LATROBE, Pa. (Aug. 3) – The Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) held its annual football media day on Wednesday at Saint Vincent College. The highlight of the day was the unveiling of the 2022 PAC football preseason poll. Waynesburg was predicted to finish ninth out of the 11 league members.
 
PAC commissioner Joe Onderko welcomed the crowd of head coaches, player representatives, media and others to the event.
 
Along with the release of the PAC poll, the day was highlighted by the return of Allegheny College to the PAC. The Gators will compete in the league for the first time since 1984. Another highlight was the awarding of the Dow Carnahan Media Award to veteran Mercer County sports writer Ed Farrell.
 
Up next was the interview portion of the day, which featured all 11 PAC head coaches and a player representative. First-year Yellow Jacket head coach Dr. Cornelius Coleman was joined by rising senior defensive back Jesse Cain (Hedgesville, W.Va. / Hedgesville) and the pair was interviewed by PAC Deputy Commissioner, Director of Communications Kevin Fenstermacher.
 
First-year Waynesburg head coach Dr. Cornelius Coleman, who also serves as Assistant Provost for Undergraduate Learning Experiences, expressed how important the multi-faceted nature of his position on campus is to him.
 
"A big passion of mine is leadership, so to have this dual role at Waynesburg both on campus and in coaching is very important to me," Dr. Coleman said. "To be able to do it is hard. It's demanding, but it's something I love and it's a passion of mine. To lead young men on the football field and students over our entire campus is big for us. That's what we stand for at Waynesburg."
 
On the field, Dr. Coleman knows that restoring Waynesburg to its former position as a conference power won't be a quick process. However, it's a challenge that he is looking forward to and that he and his staff are prepared to tackle head-on.
 
"My staff and I know and understand that it will be a day-by-day process. I know it won't happen overnight, but with that said, I'm excited for the process. It's a process that our players, our coaches and our administration are committed to and we are excited for it," Dr. Coleman said. "Our main goal is to be competitive week in and week out. We know going into every contest that there are a lot of great teams in the PAC. However, our philosophy is to treat every opponent as a nameless opponent, meaning we can only take care of what we can take care of."
 
After missing large portions of his collegiate career due to injury, Cain said he is healthy and in the best shape of his collegiate career. He also spoke in glowing terms when it comes to the new leadership of the program.
 
"There's a new feeling around Waynesburg. It's all about a new leadership culture and the guys are buying in. The first day we met with Coach Coleman, he told us that success was up to us and we are completely bought in. I can't wait for this season," Cain said. "We had a lot of injuries last year and those have made a lot of our veterans very hungry. We are going to surprise some people."
 
For a complete look at the 2022 PAC preseason football poll, click here. Waynesburg opens the 2022 season on Saturday, Sept. 3 at Gallaudet. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.