Slight Shakeup in Top 10

Richmond Holds on to No. 1

 

SPARTANBURG, S.C. ? No. 1 Richmond rallied to defeat last week’s No. 12 James Madison to earn its 15th-straight win and tighten its grip on No. 1 in the latest FCS Coaches Poll.

 

The Spiders’ last loss came to the Dukes almost exactly one year ago on October 11, 2008. Richmond (5-0) rallied in the fourth quarter behind a six-yard touchdown pass by Ben Keating to take the lead. James Madison was able to move the ball to Richmond’s six-yard line late in the fourth, but redshirt quarterback Justin Thorpe fumbled the ball, and the Spiders recovered with 58 seconds left to ensure the win. Keating scored all three of Richmond’s touchdowns. Richmond received all 28 first-place votes and 700 points overall.

 

For the second-straight week, Villanova found itself in a top-five battle, this time against then-No. 5 New Hampshire. Tom Manning kicked two field goals in the fourth quarter to help New Hampshire (5-0) hand Villanova (5-1) its first loss, 28-24. Scott Sicko caught a 32-yard pass for a touchdown for UNH, which has won three of the past four games against Villanova. Matt Szczur scored two touchdowns for Villanova, which is the first team to score more than 16 points against New Hampshire this season. With the win, New Hampshire moved into the No. 4 spot, while Villanova dropped to No. 6.

 

Montana (5-0) took over at No. 2 with its 35-23 win versus then-No. 14 Cal Poly. Marc Mariani caught six passes for 200 yards and two touchdowns for the Grizzlies, while Chase Reynolds rushed for 109 yards and three touchdowns. Montana picked up the win despite five turnovers. Jordan Yocum scored on a one-yard run at the end of the first half to give the Mustangs a 17-7 lead. The Grizzlies responded in the second half with three touchdowns, including two from Reynolds, to win the game.

 

Northern Iowa (5-1) moved up one spot to No. 3 after its 42-27 victory at North Dakota State. Panthers quarterback Pat Grace threw three touchdowns, and despite having to leave the game briefly in the third quarter after an injury, returned to throw two of those scores in the fourth quarter, including one for 39 yards. Pat Paschall ran for 115 yards for North Dakota State, his sixth straight 100-yard game. The Bison racked up 514 total yards against a Northern Iowa defense that came into the game ranked second in the country in yards allowed.

 

Rounding out the top five was Southern Illinois (4-1), which defeated Illinois State 43-23. Deji Karim ran for 273 yards and three touchdowns, including a 93-yard score. Illinois State kept it close behind Matt Brown’s two touchdown passes, including one for 81 yards. The Redbirds tied the game at 23 with a field goal, but the Salukis pulled ahead for good with a field goal of their own. Karim added another touchdown early in the fourth, and Chris Dieker threw his second touchdown pass of the day to ensure the win.

 

Villanova came in at No. 6 after its first loss of the season, followed by William & Mary (5-1) at No. 7, Central Arkansas (4-1) at No. 8, Elon (5-1) at No. 9 and Appalachian State (3-2) at No. 10. The Phoenix jumped two spots and into the top 10 after defeating The Citadel 43-7.

 

South Carolina State (4-1) moved up four spots to No.12 after its 37-10 win at Norfolk State, while Jacksonville State (4-2) jumped five spots to No. 13 after its 41-7 victory at Murray State.

 

Colgate (6-0) made the biggest jump this week, moving six spots to No. 18 after its overtime win at Princeton. 

 

New to the poll this week is No. 21 Stephen F. Austin (4-1). The Lumberjacks upset then-No. 7 McNeese State, 16-13. After pulling ahead 14-0 in the first half, the Lumberjacks blocked a Cowboys’ extra point attempt to maintain a 14-13 lead. McNeese State was then called for a hold in the end zone, giving Stephen F. Austin a safety.

 

Falling out of the rankings this week was Montana State (3-2), which lost to Northern Arizona, 23-10.

 

The Colonial Athletic Association maintains six ranked teams, with two in the top five and four in the top 10. The Big Sky, Missouri Valley, Ohio Valley and Southland Conferences each have three ranked teams, while the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, Patriot League, and Southern Conference each have two. The Great West Conference is represented by one team.

 

The FCS Coaches Poll website can be viewed here and is updated each week after the release of the poll.

 

The FCS Coaches Poll is based exclusively on a voting panel of head coaches in the FCS under the cooperation of the Collegiate Commissioners Association (CCA) and the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and is administered by the Southern Conference.

