Sunday, August 25, 2013

Norfolk State preview | Spartans could surprise MEAC

NORFOLK, Virginia  -- Pete Adrian looked around a hotel ballroom last month during the MEAC’s annual media day event in Norfolk and watched as his fellow head coaches sat at evenly spaced tables and fielded questions about the coming season.

Each of them said his team has a chance to contend for the league title. The plain-talking Adrian, entering his ninth year at Norfolk State, was no different – except, arguably, for the fact that he meant it.

The Spartans return 13 starters and 51 lettermen from an underachieving, snake-bitten team that went 4-7 last season. Now predicted to finish seventh in the 11-team league a year after being picked to win it all, NSU hopes to put the low expectations to good use.

Preseason platitudes aside, there is every indication the Spartans could surprise the MEAC.

“Everybody this time of year is 0-0 and full of hope and all that stuff,” Adrian said, “but we’ve got a good football team coming back. We have a chance to win the league. I feel we can be as strong as anybody in the league.”

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