South Atlantic Conference 2022 Annual MBG Preseason Football Poll

[BEARS]

From what I understand not much of that money went to the athletic department. They have a large environmental studies program that quite a bit of the money got book marked for.

[Son of Zardoz]

From the people I've talked to out there, it doesn't sound like much of that money is coming over to athletics after they paid off the debt. They still don't want to pay people anything and are having trouble with retention, then add on the absolutely terrible "rebrand" and things aren't sounding the best. Not to mention that "rebrand" came straight from the new pres/admin and everybody hates it so probably not the best way to start off a new administration with such a great morale builder. At least they won't be able to do anything to change the new turf on the football field anytime soon, lol.

[d2superfan10]

I hate to say this, but Lenoir Rhyne will be down again this year. You can talk about the “young” talent all you want, but at they end of the day, these LR coaches and players choke in crunch time. They are selfish and all about themselves. The LR culture is no longer there. This staff will be fired at the end of this year and there will be a large amount of the players enter the portal because they are so used to being babied by the current staff. The future does not look good at LR. So sad. But hey, at least the donors will donate to build a new stadium! Too bad they will get embarrassed in it week 2 vs Ferris State.

[LRFBparent]

If “down again” means first or second in the conference and the playoffs three years in a row I’ll take that.

[BEARS]

I hate to say this, but Lenoir Rhyne will be down again this year. You can talk about the “young” talent all you want, but at they end of the day, these LR coaches and players choke in crunch time. They are selfish and all about themselves. The LR culture is no longer there. This staff will be fired at the end of this year and there will be a large amount of the players enter the portal because they are so used to being babied by the current staff. The future does not look good at LR. So sad. But hey, at least the donors will donate to build a new stadium! Too bad they will get embarrassed in it week 2 vs Ferris State.

Bro what?

[d2superfan10]

If “down again” means first or second in the conference and the playoffs three years in a row I’ll take that.

thats the problem with LR right now. There is no standard of excellence anymore. In ‘18 and ‘19 the expectation was to have an undefeated regular season and compete for a national championship in the playoffs (at least make it to the 3rd round). Ever since this new staff has brought in their new recruits and their families, they are satisfied with simply finishing towards the top of the conference and barely earning a playoff birth. So disappointing. No conference championships or playoff wins since 2019 is not good, especially with all the resources LR has.

[d2superfan10]

Since we’re all doing it, I’ll try my hand. MBG for power ranking the SAC teams by 2022’s end.

1. LR - the Bears lost some big time names on both sides of the ball. But what makes the LR program special is its ability to recruit exceptionally AND keep most of its players out of the transfer portal. This especially helps when you consider how many players are coming into this year as “year three starters” despite being only listed as sophomores - for guys like Dwayne McGee this should terrify the rest of the SAC. Yes, the Bears will have to replace guys like Louba, Houston, Young, and Willingham but we aren’t exactly replacing them with spring chickens.

2. Newberry - I like what is going on down in SC. The Wolves have really made Setzler Field into a fortress and I believe they continue their dominance into this year. The LR match up will probably decide the SAC this year.

3. Mars Hill - I’ve seen some media outlets say that Mars Hill returns more top tier talent than anybody else in the SAC. The linebackers and TE are VERY good, and they are returning 10 year starter Urzua. The Lions will be the Mountain division representative in the SAC Bowl.

4. Wingate - it’s too much to say that Wingate is a program in decline, but I believe they have lost some ground in a talented Piedmont division. The O Line and running backs will need a total overhaul. I’d imagine we’ll see the passing game step up, but is that in Reich’s DNA? We’ll see…..

5. Tusculum - the pioneers are a wildcard every year. Remember, they are only a year and a half from “winning” the SAC during the covid spring. Look for some big numbers coming from their passing game.

6. Barton - their massive freshman class is just getting more experience. We’ll see how they perform this year, I know many posters here are high on the bulldogs but I’ll urge caution. It’s important to remember that the majority of the team is still just sophomores, do the bulldogs have the senior leadership? The loss of Toney Black may hurt as well.

7. Catawba - man, I want to see the Indians be good again. I think Walker is a good coach, but he’s been hamstrung by the lack of scholarships at CatU. Will he be watching his son play in person at UGA by this time next year?

8. CN - surely they can’t stay rock bottom for too long. There will be some bottom feeders in the SAC, but I don’t believe it’s the Eagles.

9. Wise - I wonder how much of last year’s semi success was a little fluky. The Highland Cavs May regress to the mean in 2022.

10. Limestone - the only reason they aren’t last is because of who is below them. The saints could be a recruiting hotbed, if the administration gave a crap about football. They need an actual football stadium.

11. E&H - another wildcard. They have the infrastructure in place for success, (good fans, stadium, band etc) but will they need an adjustment period? They may end up decent next year, but bookmarking them in 11 for now.

12. Erskine - the team was gutted by transfers in only its second year in existence. I think the fleet will be bad, real bad.

Would love to hear thoughts! Was I unfair to your team? If so, give it to me.

I can promise you LR or Dwayne shrimp boat McGee is not terrifying anybody in the rest of the conference. They haven’t dominated the competition since Cronic was there in ‘18 and ‘19. Since then, losses to Tusculum, Newberry, and UVA Wise while also barely beating Mars Hill last year. LR will be lucky to even make it to the championship game this year, and the only reason they might is because the rest of the conference is not good and all of their tough games are AT LR. Newberry and Mars Hill are running much better programs right now.

also, Limestone will be much better than you think. Competing with those teams at the top.

lastly, it’s so sad how bad of a program Wingate has become.