University of Richmond Athletics
Football Ranked No. 24 In Street & Smith’s FCS Preseason Poll
07/16/2018 | Football
RICHMOND, Va. – The University of Richmond enters the 2018 season as the No. 24 ranked team in the nation in the FCS, according to the preseason poll by Street & Smith's College Football Magazine. The Spiders are one of six schools from the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) to earn top-25 honors in the preseason poll.
Richmond returns 14 starters from last season's 6-5 team, including eight on the defensive side of the ball. The Spiders are highlighted on defense by preseason All-America defensive lineman Andrew Clyde (Dallas, Texas). Clyde earned Third Team All-America honors last season by STATS FCS and was a First Team All-CAA selection. He led the CAA in sacks, totaling 9.0 on the season. He led a defensive line that set a school record with 3.2 sacks per game (36 on the year). He recorded 41 total tackles, 11 of which were for a loss, while leading the team with seven QB hurries.
Sophomore defensive tackle Colby Ritten (Orlando, Fla.) returns after earning Freshman All-America honors last year. Ritten finished the season with 57 tackles, 9.5 of those were tackles behind the line of scrimmage, including four sacks on the year. Senior linebacker Justin Rubin (Southampton, Pa.) picked up Third Team All-CAA honors last year after Rubin leading the Spiders with 92 tackles, 6.5 for a loss. He also had a sack, a forced fumble and four QB hurries, which ranked second on the team.
Richmond returns the top receiving trio in all of FCS in Dejon Brissett (Mississauga, Ontario), Cortrelle Simpson (Indiana Head, Md.) and Tyler Wilkins (Richmond, Va.). The three combined for 253.7 yards per game, the highest per-game total of any receiving trio in the FCS level. They combined for 2,791 receiving yards last year with all three earning All-Conference accolades.
Brissett (896 yds, 7 TDs), Wilkins (876 yds, 7 TDs) and Simpson (1,019 yds, 6 TDs) all ranked in the top-four in the CAA in yards last year. Richmond was the only school in the FCS to finish the regular season with three receivers over 800 yards on the year.
Street & Smith's College Football Magazine FCS Preseason Top 25
1. North Dakota State
2. James Madison
3. South Dakota State
4. Kennesaw State
5. Jacksonville State
6. Sam Houston State
7. Weber State
8. Delaware
9. Elon
10. Samford
11. Northern Iowa
12. New Hampshire
13. McNeese State
14. Eastern Washington
15. North Carolina A&T
16. Northern Arizona
17. Furman
18. South Dakota
19. Sacramento State
20. Villanova
21. Wofford
22. Austin Peay
23. Illinois State
24. Richmond
25. Nicholls
- UR --
Richmond returns 14 starters from last season's 6-5 team, including eight on the defensive side of the ball. The Spiders are highlighted on defense by preseason All-America defensive lineman Andrew Clyde (Dallas, Texas). Clyde earned Third Team All-America honors last season by STATS FCS and was a First Team All-CAA selection. He led the CAA in sacks, totaling 9.0 on the season. He led a defensive line that set a school record with 3.2 sacks per game (36 on the year). He recorded 41 total tackles, 11 of which were for a loss, while leading the team with seven QB hurries.
Sophomore defensive tackle Colby Ritten (Orlando, Fla.) returns after earning Freshman All-America honors last year. Ritten finished the season with 57 tackles, 9.5 of those were tackles behind the line of scrimmage, including four sacks on the year. Senior linebacker Justin Rubin (Southampton, Pa.) picked up Third Team All-CAA honors last year after Rubin leading the Spiders with 92 tackles, 6.5 for a loss. He also had a sack, a forced fumble and four QB hurries, which ranked second on the team.
Richmond returns the top receiving trio in all of FCS in Dejon Brissett (Mississauga, Ontario), Cortrelle Simpson (Indiana Head, Md.) and Tyler Wilkins (Richmond, Va.). The three combined for 253.7 yards per game, the highest per-game total of any receiving trio in the FCS level. They combined for 2,791 receiving yards last year with all three earning All-Conference accolades.
Brissett (896 yds, 7 TDs), Wilkins (876 yds, 7 TDs) and Simpson (1,019 yds, 6 TDs) all ranked in the top-four in the CAA in yards last year. Richmond was the only school in the FCS to finish the regular season with three receivers over 800 yards on the year.
Street & Smith's College Football Magazine FCS Preseason Top 25
1. North Dakota State
2. James Madison
3. South Dakota State
4. Kennesaw State
5. Jacksonville State
6. Sam Houston State
7. Weber State
8. Delaware
9. Elon
10. Samford
11. Northern Iowa
12. New Hampshire
13. McNeese State
14. Eastern Washington
15. North Carolina A&T
16. Northern Arizona
17. Furman
18. South Dakota
19. Sacramento State
20. Villanova
21. Wofford
22. Austin Peay
23. Illinois State
24. Richmond
25. Nicholls
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Players Mentioned
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