James Madison University’s football team is ranked sixth in the preseason Football Championship Subdivision Coaches Poll.
The Dukes are coming off a 12-2 record in 2008 and were the nation’s top-ranked team for most of the season and the No. 1 seed for the NCAA playoffs. JMU won last season’s Colonial Athletic Association title with an 8-0 league record.
For the third straight year, Appalachian State has been chosen No. 1 in the preseason poll. The Mountaineers, as three-time defending national champions, lost in last season’s playoff semifinals to Richmond, this year’s No. 2 preseason selection.
Appalachian State received 13 first-place votes and finished with a record of 11-3 in 2008.
Defending national champion Richmond received 10 first-place votes after finishing 13-3 last season.
Last year’s championship runner-up, Montana, is third, with Northern Iowa and Villanova rounding out the top five. Northern Iowa and Villanova each received a first-place vote.
JMU, which spent 10 weeks at No. 1 last year, received two first-place votes and was followed in the top 10 by Southern Illinois, New Hampshire, Weber State and Wofford.
The final first-place vote went to Massachusetts, which is ranked 18th.
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