ROYAL OAK, MICH.-- The Trine football team was picked to finish fifth in the MIAA by the league's coaches in the conference preseason poll, which was released Thursday.
The Thunder received 24 points in the poll. Trine is coming off a 4-6 season that saw TU tie for sixth in the league with a 1-5 mark in conference play. The Thunder produced six all-conference performers last season, including All-American left tackle Taylor Sprague. The team returns seven offensive starters, and six starters on the defensive side of the ball. Defending-MIAA champion Albion was picked to repeat as the conference champion by the league's coaches. The preseason poll is tallied from votes by the MIAA's head coaches, who cannot vote for their own team.
Headlining Trine's returners is Second-Team All-MIAA wide receiver Gage Corner (Leo, Ind./Leo). The junior caught 62 passes for 915 yards and four touchdowns last season. Quarterback Andrew Dee (McComb, Ohio/McComb) returns to provide senior leadership at the helm of the Thunder offense.
Tyler Guzy (Coldwater, Mich./Coldwater) is Trine's returning leading-tackler after making 56 stops last season. The safety has six career interceptions. The Thunder also return three starters on the defensive line and several key players that picked up experience in the secondary last year.
Competition for spots will be a theme on both sides of the ball for Trine as they enter fall camp. Departed starters from a year ago include three offensive linemen (including Sprague), three linebackers, Trine all-time sack leader Louis Danesi, and 1,000-yard rusher Richard Gunn. Fall camp gets underway next week, with players reporting to campus Wednesday.
The regular-season kicks off Friday, Sep. 5 with a game under the lights at Manchester. The Thunder and Spartans renew their traditional opening-night matchup, with kickoff slated for 7:30 p.m.
The home-opener comes a week later, when Trine hosts CCIW-foe Milliken at 1:00 p.m. The Thunder open MIAA play when they host Alma for Homecoming on Oct. 4. The complete schedule can be found HERE.
The complete results of the MIAA Preseason Football Poll can be found below.
Place. Team- Points (First-Place Votes)
1. Albion- 7 (5)
2. Adrian- 16
3. Hope- 18 (1)
4. Olivet- 19 (1)
5. Trine- 24
6. Kalamazoo- 29
7. Alma- 34