Bluejays favored to repeat as KCAC football champs
By RYAN RICHTER
Sports writer
For the first time in a troubled football past, the 2004 Tabor Bluejays finally reached the KCAC summit, capturing the league title.
Now, what's left for the Bluejays and second-year KCAC Coach-of-the-Year Mike Gardner to possibly do as an encore?
Repeat as league champions.
The Bluejays were picked by both league media and coaches to do that again Friday at KCAC media day at the Salina Country Club.
In both polls, Tabor put a comfortable distance between itself and the runner-up.
The Bluejays got 12 of 16 first place votes in the media poll to beat out Friends for the top spot, 156-116.
In the coaches' poll, the Bethel Threshers, finished 20 points in back of the Bluejays, 92-72.
Friends came in in a two-way tie for second with Southwestern projected fourth.
Kansas Wesleyan was tabbed fifth and Sterling sixth.
The Warriors ended the season as arguably one of the KCAC's hottest teams, obviously playing a factor in their third place prediction by the media and get one first place vote from the coaches.
A year ago, it was the McPherson Bulldogs in the Bluejays' position.
But graduation took its toll on the Bulldogs, leaving them seventh and eighth in the coaches' and media's polls, respectively.
The Bethany Swedes were the lone team that foiled the Bluejays' unbeaten season a year ago in double overtime.
That mattered little this year as the Swedes were picked sixth by the media and eighth.
Both polls had Ottawa and St. Mary rounding out the respective ninth and 10th spots.
