WESTERVILLE, Ohio - Mount Union, under the direction of fifth-year Head Coach Geoff Dartt, was picked to win the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) football title in 2024 by the league coaches.
 
Mount Union received eight of 10 first-place votes to collect 80 points, followed by John Carroll with 74 points and two first-place votes. Marietta finished third with 63 points, followed by Baldwin Wallace with 59 points in fourth and Heidelberg with 47 points in fifth. Head coaches do not vote for their own team in the balloting.
  
The 13-time National Champion Purple Raiders won their 34th total (conference record) and seventh-straight OAC title last season, qualifying for the NCAA Tournament for the 34th time (an NCAA Division III record).
 
The Purple Raiders, who were picked fifth in the 2024 D3football.com Preseason Poll and second in the Lindy's Sports Magazine in the national polls, start the 2024 season on Saturday, September 7 at Ferrum College at 1 p.m.

Full OAC preseason poll (first-place votes in parentheses), followed by points:
1. Mount Union (8), 80
2. John Carroll (2), 74
3. Marietta, 63
4. Baldwin Wallace, 59
5. Heidelberg, 47
6. Muskingum, 41
7. Ohio Northern, 35
8. Capital, 19
T9. Otterbein, 16
T9. Wilmington, 16