Bison Remain No. 1 in The Sports Network/Fathead.com FCS Top 25
11/7/2011 7:46:00 PM | Football
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (Sports Network)--After securing
their biggest victories of the season, Furman and Eastern Kentucky have
vaulted into The Sports Network/Fathead.com FCS Top 25. On
Monday, the poll's national panel of sports information and media
relations directors, broadcasters, writers and other dignitaries
installed Furman at No. 17 and Eastern Kentucky at No. 25. It was Furman's first appearance in the rankings since Oct. 18, 2010, and Eastern Kentucky's first since Oct. 19, 2009.
North Dakota State (9-0) remained a prohibitive No. 1 for the second
straight week after booting Indiana State out of the rankings with a
27-16 road win in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. The Bison
received 143 of the 161 first-place votes and 4,004 points. Big
Sky Conference leader Montana State (9-1) remained at No. 2 with 16
first- place votes and Sam Houston State (9-0), which is the only
unbeaten FCS team besides North Dakota State, moved up one spot to No.
3. The Bearkats, who received one first-place vote, have clinched at
least a share of the Southland Conference title and its automatic bid to
the FCS playoffs. Furman (6-3) sat in the shadows of the
Southern Conference leaders for much of the season only to rise up and
beat both Wofford and Appalachian State in the last three weeks,
including Saturday's 20-10 victory over App State. The Paladins feature
highly efficient quarterback Chris Forcier on offense and linebacker
Kadarron Anderson and cornerback Ryan Steed on defense. Eastern
Kentucky (6-3) has won five straight games and taken sole possession of
first place in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Colonels rallied to a
52-48 win at Jacksonville State on Saturday. Their season has been
sparked by quarterback T.J. Pryor and running back Matt Denham on
offense and cornerback Jeremy Caldwell on defense. Two weeks
remain in the regular season for teams such as Furman and Eastern
Kentucky to increase their playoff resume. The NCAA's 20-team field will
be announced on Nov. 20. Former No. 1 Georgia Southern (8-1) moved up to No. 4, one spot above No. 5 Northern Iowa (7-2).
The rest of the Top 10 was No. 6 Lehigh (8-1); No. 7 New Hampshire
(7-2), which received one first-place vote; No. 8 Montana (8-2); No. 9
Wofford (7-2); and No. 10 Appalachian State (6-3), which fell seven
spots after losing to Furman. CAA Football continued to have the
most ranked teams with six, and half of them are No. 11 Old Dominion
(8-2), No. 12 Towson (7-2) and No. 13 Maine (7-2). They are
followed by No. 14 Illinois State (7-3); No. 15 Delaware (5-4); No. 16
Liberty (7-3), which leaped six spots; Furman; No. 18 Harvard (7-1); No.
19 Central Arkansas (7-3); and No. 20 James Madison (5-4), which fell
seven spots after losing to New Hampshire. After No. 21 Jackson
State (7-2), two other programs from historically black conferences, No.
22 Norfolk State (8-2) and No. 23 Alabama State (8-2), re- entered the
poll. Rounding out the rankings were No. 24 South Dakota (5-4) and Eastern Kentucky. Jacksonville State, William & Mary, Tennessee Tech and Indiana State fell out of the Top 25 after losses on Saturday.
During the regular season the Top 25 is released every Monday
afternoon, except for the final weekend of games, when it will be
released Sunday morning, Nov. 20, due to its use as an official tool by
the NCAA Division I Football Committee in selecting the playoff field
later that day. The Sports Network and Fathead.com will release a
final Top 25 following the FCS championship game, which will be held
Jan. 7 at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas.
The Sports Network/Fathead.com FCS Top-25 College Football Poll
| Team (First-place votes) | Record | Points | Previous Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. North Dakota State Bison (143) | 9-0 | 4,004 | 1 |
| 2. Montana State Bobcats (16) | 9-1 | 3,847 | 2 |
| 3. Sam Houston State Bearkats (1) | 9-0 | 3,673 | 4 |
| 4. Georgia Southern Eagles | 8-1 | 3,425 | 5 |
| 5. Northern Iowa Panthers | 7-2 | 3,309 | 6 |
| 6. Lehigh Mountain Hawks | 8-1 | 3,131 | 8 |
| 7. New Hampshire Wildcats (1) | 7-2 | 2,957 | 9 |
| 8. Montana Grizzlies | 8-2 | 2,785 | 10 |
| 9. Wofford Terriers | 7-2 | 2,718 | 11 |
| 10. Appalachian State Mountaineers | 6-3 | 2,572 | 3 |
| 11. Old Dominion Monarchs | 8-2 | 2,401 | 12 |
| 12. Towson Tigers | 7-2 | 2,350 | 14 |
| 13. Maine Black Bears | 7-2 | 2,070 | 7 |
| 14. Illinois State Redbirds | 7-3 | 1,665 | 17 |
| 15. Delaware Blue Hens | 5-4 | 1,342 | 16 |
| 16. Liberty Flames | 7-3 | 1,258 | 22 |
| 17. Furman Paladins | 6-3 | 1,246 | NR |
| 18. Harvard Crimson | 7-1 | 1,090 | 23 |
| 19. Central Arkansas Bears | 7-3 | 1,048 | 25 |
| 20. James Madison Dukes | 5-4 | 895 | 13 |
| 21. Jackson State Tigers | 7-2 | 525 | 15 |
| 22. Norfolk State Spartans | 8-2 | 468 | NR |
| 23. Alabama State Hornets | 7-2 | 438 | NR |
| 24. South Dakota Coyotes | 5-4 | 437 | 24 |
| 25. Eastern Kentucky Colonels | 6-3 | 427 | NR |
| Others receiving votes: Indiana State 360, Brown 270, Jacksonville State 261, Portland State 217, Tennessee Tech 206, Alabama A&M 193, North Dakota 126, Georgetown 124, William & Mary 91, Stony Brook 55, San Diego 54, Southern Utah 53, Chattanooga 39, Cal Poly 34, Duquesne 24, Bethune-Cookman 24, Murray State 23, Massachusetts 11, Drake 11, Albany 9, Lafayette 9, Richmond 9, Florida A&M 8, Penn 6, Bryant 5, Samford 5, UT Martin 5, Grambling State 4, Texas State 3, The Citadel 1, Northwestern State 1, South Dakota State 1, Yale 1, Jacksonville 1. |
