Given a factor code [pi] from a shift of finite type X onto an irreducible sofic shift Y, and a fully supported ergodic measure v on Y we give an explicit upper bound on the number of ergodic measures on X which project to v and have maximal entropy among all measures in the fiber [pi]-1{v}. This bound is invariant under conjugacy. We relate this to an important construction for finite-to-one symbolic factor maps.