by the Little Giants with 83 and the Battling Bishops with 76.

Led by Head Coach Joe Fincham, who has a phenomenal 88-14 overall record in nine seasons at the helm of the Tigers' program, Wittenberg has much to be optimistic about in 2005, and the voters in both polls took notice. The Tigers, who are 57-7 in the last nine years in the NCAC, return leading receiver Jered Glover (Middletown, Ohio/Middletown), leading rusher Tristan Murray (New Carlisle, Ohio/Tecumseh) and starting quarterback Ryan Holmes (Oxford, Ohio/Talawanda), all of whom could challenge long-standing school records with a healthy and productive 2005 season.

But first, the Tigers have one of the most challenging schedules in all of NCAA Division III to deal with, including a three-game non-conference schedule of nationally ranked Capital and Alma and NCAA Division I-AA powerhouse Dayton. It also appears to be a very balanced NCAC race in 2005, one that opens for Wittenberg with a home game against Denison on Oct. 2