Must Watch Week 7

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There are a couple of huge match-ups in Week 7 and we’ve got a list of where to find them. Click on the STREAM or ESPN3 for a direct link to the game!

• A battle of CAA unbeatens will take place in Durham, NH on Saturday and it’s a great way to start a full day of football. James Madison was picked 3rd in the CAA Preseason Poll and New Hampshire was picked 5th, but here we are in the middle of October with the teams on top of the standings. New Hampshire came out of the gates slow but has made their way to 4-2. The Wildcats have a tough battle ahead of them when the Dukes come to town. James Madison is undefeated against FCS opponents. Tune in to find out if New Hampshire is a legitimate contender for the CAA title or just started off with a favorable schedule.

• Sacred Heart was undefeated with a win over an upstart Stony Brook team until Wagner handed them their first loss 2 weeks ago. They had a bye week to straighten things out. Cornell followed a similar path, undefeated until their loss to Harvard this past weekend. Which team will get back on track in this NEC-Ivy League match-up?

• Lehigh rocketed their way to the top of the Patriot League standings with a 14 point win over Colgate last weekend. Georgetown is off to a 3-2 start, but this will be their first PL game of the season. Will Lehigh have a let down or will they continue to put up a lot of points and continue the path towards the PL auto-bid?

• North Dakota finds themselves tied at the top of the league standings with Eastern Washington. The Fighting Hawks are a couple of plays away from being undefeated in 2016. Below them in the standings is quite the logjam, and just behind them is a Southern Utah team that is 2-1 in Big Sky play. Will the Fighting Hawks increase the gap between the top and the middle of the pack or will the Thunderbirds pull North Dakota back down to earth?

• One of the biggest games of the week is the defacto SoCon Championship game between The Citadel and Chattanooga. Right now both teams appear to be playoff bound, but the winner of this game is looking at securing the auto-bid and a strong possibility of a seed come playoff time as long as they don’t slip up.

• Western Illinois narrowly avoided back to back losses when they kicked a game winning field goal with a few minutes left in the 4th quarter against Indiana State. Missouri State has been stronger than expected this year and could give the Leathernecks a challenge.

• The Dakota Marker is one of the most exciting FCS rivalry games, often deciding conference championships and playoff seeding. Last year got a little lopsided in the Bison’s 28-7 win, but the Jacks’ offense has some new weapons in 2016. It will be interesting to see how the two teams match up in this year’s edition of the Dakota Marker at the Fargodome.

• Villanova-Richmond is another huge conference deciding match-up. Richmond is coming off of a 3OT win over Albany that keeps them in control of their own destiny for the CAA title. Villanova has won five straight games since a season opening loss to Pittsburgh (FBS). Both teams have some tough games ahead of them, but it all starts Saturday at Richmond’s Homecoming.

• Southeast Louisiana still has an outside chance at the playoffs or being involved in the SLC championship race with a little bit of help. Stephen F Austin is playing the role of the spoiler after two straight losses in conference play.

• Cal Poly was riding high after back-to-back wins over South Dakota State and Montana but slipped up on the road against an improved North Dakota squad. They come off the bye week and head back on the road to take on a struggling Portland State squad. Can the Vikings get back to 2016 form or will the Mustangs run all over them?

• UNI is a mess. Coach Farley may have lost the locker room with his postgame comments after their loss to South Dakota last weekend. Youngstown State looks to be improved but has a tendency to fall off later in the season. Add in the Farley tends to have the Penguins number and this could be quite the game. The Panthers need the win if they want to stay in the playoff race.

• Tennessee State had an undefeated season going until they lost by 1 on the road at Eastern Illinois last weekend. Eastern Kentucky normally finds themselves towards the top of the conference, but they are at risk of falling to the cellar.