BIRMINGHAM — Surrounded by cameras, Connell Maynor fielded numerous questions from reporters.
 
The media session with the second-year Alabama A&M football coach was long, even though the majority of questions kept trending back to one specific conversation point:
 
Expectations.
 
Specifically how expectations for Alabama A&M football quickly are rising.
 
That's understandable.
 
The Southwestern Athletic Conference held its annual football media day on Tuesday in Birmingham, and when the league released its preseason projections, Alabama A&M was picked as a prominent player in the SWAC East division.
 
The head coaches and sports information directors from the SWAC's 10 member institutions projected Alabama A&M to finish second in the East. Defending conference champion Alcorn State was picked as the division favorite.
 
Southern was selected as the preseason favorite in the SWAC West.
 
"It's nice to be in that discussion," Maynor said. "Every season, our goal is to win the conference and play in the Celebration Bowl. But before we can do that, first we have to beat the top teams in our conference — teams like Alcorn, Southern and Grambling.
 
"To be the best, you've got to beat the best. That's what we're trying to do."
 
In Maynor's debut season a year ago, Alabama A&M made significant stides on the field. The Bulldogs finished with a 6-5 record — the program's best mark in six years — while posting wins against traditional rivals Alabama State and Jackson State.
 
Alabama A&M returns several starters from that team, including five players who were named to the SWAC's preseason all-conference team.
 
Junior linebacker Armoni Holloway and redshirt-sophomore tight end Kendric Johnson were first-team selections.
 
Holloway led the SWAC last season with 108 tackles, while Johnson led all conference tight ends with 189 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
 
Junior quarterback Aqeel Glass, junior offensive lineman Shonye Reams and sophomore receiving Brian Jenkins Jr. were second-team selections.
 
Glass led the SWAC last season in passing with 2,421 yards and 20 touchdowns. Jenkins was one of Glass' top targets, leading the Bulldogs with 470 yards and three touchdowns on 48 receptions.
 
During the past two seasons, Reams has been a staple for Alabama A&M at left tackle. Last season, he anchored an offensive front that paved the way for one of the SWAC's most productive offensive units.
 
Alabama A&M's players are embracing the rising expectations.
 
"We set high expectations for ourselves," Glass said. "The goal is to build a championship team. But there also is a process to get there. The first step is to improve throughout preseason camp, and then to take the season one game at a time.
 
"For our team to get where we want to be, we can't afford to get caught up in the hype and get ahead of ourselves. We have to take care of what our team can control, which is to put the best team possible on the field."
 
Holloway agreed.
 
"Championships are won on the field," he said. "Right now, no one has played a game yet. You want to be part of the discussion, but you also can't let things like that become a distraction.
 
"We're just looking forward to getting back on the field (next month) and improving as a football team. That's what is important."