By: Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. ā Colorado School of Mines claims the top spot in the 2024 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Football Preseason Coachesā Poll, the league announced Wednesday. The RMAC Football preseason poll is voted on by the leagueās 10 head coaches. Head coaches are not permitted to vote for their own program.
Colorado School of Mines leads the way in the 2024 preseason poll with seven first-place votes and 79 total points after a dominant 2023 campaign that saw the Orediggers return to the NCAA Division II Championship Game. Head coach Pete Sterbick enters his second year at the helm of the Orediggers program, which recorded a 14-1 overall record in his first year.
Western Colorado checks in at No. 2 in the RMAC Football Preseason Poll with 74 points and three first-place votes. The Mountaineers are coming off an incredibly successful season in which they finished with a 10-2 overall record and earned a berth to the 2024 NCAA DII Football Championship. Behind coach Jas Bains, the Mountaineers are poised to make another run at the RMAC conference title.
Colorado State University Pueblo rounds out the top three programs in the leagueās preseason poll with 66 points. The ThunderWolves are also led by a second-year head coach, Philip Vigil. Under Vigil, CSU Pueblo went 8-3 overall in 2023 and finished the season with the third-best record in the conference. With a year under his belt, Vigil aims to lead the ThunderWolves to even more success in the 2024 season.
Colorado Mesa holds fourth place in the preseason poll after tallying 50 points, while Black Hills State falls closely behind in fifth place with 49 points. South Dakota Mines garners 42 points, placing them sixth overall in the 2024 RMAC preseason poll.
Chadron State occupies seventh place with 39 points, followed by Adams State with 21 points. New Mexico Highlands (18 points) and Fort Lewis (12 points) close out the 2024 RMAC Football Preseason Poll.
The 2024 RMAC Football season kicks off on Thursday, Aug. 29, with five programs in competition. Fort Lewis will see their first action of the 2024 season on Saturday, Aug. 31, when they host William Jewell College in Durango, Colo. Colorado School of Mines will start its season on Thursday, Sept. 5, against West Texas A&M, while Black Hills State, Adams State and Western Colorado all kickoff on Saturday, Sept. 7.
Each game hosted by an RMAC institution will be broadcast on the RMAC Network throughout the 2024 campaign.
2024 RMAC Football Preseason Poll
School (First-place votes) Points
1. Colorado School of Mines (7) 79
2. Western Colorado (3) 74
3. CSU Pueblo 66
4. Colorado Mesa 50
5. Black Hills State 49
6. South Dakota Mines 42
7. Chadron State 39
8. Adams State 21
9. New Mexico Highlands 18
10. Fort Lewis 12