Wheeling, W. Va. – After setting a program record with a tie for third place in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) in 2025, the Wheeling University Football team is looking to compete for their first-ever MEC title in 2026. On Friday, the MEC released their annual preseason poll, and the Cardinals were picked to finish fifth in this year's conference standings. It was a program record for the highest finish in the preseason poll in program history, placing them one spot above their preseason ranking from 2025. 

During that 2025 season, the Cardinals would finish with a record of 6-5 overall, including a 5-3 mark across the MEC schedule. It was a strong start to the conference schedule, which saw the team go 3-1 over their first four games, that had them in position for an MEC Championship down to the final week of the regular season. Despite going 2-1 in their final three MEC contests, the Cardinals would finish just two games behind Frostburg State and Charleston for a share of the MEC Football Co-Championship. The Cardinals' success was fueled by a hungry defense, which allowed just 30.3 points per game a season ago. It was good for the fourth fewest points allowed in the conference, while the Cardinal secondary sat third in the conference with 12 interceptions. On the offensive side, the Cardinals averaged 27.8 points per game throughout the season, with the team scoring 35 or more points five times during the season and going 4-1 when they accomplished that feat. 

Wheeling has plenty of experience from last year's team returning in 2026, with the offensive unit leading the way. Graduate student Landon Lutz is back at quarterback, after battling injury a season ago, and he is surrounded by several veterans in the skill positions. Dawaun Green and O'Marion Taylor will handle the bulk of the running game duties, while Colin Oberdick, Jordan Kaiser, and Landyn Hores return as veteran targets downfield. On the defensive side of the ball, the Cardinals will have some first-time starters stepping up after growing with the program over the last several years. After losing their top six leading tacklers from a season ago, the secondary will be led by Jamo Walker IV, who finished tied for the team lead with 12 pass break-ups a season ago. Up front, Awwal Osinuga returns after leading the team with 4.5 sacks a season ago and 6.5 tackles for loss. 

The 2026 season starts with three non-conference games that will prepare the Cardinals for their MEC run. They open against Thomas More in a week 0 matchup on August 29, followed by a road trip to Walsh before rounding things out at home against Lake Erie. Wheeling will play three of their first four games at home, including their MEC-opener against Fairmont State on September 19.  After playing almost exclusively at home over the first four weeks of the season, Wheeling will face a stretch of four of their next five games on the road in October. Their lone home contest during the month comes on October 17 when they host West Virginia State in their Homecoming & Family Weekend match-up. November will see them play their final two weeks of the season at home, hosting Glenville State on November 7 and West Liberty on November 14 for Homecoming & Family weekend. 

Leading the 2026 MEC Football Preseason Poll is Frostburg State, who received eight first place votes and 64 total points in the vote among the conference's head coaches. Following right behind them was the University of Charleston, receiving one first place vote and 57 points, while Fairmont State rounded out the top three of the poll with 41 points. The entire 2026 MEC Football Preseason Poll is listed below: 

The Wheeling University Football team opens the 2026 season on Saturday, August 29, when they host Thomas More with kick-off at noon.