After 3-0 start, Maryland football receives votes in top-25 polls

The Maryland football team is in the Associated Press and Amway Coaches top-25 polls. At the bottom — like, in the "Others receiving votes" category. Still, that's progress.

The Terps received three votes in the AP poll and four in the coaches poll, meaning they're tied for 41st and alone in 36th nationally, respectively.

Because the coaches poll's balloting is secret, and the AP's is not, we can see just which media voter thinks wins over Howard, Florida International and Central Florida merit a top-25 vote.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch's Mike Barber had Maryland at No. 24 and Notre Dame, Oklahoma and Iowa unranked.

Rob Long of WJZ (105.7 FM) put the Terps at No. 25, ahead of Mississippi, which led the nation's best team, Alabama, by 21 on Saturday before imploding (again).

Maryland last received votes in the AP poll in 2014, after beating Penn State to improve to 6-3. Its last votes in the coaches poll came in 2013, before it took a 63-0 loss to Florida State and quickly fell out of all bowl consideration.

How high can the Terps climb? A home win in two weeks against a woeful Purdue team likely won't change perceptions, but a road win Oct. 8 against Penn State might.