AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Augusta State earned its third national ranking of the preseason when the Jaguars were tabbed No. 5 in the nation in the NABC Coaches Poll, according to a recent announcement from the organization's headquarters in Kansas City, Mo.

Entering their fifth season under head coach Dip Metress, the Jaguars are coming off the most successful season in school history. They posted a 27-7 record in 2007-08 and captured the South Atlantic Regional en route to advancing to the NCAA Tournament’s National Championship game, a contest that was nationally televised on CBS.

ASU returns three starters and 10 lettermen from last season’s squad, headlined by preseason All-America selection and senior center Garret Siler along with junior guard Ben Madgen. Newcomers Fred Brathwaite and Greg Hire highlight the four-man Jaguar recruiting class.

Findlay, a Great Lakes Regional finalist in 2007-08 which returns all five starters from last season’s 28-5 squad, is the top-ranked team in the nation and is No. 1 in the two of the three preseason national polls. The Oilers were also tabbed No. 1 by the Division II Bulletin.

The Peach Belt Conference is well represented with USC Aiken voted No. 2, followed by Bentley and Florida Southern at No. 3 and No. 4, respectively. ASU, ranked fifth by The Sporting News and 10th in the Division II Bulletin, rounds out the top five.

Northern Kentucky, which will be moving into the new 9,000-seat Bank of Kentucky Center this year, came in at No. 6. The Norse are followed by Central Oklahoma, Minnesota State, defending national champion Winona State and Gannon.

The 2008-09 season gets underway on Friday, Nov. 7 with the Disney Tip-Off Classics in Orlando and Anaheim.

NABC/Division II 
Preseason Coaches Poll

                                        Record               Pts.             Prev. Ranking

1.   Findlay (Ohio) (8*)                 28-5                200              7
2.   USC Aiken                           27-4                164              6
3.   Bentley (Mass.)                     34-1                163              T-1
4.   Florida Southern                    24-9                161              16
5.   AUGUSTA STATE                       27-7                146              10
6.   Northern Kentucky                   21-8                136              NR
7.   Central Oklahoma                    28-6                133              21
8.   Minnesota State                     22-7                129              13
9.   Winona State (Minn.)                38-1                127              3
10.  Gannon (Pa.)                        26-5                126              18
11.  Grand Valley State (Mich.)          36-1                110              T-1
12.  Southwest Baptist (Mo.)             22-8                105              NR
13.  Central Washington                  21-7                100              NR
14.  C.W. Post (N.Y.)                    26-5                82               24
15.  North Alabama                       27-9                77               17
16.  Northwest Missouri State            24-8                68               19
17.  Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.)                 23-7                59               NR
18.  Drury (Mo.)                         25-6                58               11
19.  Tarleton State (Texas)              25-7                52               15
20.  Cal State-San Bernardino            22-8                40               14
21.  Mount Olive (N.C.)                  24-7                35               23
22.  Kentucky Wesleyan                   24-8                34               NR
23.  BYU-Hawaii                          20-8                30               NR
24.  Fort Lewis (Colo.)                  24-6                26               12
25.  Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.)          23-8                21               NR

Others receiving votes: Ouachita Baptist (Ark.) 20, Ferris State (Mich.) 18, Bowie State (Md.) 17, Central Missouri 17, Philadelphia (Pa.) 17, Benedict (S.C.) 14, Catawba (N.C.) 14, Christian Brothers (Tenn.) 14, Northern State (S.D.) 13, Clayton State (Ga.) 11, Arkansas-Monticello 9, Valdosta State (Ga.) 8, Delta State (Miss.) 7, St. Edward’s (Texas) 6, Virginia Union 6, Carson-Newman (Tenn.) 5, Metropolitan State (Colo.) 5, Montevallo (Ala.) 5, Armstrong Atlantic State (Ga.) 4, Pfeiffer (N.C.) 3, Northeastern State (Okla.) 2, Ashland (Ohio) 1, Millersville (Pa.) 1, Nebraska-Omaha 1.

* -- Denotes first place votes
Records and previous rankings are from the end of the 2007-08 season