Olivet College picked fourth in MIAA preseason football poll

FREELAND, Mich. -- The Olivet College football team received 26 total points to be picked fourth in the 2018 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) preseason poll. 

In voting by the coaches, defending MIAA champion Trine (Ind.) University had seven first-place votes and seven points. Hope College earned the other first-place vote and was picked second with 13 points. Adrian College was third with 20 points. Albion College came in fifth (30 points), followed by Alma College in sixth (37 points), Kalamazoo College in seventh (42 points) and Finlandia University in eighth (49 points).

Under the direction of second-year head coach Dan Musielewicz, the Comets welcome back approximately 70 players from the 2017 team, which posted a 5-5 overall record and was fourth in the MIAA standings with a 3-3 mark.

On offense, Olivet welcomes back senior quarterback Lane Porter who broke the Comets' single-season school record with 2,546 passing yards last season. Other impact players returning on offense include sophomore running back Matthew Ellis, senior wide receiver Jacob Jodway, senior tight ends Trenton Monroe and Christopher Talbott, and junior offensive linemen Jarod Bush and Daniel Waber.

Returning to the defense is sophomore All-MIAA defensive back John Adams III. In his rookie season, he had 35 total tackles, including 25 solo stops. Additional returning players on defense are senior linebackers Aaron Bush, Chase Cavric and Mo Young.

On special teams, junior kicker Douglas Pollard is back. He made 19-of-26 PAT kicks, 5-of-7 field goals and averaged 59.8 yards on 54 kickoffs during the 2017 season.

The Comets start the 2018 season Saturday, Sept. 1, when they travel to play Heidelberg (Ohio) University. Kickoff at Hoernemann Stadium in Tiffin, Ohio, is 1 p.m. Olivet's home-opener is one week later, Sept. 8, when it hosts Concordia University-Chicago (Ill.) at the Cutler Athletic Complex for a 1 p.m. game. The Comets open MIAA play Saturday, Sept. 29, with a 2 p.m. home game against Finlandia. The Lions are in their first season as an associate member of the MIAA.