SUWANEE, GA -- In exclusive balloting by the league's head coaches, Texas Lutheran University has been selected atop the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference football preseason poll in a tight race with McMurry University on their heels.
The Bulldogs secured three of the six first-place votes giving them 33 total points and a one point edge over the War Hawks with two first-place votes and 32 points overall. It comes as no surprise that these two are on a nearly even playing field after TLU (9-2, 7-1 SCAC) & McMurry (7-3, 7-1 SCAC) each earned a share of the title as Co-Champions in 2024.
Newcomer Hendrix enters the mix in third place with 22 points after a 4-6 season a year ago with a 2-5 record in the SAA. Centenary (4-6, 4-4 SCAC) claimed the final first-place vote coming in fourth with 18 points while Austin College (2-8, 2-6 SCAC) was selected fifth with 12 points and Lyon, who posted a 1-9 record, earned nine points.
With six teams in the league this season, the SCAC conference schedule will see teams face each opponent once after utilizing a double round robin schedule in 2024 with five football members. Conference competition is set to begin the second weekend of October with all six teams in action.
McMurry head coach,
Jordan Neal has high hopes for the 2025 season, "It's going to be an exciting year in the SCAC. Lots of outstanding teams and every ballgame will be important for everyone. We have high expectations and a hunger to compete for the SCAC title."
The War Hawks return a number of key players including junior quarterback,
Jess Hoel who was named Co-Offensive Player of the Year in 2024 after leading the conference in passing yards (2,441), touchdown passes (19), completion percentage (65.3 percent), total offensive yards (2,845) and efficiency rating (149.1).
Jeremiah Hayes, junior offensive lineman, a 2024 All-SCAC First Team selection and helped the War Hawks lead the conference in 2024 with a league-best 386.3 yards per game.
The start of conference play will be on Saturday, October 11 as Lyon travels to Wilford Moore Stadium to take on McMurry. For a link to the complete 2025 SCAC football schedule, click
here.
2025 SCAC Football Preseason Coaches' Poll
(first-place votes in parentheses, followed by total points) |
| 1. |
Texas Lutheran University (3) |
33 |
| 2. |
McMurry University (2) |
32 |
| 3. |
Hendrix College |
22 |
| 4. |
Centenary College (1) |
18 |
| 5. |
Austin College |
12 |
| 6. |
Lyon College |
9 |
