Complete Sports Network Top 25 Poll
PHILADELPHIA - Two Ohio Valley Conference schools - Eastern Illinois and Eastern Kentucky - were ranked in the first Sports Network Top 25 poll of the season, which was released on Tuesday. Three other OVC schools were among those receiving votes.
Eastern Illinois was ranked 18th in the poll while defending OVC champion Eastern Kentucky checked in at No. 20. Both teams were FCS Playoff participants a season ago. EIU was picked third in the preseason OVC poll this season while EKU was tabbed second.
Three other schools were in the others receiving votes category, led by OVC preseason favorite Jacksonville State, who received 195 points and was unofficially 29th in the poll. UT Martin and Tennessee State also received votes.
The 2008 football season gets underway on Thursday, Aug. 28, as seven of the nine OVC football-playing schools are in action; the other two teams begin on Saturday, Aug. 30.
For the second year in a row, Appalachian State was a near unanimous pick as the No. 1 selection in the poll. The Mountaineers, the three-time defending national champs, received 97 of 101 first-place votes and 2,546 points. It is the third consecutive year that ASU has opened the season ranked No. 1 by The Sports Network.
North Dakota State, the No. 2 team in the poll with 2,275 points, received one first-place vote and No. 6 James Madison was selected first by three voters.
The regular season top-25 poll will be released every Monday afternoon during the football year, except the final weekend when it will be released on Sunday morning to allow it to be used officially by the NCAA Division I Football Committee when it selects the 16-team playoff field.
The Sports Network will release a final top-25 poll following the national championship game, which will be held December 19 in Chattanooga, Tenn.