Cal football picked to finish 2nd in PSAC West
California University was picked to finish second when the PSAC West Division football poll was released by the league office Monday.
The league champion last year after finishing undefeated in league play during the regular season (7-0), the Vulcans finished with an 11-1 overall record and advanced to the third round of the NCAA Division II playoffs under first-year head coach Gary Dunn.
Cal returns 15 starters, including senior quarterback Michael Keir, who completed 64 percent of his passes last season for 3,222 yards and 41 touchdowns.
The Vulcans are also returning running back Nick Grissom, who finished last year with 1,015 yards and nine touchdowns.
For a second consecutive year, Indiana was chosen as the preseason favorite with six first-place votes. The Crimson Hawks played in the postseason for the third time in five years in 2016.
Slippery Rock and Edinboro were selected third and fourth, respectively.
The consensus choice in the PSAC East was West Chester, which received all eight first-place votes. Kutztown, Shippensburg and Bloomsburg rounded out the top half of the East Division poll.
The Vulcans open the 2017 season at home Aug. 31 against Great Midwest Athletic Conference preseason favorite Ohio Dominican.