ST. LOUIS — South Dakota State has been picked as the prohibitive favorite to win a third consecutive Missouri Valley Football Conference title, according to the preseason poll released by league officials Monday afternoon.

The Jackrabbits, who went undefeated in league play each of the past two seasons en route to consecutive Football Championship Subdivision national titles and bring a 29-game overall winning streak into the 2024 season, received 42 of 44 first-place votes and a total of 482 points. The poll was conducted among the league’s 11 head coaches, sports information directors and a select media panel.
North Dakota State received one first-place vote and finished second in the poll with 437 points, followed by South Dakota with 371 points. Southern Illinois (293) and North Dakota (276) rounded out the top five.

Illinois State (264), Youngstown State (255) and Northern Iowa (227) occupied spots six through eight, respectively, while Missouri State (164), Indiana State (68) and Murray State (67) closed out the poll. Missouri State, which will leave the league for the FBS ranks after the 2024 season, was awarded the final first-place vote.

In addition, 12 Jackrabbits combined for a league-best 15 berths on the Preseason All-MVFC Team.

Leading the contingent from SDSU is senior quarterback Mark Gronowski. The Naperville, Illinois, native shared MVFC Offensive Player of the Year honors and was selected as the 2023 winner of the Walter Payton Award as the top offensive player in the FCS after leading the subdivision in quarterback rating at 179.67. He completed 68.1 percent (209-of-307) of his passes for 3,058 yards and 29 touchdowns against only five interceptions, while adding 402 yards and eight scores on the ground.

Senior center Gus Miller also earned a spot on the first-team offense. The Brookings native was honored as the 2003 FCS recipient of the Rimington Award, which is given annually to the top center.

Defensively, four returning starters from a squad that surrendered an FCS-best 9.3 points per game, were named to the preseason first team. Up front, defensive tackle Jarod DePriest received early accolades as he looks to build off a 2023 season in which he tallied 20 tackles, including 1.5 sacks.

Veteran linebacker Adam Bock returned to the first team despite missing parts of the last two seasons due to injury. A senior from Solon, Iowa, Bock registered 65 tackles and a pair of sacks in 10 games last season.

The first-team secondary includes cornerback Dalys Beanum and safety Tucker Large. A senior from Omaha, Beanum led the team with five interceptions last season while also contributing a pair of pass breakups and 29 tackles.

Large was recognized for his playmaking ability both as a safety (first team) and return specialist (second team). A junior from Sioux Falls, Large recorded 49 tackles and ranked second on the squad with four interceptions. He also excelled as a punt returner, setting an SDSU single-game record with 159 yards versus Drake while averaging 18.9 yards per attempt during the 2023 season.

Amar Johnson also was recognized at two different positions. A first-team selection as an all-purpose back and a second-team running back, Johnson ranked second on the 2023 squad with 801 rushing yards, averaging 6.3 yards per attempt. He also tallied 282 yards on kickoff returns (23.5 yards per attempt) and caught 12 passes for 122 yards (10.2 ypr).

Other second-team selections on offense were senior offensive lineman Evan Beerntsen and sophomore wide receiver Griffin Wilde. Beerntsen has been a two-year starter at right guard for the Jackrabbits, while Wilde is the team’s top returning pass catcher after hauling in 20 receptions for 399 yards (20 ypr) and six touchdowns as a true freshman in 2023.

Senior safety Cale Reeder was the Jackrabbits’ third preseason all-league pick from the secondary , receiving second-team honors after recording 58 tackles and an interception a season ago.

From the special teams unit, long snapper Kaydon Olivia and punter Hunter Dustman were second-team honorees. Dustman, who averaged 43.5 yards per punt in 2023, also was an honorable mention selection at kicker after making 18-of-24 field goals and an SDSU single-season record of 68 extra points for a team-best 122 points last season.
South Dakota State begins defense of its national title Aug. 31 at Oklahoma State. The Jackrabbits kick off MVFC action Oct. 5 at Northern Iowa.