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Weber State University's football team got a little love in the 2008 Sports Network NCAA Division I FCS pre-season top 25 poll. The Wildcats received 17 votes in the opening salvo which is voted upon by media members and sports information directors from the 125 FCS schools for the 2008 season. The Wildcats were picked to finish 5th in the Big Sky Conference pre-season poll of coaches and media in July.
Three-time defending national champion, and Michigan Wolverine slayer, Appalachian State was a near unanimous pick to win it all again. The Mountaineers tallied 97 of the 101 possible first place votes. North Dakota State was second and received one first place vote. The other three first place votes went to James Madison University which was ranked sixth.
Two Big Sky Conference schools were amongst the top 10. Eastern Washington was seventh and defending Big Sky Conference champion Montana was eighth. Northern Arizona just missed getting into the top 25. The Lumberjacks were 26th with 249 votes, 50 votes behind 25th Western Illinois. Montana State received 146 votes.
The regular season top 25 poll will be released each Monday afternoon during the football season, except the final weekend when it will be released on Sunday morning (Nov. 23) to allow it to be used officially by the NCAA Division I FCS Football Committee when it selects the 16-team playoff field.
| Team (First-place votes) | Record | Points | Previous Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Appalachian State Mountaineers (97) | 13-2 | 2,546 | 1 |
| 2. North Dakota State Bison (1) | 10-1 | 2,275 | 9 |
| 3. Northern Iowa Panthers | 12-1 | 2,204 | 4 |
| 4. Richmond Spiders | 11-3 | 2,162 | 5 |
| 5. Massachusetts Minutemen | 10-3 | 2,148 | 7 |
| 6. James Madison Dukes (3) | 8-4 | 2,078 | 12 |
| 7. Eastern Washington Eagles | 9-4 | 1,951 | 8 |
| 8. Montana Grizzlies | 11-1 | 1,848 | 10 |
| 9. Delaware Blue Hens | 11-4 | 1,747 | 2 |
| 10. McNeese State Cowboys | 11-1 | 1,687 | 11 |
| 11. Southern Illinois Salukis | 12-2 | 1,286 | 3 |
| 12. Youngstown State Penguins | 7-4 | 1,228 | 16 |
| 13. Wofford Terriers | 9-4 | 1,158 | 6 |
| 14. Cal Poly Mustangs | 7-4 | 1,081 | 24 |
| 15. Elon Phoenix | 7-4 | 1,028 | 23 |
| 16. New Hampshire Wildcats | 7-5 | 760 | 14 |
| 17. Georgia Southern Eagles | 7-4 | 656 | 17 |
| 18. Eastern Illinois Panthers | 8-4 | 622 | 18 |
| 19. South Dakota State Jackrabbits | 7-4 | 547 | 19 |
| 20. Eastern Kentucky Colonels | 9-3 | 487 | 13 |
| 21. Villanova Wildcats | 7-4 | 396 | NR |
| 22. Central Arkansas Bears | 6-5 | 374 | NR |
| 23. The Citadel Bulldogs | 7-4 | 317 | NR |
| 24. Harvard Crimson | 8-2 | 316 | 21 |
| 25. Western Illinois Leathernecks | 6-5 | 299 | NR |
| Others receiving votes: Northern Arizona 249, Fordham 212, Delaware State 198, Jacksonville State 195, Yale 170, Sam Houston State 166, Montana State 146, Furman 120, Liberty 115, Jackson State 79, South Carolina State 76, Holy Cross 74, Hofstra 61, Colgate 56, Grambling 55, Norfolk State 48, Coastal Carolina 44, Hampton 41, Southern 32, Northwestern State 30, Tennessee-Martin 30, UC Davis 22, **Weber State 17**, Lafayette 16, Alabama A&M 10, Texas Southern 9, Brown 9, Nicholls State 9, Dayton 6, Tennessee State 5, San Diego 4, Albany 4, Maine 1, Prairie View 1. | ||||