 

2009 FCS Coaches Poll ? Week 6 (October 12, 2009)

 

      Team (No. 1 Votes)               2009 Record          Points     Previous Ranking
1. Richmond (28)                                 5-0                   700                     1

2. Montana                                          5-0                   657                     3

3. Northern Iowa                                  5-1                   645                     4

4. New Hampshire                               5-0                   621                     5

5. Southern Illinois                               4-1                   578                     6

6. Villanova                                         5-1                   549                     2

7. William & Mary                                5-1                   530                     8

8. Central Arkansas                             4-1                   501                     9

9. Elon                                                5-1                   462                    11

10. Appalachian State                          3-2                   441                    10

11. McNeese State                              3-2                   368                     7

12. South Carolina State                      4-1                   359                    16

13. Jacksonville State                          4-2                   332                    18

14. South Dakota State                        4-1                   304                    19

15. Weber State                                  3-3                   258                    21

16. James Madison                              2-3                   235                    12

17. Eastern Washington                       4-2                   214                    15

18. Colgate                                         6-0                   208                    24

19. Cal Poly                                        2-3                   184                    14

20. Massachusetts                              3-2                   178                    13

21. Stephen F. Austin                          4-1                   155                   NR

22. Florida A&M                                  4-1                   146                    22

23. Eastern Kentucky                          3-2                   121                    17

24. Holy Cross                                    3-1                    53                     20

25. Eastern Illinois                               4-2                    49                     25

 

Others receiving votes (points in parentheses): Northern Arizona (42), Chattanooga (38), Prairie View A&M (37), Delaware (35), Montana State (27), Youngstown State (17), Liberty (16), Morgan State (14), Butler (12), Southern Utah (4), Tennessee State (4), Harvard (2), Lafayette (2), Albany (1), Missouri State (1).

 

 

 

Richmond beats JMU, stays No. 1

 

Philadelphia (Sports Network) - Richmond survived another Colonial Athletic Association challenge on Saturday at James Madison and retained its No. 1 ranking in the latest Sports Network FCS Top-25 Poll on Monday.

 

The Spiders (5-0) needed a fourth-quarter comeback to beat JMU 21-17 at Bridgeforth Stadium, but Richmond received 119 of 131 first-place votes to stay on top for the sixth week in a row.

 

Northern Iowa (5-1) grabbed 11 first-place votes and moved up one spot to No. 2. The Panthers hammered out a 42-27 over North Dakota State at the Fargodome in Missouri Valley Football Conference play.

 

There was plenty of movement in the poll with 11 of the top 25 teams from the previous week losing on Saturday.

 

Montana (5-0) also gained one position to No. 3 with its 35-23 victory over then-No. 15 Cal Poly at Washington-Grizzly Stadium in a key non-conference tilt. Cal Poly (2-3) tumbled to 19th after seeing the Grizzlies rally for 21
fourth-quarter points.

 

New Hampshire (5-0) picked up one slot and one first-place vote to move to No. 4 with its 28-24 downing of previously-second-ranked Villanova (5-1) for a CAA homecoming win at Cowell Stadium. Villanova dropped to No. 6 in the poll.

 

Southern Illinois (4-1) became the new No. 5 team with a fourth-quarter outburst of its own. The host Salukis scored the final 20 points in the second half to break a 23-all tie with Illinois State and won 43-23 at McAndrew Stadium in MVFC play.

 

William & Mary (5-1) got a boost to after a slow start at Northeastern and bounced up to No. 7 with a 34-14 CAA decision at Parsons Field.

 

Elon (5-1) jumped two spots to No. 8 with its 43-7 Southern Conference victory over The Citadel at home at Rhodes Stadium.

 

Appalachian State (3-2) remained in the ninth position with a 55-21 home victory over North Carolina Central in a non-conference game.

 

Central Arkansas (4-1) completed the top-10 after its 34-0 blanking of Northwestern State in a Southland Conference game at Turpin Stadium.

 

South Carolina State (4-1) skyrocketed six places to No. 11 with a 37-10 victory at Norfolk State in MEAC action as the second 10 was juggled around.

 

Jacksonville State (4-2) stormed up from 18th to 12th with a 41-7 victory over Murray State on the road and McNeese State (3-2) dropped from seventh to 13^th with a 16-13 Southland Conference loss at Stephen F. Austin.

 

South Dakota State (4-1) hopped from 20th to 14th with a 24-17 win at Missouri State, Weber State (3-3) climbed back from 21st to 15th by thumping then-No. 14 Eastern Washington 31-13 on the road. Eastern Washington (4-2) fell all the way
to 21st with the loss.

 

James Madison's second loss in a row caused the Dukes (2-3) to stumble from 13th to 16th, but Colgate (6-0) overcame an upset bid from Princeton to win 21-14 in double overtime and rose all the way from 23rd to 17th.

 

Massachusetts (3-2) lost four spots in the poll to No. 18 after a crushing 43-27 loss at Delaware.

 

Stephen F. Austin (4-1) entered the poll for the first time since 2005 by virtue of its victory over McNeese State. The Lumberjacks are 20th in this week's poll.

 

Delaware (4-2) also made its first appearance of 2009 at No. 23 with its upset of UMass. The Blue Hens were last ranked in 2008.

 

Florida A&M (4-1) remained No. 22 with a 48-16 loss to Miami, but Eastern Kentucky (3-2) plummeted from No. 16 to No. 24 with a 20-17 loss to Tennessee State at home in Ohio Valley Conference play.

 

Holy Cross (4-1) lost six places with a 34-31 loss on the road to Brown, falling from 19th to 25th.

 

Two schools fell out of the poll. Montana State dropped from 24th with its 23-10 home to Northern Arizona and Eastern Illinois lost the No. 25 spot after a 52-3 setback, its second consecutive loss, at Penn State.