NEW ORLEANS – For the second-straight year, Appalachian State is the preseason favorite to win the Sun Belt Conference Football championship according to a vote of the league's 12 head coaches. The 2017 preseason poll was released Thursday in advance of the Sun Belt's annual Media Day that starts Monday, July 24, at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
The Mountaineers claimed seven of the 12 first-place votes and tallied a total of 136 points from the coaches after winning a Sun Belt co-championship and their second straight Raycom Camellia Bowl in 2016.
Troy was the second-place team in the poll after collecting two first-place votes and 127 points.