FERRIS STATE TIES FOR THIRD IN GLIAC FOOTBALL PRESEASON POLL
The Ferris State University football team was picked to finish in third-place tie in the 2002 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Preseason Coaches Poll, which was released Tuesday (Aug. 6) in conjunction with the conference's annual football media day held on the campus of Saginaw Valley State University in University Center, Mich.
The Bulldogs tied with Indianapolis in the balloting which was conducted by the conference's head football coaches as both teams totaled 87 points apiece. FSU and UI finished third and fourth, respectively in the 2001 GLIAC final standings.
Grand Valley State, the GLIAC's defending champion and NCAA Division II runner-up, was the overwhelming favorite to repeat as the Lakers registered 120 points and had 10 first-place votes. The league's 12 head coaches participated in the balloting, but were not allowed to vote for their teams. The first-place team on each ballot received 11 points while the second received 10 points, etc.
"It's a honor in such a highly-competitive conference to be picked among the upper echelon of teams although it's not important where you start off the season but where you finish, said FSU head coach Jeff Pierce, who will be entering his eighth season at the helm this fall and presently boasts the best winning percentage (.628) in the program's 92-year history. "The (third) placing is about where we expected to be picked and traditionally the preseason polls tend to closely match the final results of the previous season."
FSU returns 37 letterwinners from last season's squad, which posted a 7-4 overall record and finished third in the GLIAC with a 7-3 mark. Ferris also welcomes back 16 starters, including eight on offense, six on defense and two on specialty teams.
The Bulldogs kickoff the 2002 campaign Saturday, Sept. 7, with a non-conference tilt versus the Hillsdale College Chargers. Start time for the annual Fireworks Night contest is scheduled for 7 p.m. (EDT) at FSU's Top Taggart Field in Big Rapids.
The following is the complete 2002 GLIAC football coaches poll with first-place votes in parenthesis.
Rank Team (First-Place Votes) Points
1. Grand Valley State (10) 120
2. Saginaw Valley State (2) 112
3. Ferris State 87
Indianapolis 87
5. Ashland 86
6. Michigan Tech 69
7. Northern Michigan 43
9. Hillsdale 42
10. Findlay 33
11. Wayne State 22
12. Mercyhurst 17
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