NORFOLK, Va., July 29, 2022 – South Carolina State has been picked to win the 2022 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) football championship, as the Bulldogs topped the league’s annual preseason poll, presented by The Home Depot.
Voting was conducted by the conference’s head football coaches and sports information directors.
The Bulldogs received eight first-place votes and racked up 124 points. Led by head coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough, South Carolina State won the 2021 championship by going undefeated in MEAC play, before defeating Jackson State in the Cricket Celebration Bowl.
Last season’s runner-up North Carolina Central, with one first-place vote, was picked to finish second, while Norfolk State was tabbed to finish third.
Delaware State, Howard and Morgan State (one first-place vote each) rounded out the preseason poll.
Here is the MEAC’s predicted order of finish for the 2021 season (first-place votes in parentheses):
| School (First-Place Votes) |
Points |
| 1. South Carolina State (8) |
124 |
| 2. North Carolina Central (1) |
92 |
| 3. Norfolk State |
80 |
| 4. Delaware State (1) |
58 |
| 5. Howard (1) |
52 |
| 6. Morgan State (1) |
26 |
About the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) is in its 52nd year of intercollegiate competition with the 2022-23 academic school year. Located in Norfolk, Va., the MEAC is made up of eight outstanding historically Black institutions across the Atlantic coastline: Coppin State University, Delaware State University, Howard University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Morgan State University, Norfolk State University, North Carolina Central University and South Carolina State University.