GRINNELL, Iowa ­— The Midwest Conference announced the results of its preseason coaches' poll today with Knox College pegged to finish exactly where it ended up last fall — seventh place. The Prairie Fire received 30 points to edge out Grinnell (27) in eighth, while Monmouth College (78) was picked just ahead of last year's champion, Lake Forest (75).

Both Illinois College and the University of Chicago garnered 61 points to tie for third while Cornell College (51) and Ripon (42) claimed fifth and sixth, respectively. Rounding out the poll were Beloit (15 points) and Lawrence University (10).

Knox fifth-year head coach Aaron Willits returns one all-conference player from last fall in junior cornerback Colin Finnigsmier but has plenty of reasons for optimism to climb the league standings. Joining Finnigsmier in the defensive backfield will be junior Manny Acker, who played well in the first three games at the other corner before missing the remainder of the season with an injury, along with sophomore Jalen Brown, who started at safety for the second half of his rookie campaign.

Sophomore Chase Caldwell enjoyed a fine rookie campaign at linebacker, leading the team in tackles for a loss, and junior Julian Sanderson gives Willits another veteran amongst the linebacking corps. How the defensive line shapes up with just six tackles returning from last fall will play a large role in the effectiveness of the defense as a whole.

On the other side of the ball, sophomore quarterback Clay McClelland showed quite a bit of promise in Willits' triple-option offense, twice rushing for more than 100 yards over the second half of the season, including 116 yards in the second half to lead the Prairie Fire to a 35-34 comeback victory on the road at Lawrence.

Knox's leading rusher, junior Taylor McAdams, returns as well after piling up 631 yards on 117 carries with a team-best six touchdowns. And there is plenty of talent among the running backs, including seniors Cole Gino and Kierre Turner, and juniors Aiden Frail and Izayiah Hawes to spread the wealth and keep opponent defenses guessing where the ball is going.

When the Prairie Fire do take to the air, all their backs have shown to have sure hands, but junior wide receiver Mario Byrd remains the best deep threat. Senior Reese Miller and junior Aiden Anderson provide Knox with options to target in the passing game as well.

In the kicking department, sophomore Fernando Torres converted all 13 of his PAT attempts as a rookie, but the Fire will need someone to step up at punter; not a single player on the roster has punted at the collegiate level.

Knox opens the 2025 season at Eureka with the Lincoln Bowl. The game is scheduled for Sept. 6 at 6 p.m.