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ASC Football pre-season polls announced
Hardin-Simmons picked to repeat as Conference Champions

RICHARDSON, Texas – Hardin-Simmons University has been picked to repeat as ASC Football Champions in 1999 according to a vote taken by ASC Football head coaches. The Cowboys are coming off a near perfect season that saw them run off nine-straight victories after losing to NCAA Division II Midwestern State 34-23 in their season opener Sept. 12. Hardin-Simmons defeated cross-town rival McMurry University 34-24 in overtime in the season finale and finished the year 9-1, 7-0 in the ASC but did not receive a bid to the NCAA Post-Season Playoffs.

Hardin-Simmons received four first-place votes to lead the poll with 46 points. Two schools failed to submit a ballot. Picked second in the poll is McMurry University with 42 points. In the final game of the season, the Indians scored 10 fourth quarter points to force overtime after Hardin-Simmons erased McMurry’s 14-0 lead with 24 unanswered points.

McMurry senior quarterback Braxton Shaver has been selected as 1999 Pre-Season Offensive Player of the Year. The 6-1, 184 pound native of Haltom City, Texas, had a career season in 1998 – breaking or tying several school records. Shaver battled all season with Hardin-Simmons’ Bill Poe for the conference lead in all passing categories. He finished 1^st in passing yards per game with 249.2, second in total offense with 256.3 yards per game and 3^rd in pass efficiency with a 147.3 rating. Shaver should have another impressive year as McMurry returns a starting wide receiver, slot back, tight end and four offensive linemen.

David Rausch has been selected as Pre-Season Defensive Player of the Year for Hardin-Simmons. The senior defensive back ranked 4^th in the ASC in pass breakup last season with 12, leading the conference with seven interceptions and recording five deflections. Rausch returned two interceptions for touchdowns and gained 147 yards on seven interceptions. Rausch led a defensive back field that ranked second as a team in pass defense efficiency with a 94.4 rating. Howard Payne led the league at 83.4

Howard Payne is picked to finish third and received 37 points. The Yellow Jackets (8-2, 5-2 in the ASC) spent several weeks ranked in the national and regional polls before stumbling against McMurry and Hardin-Simmons. Austin College (28 points) rounds out the top half the poll and could surprise a few people this season. Mississippi College (24 points), University of Mary Hardin-Baylor (19 points), Texas Lutheran University (12 points) and Sul Ross State University (8 points) complete the coaches’ pre-season poll.