Wheaton, Ill. – The Wheaton football team is ranked eighth in the 2022 Division III preseason poll released by D3football.com on Tuesday morning. The Thunder earns the recognition following a 2021 season in which the program posted a 10-2 record, advanced to the Second Round of the NCAA Division III Playoffs, and had a program-record six players earn All-America recognition. Wheaton concluded the 2021 campaign ranked ninth in the final D3football.com and AFCA Top-25 polls of the season.

This marks the 15th time that the Wheaton football program has been ranked in the website's preseason top-25 since D3football.com began its preseason poll in 2004. This year's selection marks the 10th-consecutive year Wheaton has been included in the preseason poll - the current streak dates back to the 2011 poll (there was no preseason poll in 2020 and 2021).

A pair of Wheaton's opponents on the 2022 schedule are also ranked in the preseason poll. The season-opening opponent for the Thunder, Trinity University (Texas), is ranked ninth in the poll. Wheaton travels to San Antonio on September 10 for an evening contest against the Tigers. Second-ranked North Central hosts Wheaton in a key CCIW matchup on October 1 in Naperville. 
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