Westlake, Ohio – The Oberlin College football team was picked to finish seventh in the 28th annual North Coast Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, the league office announced on Wednesday afternoon.

The Yeomen, whom garnered 32 points in the voting, were just five points back of Denison University, which was selected to finish fifth with 37 points. Wittenberg, which won the conference crown in 2010, had four first-place votes and edged Wabash by just one point take the top spot on the ballot with 74 points.

Oberlin is coming off a 4-6 season in which it finished 3-3 in NCAC play with wins over Kenyon, Denison and Ohio Wesleyan. The Yeomen return 13 starters from a season ago, with seven of those coming on the offensive side of the ball.

Oberlin welcomes back redshirt-junior quarterback Josh Mandel, who accounted for 15 total touchdowns with 10 of those coming through the air. He has valuable options to work with as his returning targets include possibly the league's best tight end in senior Danny Enright as well as wideouts Adam Niec and Robin Witjes - who combined to score 11 touchdowns last season. The three-headed running-back clan of Drew Mixter, Moses Richardson and Adam Lowther are also ready to shoulder the load.

Defensively, Oberlin returns just five starters headlined by defensive ends Jake Hochendoner and Clay Eaton. The pair combined for 75 total tackles – including 10 sacks and 13 tackles for a loss last fall. Dane Stritt, who is the lone returner at linebacker, was second on the squad with 68 tackles in 2010. He trailed junior defensive back David Kalgren in that category as he finished with 75 stops and tied for the conference lead with four interceptions. Also returning at safety is junior Matt Richard, who was third on the squad with 66 tackles, and junior DB Eric Enrico who had two picks and 34 tackles over eight games of action.

The Yeomen open the season with three straight home contests, starting with Kenyon College on September 3. Kick-off is set for 1 p.m. at Savage Stadium.

2011 NCAC Preseason Coaches' Poll
(First-Place Votes)
1. Wittenberg (4).................................................74
2. Wabash (4)......................................................73
3. Wooster (1) ....................................................66
4. Allegheny........................................................56
5. Denison...........................................................37
6. Ohio Wesleyan................................................34
7. Oberlin............................................................32
8. Hiram..............................................................19
9. Kenyon............................................................14