Six CAA Football Teams Land in Preseason Coaches Poll
Eric Wieberg
COMPLETE PRESEASON COACHES POLL
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The 2014 preseason FCS coaches poll was unveiled live Monday evening on ESPNU's The Blitz, with six CAA Football teams earning spots in the national rankings.
Leading CAA Football’s representation in the poll is No. 4 New Hampshire. The Wildcats reached the FCS national semifinals last season and went 10-5 overall and 6-2 in the conference, finishing fifth in the final coaches poll.
Joining UNH in the preseason top 10 is 2013 national runner-up Towson. The Tigers – who received one first-place vote in the poll - won 13 games last season and went 6-2 in the CAA.
Towson is followed closely by Villanova, which opens 2014 ranked No. 13 in the coaches poll. VU went 6-5 overall and 5-3 in conference play last season.
2013 CAA Football Champion Maine is No. 20 in the preseason poll, followed by No. 22 William & Mary and No. 24 Richmond. Maine went 10-3 overall, 7-1 in the CAA and reached the second round of the FCS playoffs last year, William & Mary finished 7-5 overall and 4-4 in the CAA, and Richmond was 6-6 overall and 4-4 in the league.
Maine also ended last season ranked 11
th by the coaches.
James Madison and Delaware were among the teams also receiving votes in the preseason poll. Three-time defending national champion North Dakota St. sits atop the rankings after earning 18 of the possible 26 first-place votes.