East Central was among three teams to receive first place votes in the preseason Great American Conference football poll. ECU and Ouachita Baptist tied for second in the poll, following preseason favorite Henderson State, which was at the top.
East Central finished 2011 tied for the most conference wins with OBU and had the best overall record in the league at 8-3.
The tie for the second spot was the only one in the poll. There was a four-way logjam in the sixth place spot. Southeastern and Southwestern, along with Arkansas-Monticello and Southern Arkansas round out the bottom of the poll.
Northwestern and Southern Nazarene will play a GAC schedule this season, but neither is eligible to win the title. The teams were not voted on in the poll.
|
Position |
Team |
Points (First Place) |
|
1 |
Henderson State |
57 (4) |
|
T-2 |
East Central |
54 (3) |
|
T-2 |
Ouachita Baptist |
54 (2) |
|
4 |
Harding |
42 |
|
5 |
Arkansas Tech |
29 |
|
T-6 |
Arkansas-Monticello |
22 |
|
T-6 |
Southeastern |
22 |
|
T-6 |
Southern Arkansas |
22 |
|
T-6 |
Southwestern |
22 |