MEAC Basketball: Preseason rankings for 2018-19

9. Florida A&M Rattlers

The Florida A&M Rattlers are coming off a 7-9 season in the MEAC but they’ll lose three starters from their 2017-18 squad. With a lot of question marks in the rotation, they’ll look to some returning players to lighten the load. Justin Ravenel and Isaiah Martin will have big shoes to fill in 2018-19 to return to the squad they were last season.

Ravenel is a 6-foot-1 guard that averaged 8.6 points and 2.1 rebounds per contest during his freshman campaign. Martin is a 7-foot big man that appeared in just 17 games for Florida A&M, averaging 8.1 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per contest. Outside of Ravenel and Martin, things get a bit murky for Florida A&M. Nasir Core and Nick Severado are two players to keep an eye on. Core started in 12 contests during the 2017-18 season while Severado made 23 starts in 32 appearances.

The Rattlers went 9-25 in head coach Robert McCollum’s first season. They’ll be hard-pressed to improve on their record with limited experience returning this upcoming season. Their top three scorers have graduated, leaving their production up in the air for 2018-19. On the bright side of things, they’ll have zero seniors on the roster in 2018-19, giving them some breathing room as they look for more offense.