Penn State No. 10, WVU 17th in poll

Penn State is ranked No. 10 in the initial Associated Press college football poll of the 2018 season.

The Nittany Lions received 1,012 voting points, leaving them sandwiched between Auburn and Michigan State.

West Virginia placed 17th, with 511 points.

Defending national champion Alabama is atop the poll, picking up 1,505 points. The Crimson Tide is followed by Clemson, Georgia, Wisconsin and Ohio State.

Penn State opens its season Sept. 1 against Appalachian State at Beaver Stadium, the same day Pitt takes on Albany at Heinz Field and West Virginia visits Tennessee.

The Crimson Tide is just the second team to be ranked No. 1 in the preseason poll for three consecutive seasons. Alabama received 42 out of 61 firstplace votes. The preseason AP poll started in 1950 and since then only Oklahoma from 1985-87 had started No. 1 in three years in a row until now.

The Southeastern Conference leads the way with six teams in the top 25. The Big Ten is next with five teams while the Big 12 and ACC each had four.

FCS

Not surprisingly, defending Football Championship Subdivision national champion North Dakota State was an overwhelming No. 1 choice in the national media poll for this season, collecting 151 of the 157 first-place votes. The Bison were followed by national runner-up James Madison, which gained the other six firstplace votes, and fellow semifinalists South Dakota State as the top three spots remained unchanged from the final 2017 rankings. Youngstown State was able to crack the poll at No. 25 after going 6-5 last season.

Michigan

Jim Harbaugh told a group of supporters at a luncheon Monday in Ann Arbor that the team plans is to start junior Shea Patterson at quarterback Sept. 1 when the Wolverines visit Notre Dame. Patterson transferred to Michigan from Mississippia in the offseason.

Minnesota

The Gophers tabbed freshman walk-on Zack Annexstad as the starting quarterback to open the season. Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said Annexstad will be behind center Aug. 30 against New Mexico State.

Colorado State

Coach Mike Bobo remains hospitalized with numbness in his feet while his coaching staff prepares for the Rams’ opener Saturday against Hawaii. The Rams still are formulating a plan in case Bobo can’t be back on the sideline for the game.

Wisconsin

Wide receiver Quintez Cephus was charged with felony sexual assault Monday, and accused of misconduct involving two women at his apartment in April. Cephus, a 20-yearold junior from Macon, Ga., was suspended by the team shortly after he was charged.

LSU

The district attorney in Baton Rouge said a woman who had said receiver Drake Davis physically and psychologically abused her has changed her story. District Attorney Hillar Moore stressed that it’s common for someone involved in a domestic violence case to change their statements after an arrest and that the case against Davis is proceeding as planned.