FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302

2009 D3football.com Preseason Poll

Aug. 5, 2009 - The North Central College football team will open the 2009 season as the No. 4-ranked NCAA Division III program in the nation, according to the annual D3football.com preseason Top 25 Poll.

The Cardinals, ranked second in two national polls at the end of last season, received 497 points in the first round of voting by the 25-member panel. Mount Union College (Ohio), the defending Division III national champion, received 23 first-place votes to claim the No. 1 ranking, while last season's national runner-up, the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, was awarded two first-place votes and begins the season ranked second. The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor (Tex.) received 560 total points in the voting and is third in the poll.

Also representing the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin in the poll are Wheaton College, ranked sixth, and Elmhurst College, which received votes but did not crack the top 25.

North Central finished the 2008 season with an overall record of 11-1 and a perfect 7-0 record in CCIW play to claim its third straight conference title. The Cardinals appeared in the Division III playoffs for the fourth straight year.

North Central opens the 2009 season on Sept. 5 at Ohio Northern University.