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2013 Preseason All-OVC Team | 2013 Southeast Missouri Football Guide

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Southeast Missouri was picked eighth in the 2013 Ohio Valley Conference Preseason Poll, the league announced Monday during its annual media day at the Holiday Inn Vanderbilt Hotel.

Southeast tallied 35 points in the overall voting by OVC Head Football Coaches and Sports Information Directors.

Eastern Illinois was tabbed this year's favorite in the conference race for the first time since 2007. The Panthers accumulated 122 points and 12 of the possible 18 first-place votes.

Eastern Kentucky followed in second with 114 points and four first-place nods, while Tennessee State (90 pts., 2 first-place votes), Jacksonville State (87 pts.) and UT Martin (78 pts.) rounded out the top five.

Murray State and Tennessee Tech tied for sixth with 53 points and Austin Peay completed the predicted order of finish with 16 points.

JSU (Bill Clark) and APSU (Kirby Cannon) enter the season under new head coaches, while EIU wide receiver Erik Lora (Offensive) and TSU cornerback Steven Godbolt III (Defensive) earned Preseason Player of the Year honors.

Tony Samuel, the 2010 National Coach of the Year, begins his eighth season at Southeast in 2013, tying him for the longest tenured active coach in the league (with UT Martin's Jason Simpson). The Redhawks return six starters on offense and three on defense. Southeast also has 43 freshmen (including redshirts from 2012) and 40 total letterwinners on its roster.

The Redhawks have led the OVC and ranked among the top-10 teams in the Football Championship Subdivision in rushing each of the last three years. Southeast averaged 262.4 yards per game in 2012.

Quarterback Scott Lathrop returns after being named OVC Freshman of the Year. Lathrop threw for 1,025 yards and seven touchdowns and rushed for 824 yards and seven additional scores in his debut season a year ago.He will compete with redshirt-junior Kyle Snyder who transferred from Ohio University prior to last season, but suffered a season-ending knee injury nine days into the team's preseason camp.

Southeast officially reports for its preseason camp on Aug. 4 and kicks off the 2013 campaign at Southeastern Louisiana on Aug. 29.