NORFOLK, Va. – A season after finishing just 4-6 overall, Bethune-Cookman Football was selected to finish fourth in the preseason conference poll, announced Friday, July 28, by the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) at the annual Football Media Day in Norfolk, Virginia. Bethune-Cookman placed a total of 10 student-athletes on the preseason first-, second- and third team All-MEAC preseason teams, respectfully.
 
After suffering an extraordinary amount of injuries and having three games either cancelled, delayed or moved due to weather in 2016, the head coaches and sports information directors around the MEAC selected the Wildcats to finish fourth in the preseason 2017 poll.
 
Selected ahead of the Wildcats were South Carolina State (3), North Carolina A&T (2) and defending three-time conference champion North Carolina Central (1). The Eagles represented the MEAC in the second annual Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl in Atlanta.
 
Headlining the all-conference players from the Wildcats on the first team preseason All-MEAC Team was redshirt senior receiver Frank Brown (Palm Beach, Gardens, Fla.). In 2016, Brown led the Wildcats in receptions with 29, averaging 15.1 yards per catch on 439 total yards. He added a team-best seven touchdown receptions and averaged 48.8 yards per game. Joining Brown on the first team offense for the preseason team was placekicker Uriel Hernandez (Homestead, Fla.). The junior from Homestead High accounted for 48 points as a sophomore, connecting on 30-of-31 point-after attempts. He also amassed six field goals, including a long of 39 yards.
 
A pair of Cats made their way onto the first team preseason defensive squad in the form of Kevin Thompson and Diquan Richardson. Thompson (Baltimore, Md.), a 6-4, 230-pound redshirt senior defensive lineman, produced 34 tackles a season ago for the Maroon and Gold, using 14 solo stops combined with 24 assisted tackles. He pulled in a team-best 9.5 tackles behind the line, as well as two quarterback sacks. Meanwhile, Richardson (Alvin, S.C.), a 5-11, 167-pound senior safety, led BCU defensively with 60 tackles and four interceptions. The transfer from Paine College also recorded six breakups and a blocked kick.
 
Making his way onto the Preseason All-MEAC Second Team for offense was redshirt senior quarterback Larry Brihm, Jr. (Delray Beach, Fla.). In 2016, Brihm suffered an injury that sidelined him for a number of games, but he still managed to collect a pass efficiency rating of 139.07 across the campaign. He passed for 1,370 yards and 11 touchdowns, completing 100-of-175 passes. On the second team for defense was linebacker Trenton Bridges (DeLand, Fla.). The middle linebacker from DeLand High posted a team second-best 55 tackles a season ago, also finishing second on the squad in tackles for loss (8.0). He accounted for three quarterback sacks and an interception, going on to post seven pass deflections and a quarterback hurry.
 
Uriel Hernandez was also named to the second team defense as a punter, while Frank Brown was named to that same team as a return specialist. In 2016, Hernandez punted eight times for 326 yards, averaging 40.8 yards per punt. As for Brown, he returned nine punts for 165 yards (18.3 yards/game) and a touchdown.
 
On the third team for offense was receiver Jawill Davis (Miami, Fla.) and Phillip Norman (Sebastian, Fla.). Davis managed 26 receptions for 389 yards and a touchdown in 2016, while Norman served as the starting center offensively for the Wildcats.
 
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