SELINSGROVE, Pa. -- The Susquehanna University football team was picked to finish fourth in the preseason Centennial Conference poll as voted upon by the coaches on Aug. 5. Ten teams will compete for the Centennial Conference championship this fall.

SU, fresh off its 2009 Liberty League title, joins the Centennial this fall, marking the third conference in which the Crusaders have played in the last five seasons. Susquehanna finished the 2009 campaign with an 8-3 overall record and competed in the NCAA Division III playoffs for the first time since 1991.

The Crusaders received one first-place vote along with Ursinus College, while Franklin & Marshall College received seven votes and last year's champion, Johns Hopkins University, earned 11votes. Dickinson College, Muhlenberg College, McDaniel College, Moravian College, Gettysburg College and Juniata College round out the rest of the poll, respectively.

SU returns 12 starters, but needs to replace a void in the backfield. Dave Paveletz '10 graduated from SU as the school's all-time leader in rushing yards, attempts and touchdowns.

The transition to finding a new running game should be aided by returning three starters on the offensive line. Senior center Ryan Schumann (Fair Haven, N.J./Rumson-Fair Haven) will anchor the line that led the way to an average of 160.3 yards per game last season, second in the Liberty League.

Susquehanna opens the 2010 season when it travels to Moravian College on Sept. 4 for the first Centennial Conference game. Kick-off will be at 1 p.m.