The Kent State Golden Flashes football team has been polled to be the winners of the Mid-American Conference East Division. 

The Flashes have been on the upswing for the past few years under the direction of coach Sean Lewis, who will be coaching his fourth season this year following a five-year contract renewal with the university. With a total of 18 starting players returning on both the offense and defense, they’ve earned the ability to remain consistent as a team. 

Previously, Kent State’s highest ranking was third place in 2013. Following this year’s pre-season poll, the team earned 11 of 22 first place votes and 112 points overall. 

Director of Athletics Communication Dan Griffin said that although these pre-season polls don’t guarantee victory, it still serves as a source of motivation for the team.

“It’s not necessarily validation, but it kind of helps prove that what they’re doing in the offseason, in the classroom, all the training and everything is paying off,” Griffin said. “It’s an honor, but there’s still work to be done.”

Griffin said the team is well-prepared for the upcoming season because of the great offseason training they and other Kent State athletics received. 

“The end of last year really served as the motivation; I mean, four games – it was better than nothing, but still a lot of unfinished business so to speak,” Griffin said.

The Flashes are currently in their preseason camp preparing for the start of the season on Sept. 4 against Texas A&M University. 

Kelsey Paulus is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].