Cats start the season near the top

Both the Montana State Bobcats and Montana Grizzlies will begin the 2013 season ranked among the Top 25 Football Championship Subdivision schools.

The 2013 FCS Preseason Coaches Poll was released Tuesday, with the Bobcats ranked No. 2 and the Grizzlies ranked No. 22. In all, five Big Sky Conference teams are ranked.

Montana State, which has shared the league championship three straight seasons, was selected second in the preseason poll, behind two-time defending national champion North Dakota State.

North Dakota State earned 23 first-place votes and 645 points. Montana State earned one first-place vote and 591 total points.

Eastern Washington, which shared the 2012 Big Sky Championship with Montana State and Cal Poly, is ranked third. The Eagles earned 549 total points.

Cal Poly, entering its second season as a Big Sky football member, is ranked 11th. The Mustangs finished 9-3 last season, going 7-1 in conference play.

Northern Arizona enters the season ranked 18th. The Lumberjacks went 8-3 in 2012, finishing 6-2 in conference.

Perennial power Montana, coming off an uncharacteristic 5-6 season, is ranked 22nd.

The Big Sky and Missouri Valley each placed five teams in the preseason top five. The CAA is represented by six teams. UC Davis (7) and Sacramento State (3) also received votes.

The FCS Coaches Poll is based exclusively on a voting panel of head coaches in the FCS under the cooperation of the Collegiate Commissioners Association and the American Football Coaches Association and is administered by the Southern Conference.

The Bobcats open their season Aug. 29 against Monmouth in Bozeman. The Grizzlies open their campaign Aug. 31 against Appalachian State in Missoula.

FCS Coaches Preseason Poll

2012 Rec. Pts. Rnk.

1. North Dakota State (23) 14-1 645 1

2. Montana State (1) 11-2 591 5

3. Eastern Washington 11-3 549 4

4. Sam Houston State (1) 11-4 534 2

5. Wofford 9-4 450 7

6. Central Arkansas 9-3 428 10

7. South Dakota State 9-4 410 17

8. New Hampshire 8-4 386 13

9. Villanova 8-4 381 16

10. Illinois State 9-4 379 9

11. Cal Poly 9-3 348 11

12. Towson 7-4 347 15

13. Stony Brook 10-3 326 12

14. Richmond 8-3 274 18

15. James Madison 7-4 235 21

16. Northern Iowa 5-6 218 NR

17. Lehigh 10-1 198 14

18. Northern Arizona 8-3 196 20

19. Eastern Kentucky (1) 8-3 188 19

20. Bethune-Cookman 9-3 159 23

21. Coastal Carolina 8-5 140 24

22. Montana 5-6 135 NR

23. Eastern Illinois 7-5 120 25

24. Youngstown State 7-4 107 NR

25. Chattanooga 6-5 104 NR

Others receiving votes: Wagner (87), Colgate (67), Tennessee State (52), Harvard (48), Delaware (47), The Citadel (39), Liberty (39), Arkansas Pine-Bluff (35), Indiana State (27), Stephen F. Austin (19), McNeese State (16), Penn (13), Alcorn State (12), Jacksonville State (11), Samford (10), Norfolk State (7), Alabama State (7), UC Davis (7), Southern Illinois (6), Maine (5), Albany (5), Tennessee Tech (5), UT Martin (4), Gardner Webb (4), Sacramento State (3), Hampton (3), San Diego (2), Jackson State (1), Missouri State (1), Brown (1)