Sports
Warriors Football Ranked Third in Preseason Poll
Merrimack's training camp got underway on Sunday.
The following was submitted by Merrimack College Athletics.
After reporting to camp on Sunday, the Merrimack football team was picked third in the Northeast-10 Preseason Coaches’ Poll.
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Merrimack received 47 overall votes and one first-place vote, trailing just New Haven (59 votes, six first-place votes) and Southern Connecticut (58 votes, two first-place votes).
Led by fourth-year head coach John Perry, approximately 90 Warriors, including ## newcomers, reported to camp on Sunday in preparation for the team’s season opener against WPI on September 3 at 7 p.m.
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The Warriors finished 4-6 overall, 4-4 in the conference last season but are poised to return to their 2009 Northeast-10 Championship form led by senior captains James Suozzo (Everett, MA), Shawn Loiseau (Shrewsbury, MA) and Tony Johnson (Lynn, MA).
Merrimack returns 16 starters from last season, including running back Jimon Hill (North Chicago, IL), wide receiver Isaiah Voegeli (Hyannis, MA), and defensive lineman Nick Desjardins (Somerville, MA), who owns the school record with four fumble returns in a season and career.
Suozzo, who threw for a school record 2,638 yards in 2010, will enter his senior season as the program’s all-time leader in rushing touchdowns with 33. He needs 2,032 passing yards, 21 touchdown passes, and 152 pass completions to set school records for a career.
Loiseau, a preseason All-American, who had a school-record 133 tackles in 2010, needs just 64 tackles for the program’s career mark.
Also a preseason All-American, Johnson owns the school records for sacks in season with 11.5 and a career with 27.5.
Bentley (43 votes) and American International (42 votes) finished right behind Merrimack in the preseason poll, while Assumption, Stonehill, Saint Anselm and Pace rounded out the poll in slots six through nine.
The Warriors will play five of their first eight games at home including a showdown with New Haven on October 29 before concluding the season at AIC and Southern Connecticut.
