For the second straight season App State football is picked to finish first in the Sun Belt conference with 136 total points and seven out of 12 first place votes in the Sun Belt conference preseason poll by league coaches.
Capping off a 10-3 season with a 7-1 conference record to capture a share of their first Sun Belt conference championship, the Mountaineers finished the 2016 season with their second straight Camellia Bowl victory.
App State will return 47 lettermen and 13 of their 22 starters on offense and defense from a 2016 squad that tied with Arkansas State for the Sun Belt title.