Mark Mandich is one of three returning starters on the offensive line.

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — The Wittenberg University football program was picked to finish fourth in both the coaches and media polls at the North Coast Athletic Conference's 23rd annual Football Media Day, held today at Granville Golf Course in Granville, Ohio. NCAC News Release With Polls

It is uncharted territory for the Tigers, who have not finished lower than fourth in the final conference standings since joining the NCAC in 1989. Wittenberg has just 10 starters returning from a 2005 squad that finished 5-5 overall and 5-2 in the NCAC, good for a third-place tie, a somewhat misleading fact that voters seized upon when completing their ballots.

The returning starters figure is deceiving because six other defensive players with at least three previous career starting assignments are back in the fold this year, including sophomore linebacker Lance Phillips (Wellston, Ohio/Wellston), who led the team in tackles before suffering a season-ending knee injury in Game 3 last season, and fifth-year senior safety Adam Hewitt (Piqua, Ohio/Sidney Lehman), who intercepted three passes in 2004 before missing last year with an injury. Similarly, the offense is stocked with three quality returning starters on the offensive line and a pair of running backs who combined for more than 2,000 yards of total offense and more than 20 touchdowns in 2005.

Defending champion Wabash College emerged as the preseason favorite in both polls, although there was widespread agreement amongst those in attendance that this may be the most wide open conference title chase in years. Four different teams have claimed the title since 2001, the year Wittenberg's four-year rein atop the standings, and five different teams garnered first-place votes in the media balloting.

The Little Giants, who compiled an 11-1 record and claimed their second conference championship last season, earned 24 of 28 first-place votes from the media for 264 points and eight of ten first-place votes from the coaches for 98 points. Just two points separate Ohio Wesleyan (78), picked to finish second by the coaches, and Wittenberg (76) in fourth. Wooster (77) is in third place after picking up the remaining two first-place votes in the poll. The media tabbed the Fighting Scots second (213) and the Battling Bishops (208) third, granting each a first-place nod, followed by the Tigers in fourth.

Wittenberg is 93-19 (.830) during the 10-year tenure of head coach Joe Fincham, who has led the Tigers to five league titles and a 62-9 (.873) conference record over that span. Wittenberg returns 30 letterwinners from last year's squad, including two-time first-team All-NCAC tailback Tristan Murray (New Carlisle, Ohio/Tecumseh). The fifth-year senior has amassed more than 2,500 yards rushing in his two seasons in the Red & White, and last year he set a school record with 29 receptions out of the backfield.

Wittenberg opens the 2006 season with a road game against fifth-ranked Capital University, the runner-up in the powerhouse Ohio Athletic Conference a year ago. The two teams are scheduled for a 1:30 p.m. kick-off on Saturday, Sept. 2, on Capital's home field in Columbus, Ohio.

033-06