BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University football received its first recognition in national preseason polls on Thursday, receiving four votes in the USA Today Amway Preseason Top 25 Coaches poll in the “also receiving votes” category.

The four points are 18th in the “also receiving votes” poll while ranking 43rd overall in the country. Appalachian is the lone team from the Sun Belt to garner votes in the preseason after being ranked No. 1 overall in the conference by the league's coaches poll.

The Mountaineers are coming off a stellar polling finish to the 2015 season in which they received seven points in the final Associated Press poll of the year, good for eighth in the “others receiving votes” category (33rd overall) as well as nine points in the final coaches poll, good for ninth in the “others receiving votes” category (34th overall). 

Last year's nine points and No. 34 overall ranking in the Amway Coaches poll were both all-time program bests. This year's preseason poll is in line with how Appalachian State finished out the season, as they received votes in seven-straight coaches polls to close out 2015 but never tallied more than five points or ranked higher than a tie for 37th overall before the final poll of the year.

Appalachian State was the first Sun Belt Conference team to receive votes in either the coaches or AP season-ending poll since UL Lafayette received one vote in the final AP poll of 2013. The Mountaineers were the first Sun Belt program to receive votes in both polls at the end of the season since Arkansas State in 2012. It was the first time in eight years that Appalachian had received votes for the AP College Football Top 25 poll.

USA Today generally ranked App State highly last season. Appalachian was among only 16 teams to receive an “A” scoring or better in its ranking.

App State finished 11-2 in 2015, with its only losses coming at the hands of national runner-up Clemson and Sun Belt Conference champion Arkansas State. The Mountaineers' 11 victories set a new Sun Belt single-season record and were the most-ever by a team in its first full-fledged campaign as an FBS member. Appalachian capped the historic season with a 31-29 victory over Ohio in the Raycom Media Camellia Bowl to become the first program to ever win a bowl game in its first full-fledged FBS season (a feat matched by Sun Belt counterpart Georgia Southern four days later).

With 16 starters returning, Appalachian State will look to continue to poll well as it prepares to take on the No. 10 ranked Tennessee on Thursday, Sept. 1 at 7:30 p.m.