The 2014 football season kicks off for Salisbury University on Saturday and the Sea Gulls have been selected to finish second in the Empire 8 Athletic Conference as the preseason coaches' poll was released on Monday.

Salisbury received 53 points in the poll, just 11 points behind St. John Fisher College, which grabbed 64 points and eight first-place votes. Ithaca College was picked third, just one point behind the Sea Gulls; the Bombers picked up the final first-place vote.

The 2014 season will be Salisbury's fourth and final year in the league before moving to the New Jersey Athletic Conference in 2015. In the Sea Gulls' first three years in the Empire 8, they have won the league title twice and last year finished tied for second.

Salisbury will open 2014 with a pair of nonconference games, starting with a contest at Christopher Newport University, on Saturday, beginning at 6 p.m.

The Sea Gulls will play their first home game on Saturday, Sept. 13, against Wesley College.

Coaches luncheons resume Thursday

The Maroon & Gold Club is happy to announce the return of its Coaches Luncheons featuring Salisbury University Head Football Coach Sherman Wood.

The luncheons, which will give fans an inside look at the Salisbury football team from coach Wood, will return this week, beginning today in the Caroline Room of the Commons.

Coach Wood, entering his 16th year at the helm of the Sea Gull program, will look back at the previous week's game and look ahead to the upcoming opponent.

The luncheons begin at noon each Thursday throughout the football season. The cost of lunch is $9.63 plus tax for individuals 6-years-old and up, and $4.94 plus tax for children ages 5 and under.

Parking is available on campus or at the Salisbury University Foundation House, located at 1308 Camden Ave.

Guests do not need to be Maroon & Gold Club members to attend the luncheons.