The Case Western Reserve University football team was picked to finish fourth in the Presidents' Athletic Conference in the preseason poll, conducted during the league's Media Day in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday.
The Spartans, coming off a 4-5-1 record in 2025 and a fifth-place finish in the PAC standings, received 361 points in the poll to finish behind Washington & Jefferson (497 points, 37 first-place votes), Grove City (453 points, five first-place votes), and Westminster (395 points, three first-place votes). Coming in behind CWRU in the poll were Geneva (339 points), Allegheny (250 points), Waynesburg (222 points), Saint Vincent (201 points), Hiram (152 points), Thiel (87 points), and Bethany (79 points, one first-place vote). PAC newcomer Saint Francis, currently in the first year of its transition from Division I to Division III, is ineligible for the conference title and was not included in the poll.
CWRU was represented at Media Day by Head Coach Greg Debeljak and junior defensive back Jake Kavcic.
"As a team, we're a talented group, an extremely hard-working group, a tight-knit group," said Kavcic. "We are ready for this season, and hopefully we can win it all."
A replay of their interviews is available below, and the full event can be watched at https://www.pacstream.net/.
The Spartans are slated to return 68 players from last year's team, including several all-PAC players. Kavcic, an All-PAC Second Team selection, and junior Jack Tierney, an All-PAC Honorable Mention on the defensive line, are slated to pace the defense, while sophomore and All-PAC First Team punter Nick Delfau and senior All-PAC Honorable Mention kicker Gabriel Petrozzi will also be returning. In addition, the Spartans will bring back graduate student quarterback Aaron Filips, who was primed for a big campaign before suffering an injury in the opening game of the 2025 season.
"I think we grew together as a culture from some of the things we had to face last year, on and off the field, and I think that made us a stronger group," said Debeljak. "I'm looking forward to proving us right in 2026."
CWRU is set to open its 2026 campaign with a non-conference matchup at the University of Rochester in Rochester, New York, on Friday, September 4, at 7:00 p.m. Fans can read more about the 2026 CWRU football season in the team preview and media guide.
