Both of the major college football polls have now been released as the beginning of the college football season is almost close enough to touch.
West Virginia will enter the season ranked No. 11 in both the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls, both of which can be seen here.
Both polls look very similar at this point.
The SEC leads the way in the coaches poll with seven teams, while the Big 12 and SEC are tied, each with six squads in the AP poll.
The reaction to the release of the poll has been quite favorable for WVU, as many believe that the Mountaineers should have been ranked higher.
CBS Sports senior columnist Bruce Feldman was one of the first to voice his opinion on the issue in his weekend mailbag.
"I thought WVU was ranked too low," Feldman said. "I had them in my top 10."
Also, Chris Anderson of 24/7 Sports, tweeted that numerous voters had WVU ranked as high as No. 7.
Highest ranking for #WVU in AP poll: No. 7 by four writers. Doug Lesmerisies (OH), Joshn Kendall (SC), Kirk Bohls (TX) and Tom Mulhern (WI)
— Chris Anderson (@CAnderson247WVU) August 18, 2012
Anderson later tweeted West Virginia's ranking in the poll by region, revealing that midwestern and west coast voters were the downfall for the Mountaineers' overall ranking.
#WVU AP ranking by region: Northeast - 9.7, South - 10.1, Mid Atlantic - 10.1, Southwest- 11.5, Far West- 13.8, Midwest- 14.2, National- 9.8
— Chris Anderson (@CAnderson247WVU) August 18, 2012
Finally, Ian Berg, a featured columnist for Bleacher Report, tabbed WVU as one of the "Losers" of the preseason AP poll—meaning they were one of the underrated teams in the rankings.
Overall, I think No. 11 is an excellent starting point for WVU.
It is high enough to show that not only media members have respect for what the Mountaineers can do, but it will also earn some respect from teams around the country.
At the same time, it isn't too high and provides plenty for the team to still work for.
West Virginia has had seconds and thirds in the buffet of preseason praise, so an AP ranking that still leaves it hungry is definitely a good thing.
Looking at the schedule, WVU's first ranked opponent will be No. 15 Texas in Austin on Oct. 6.
After that, the next ranked opponent is No. 22 Kansas State.
This game kicks off a four-game stretch against four ranked opponents, continuing with No. 20 TCU.
Next are the two Oklahoma schools; No. 19 Oklahoma State and finally No. 4 Oklahoma on Nov. 17.
This sets the stage for a serious trap game in Lubbock, Texas against unranked Texas Tech.
WVU will face the Red Raiders, a team that should be much improved in 2012, one week after UT and one week before KSU.
West Virginia's director of new media John Antonik tweeted some interesting statistics regarding WVU in the preseason AP poll.
Only 3 times has WVU started the season in AP poll and improved its position at the end of the year. It happened last year ... #wvusports
— John Antonik (@JohnAntonik) August 18, 2012
Last year, the Mountaineers began the season No. 24 and ended No. 17—a trend they'll be looking to continue this year.
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