Week 1 of the 2021 season is in the books and it included 6 wins over FBS opponents so the AGS Top 25 got shook up quite a bit. We start with a new team at the top with South Dakota State edging out Sam Houston by 1 point for the #1 spot. It is the Jackrabbit’s first time ever at #1 in the AGS top 25. James Madison stayed at 3 and Montana jumped up 4 spots to #4 after their impressive win over Washington from the Pac-12. North Dakota State fell one spot to round out the top 5.
As for other teams on the rise Eastern Washington also moved up 4 spots to #7 after getting an win over FBS foe UNLV. UC Davis shot up 13 spots to #12 after cruising to a win over another FBS opponent in Tulsa. East Tennessee State used a win over the SEC’s Vanderbilt to move into the top 25 at #18. Holy Cross, the final team to take down an FBS team this week, also moved into the top 25 coming it at #24.
As for teams going in the opposite direction Monmouth dropped 9 spots after getting dismantled by Middle Tennessee. Jacksonville State also dropped 11 spots to #23 after their own lackluster performance against UAB. Nicholls and Chattanooga both dropped out of the top 25 after taking week 1 losses.
In terms of conference representation the MVFC led the way again putting 6 teams into the top 25. They were followed by the Big Sky with 5, the CAA with 4, the AQ7 with 3, and the OVC and SOCON with 2 each. 10 conference were represented (counting the ASUN and WAC separately) in the AGS top 25 this week.
Full results below:
| Rank | Change | Team | Total Points | First Place Votes |
| 1 | 1 | South Dakota State Jackrabbits | 1355 | 20 |
| 2 | -1 | Sam Houston Bearkats | 1354 | 29 |
| 3 | – | James Madison Dukes | 1256 | 2 |
| 4 | 4 | Montana Grizzlies | 1227 | 5 |
| 5 | -1 | North Dakota State Bison | 1196 | |
| 6 | -1 | Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens | 1048 | |
| 7 | 4 | Eastern Washington Eagles | 980 | |
| 8 | -1 | North Dakota Fighting Hawks | 852 | |
| 9 | – | Southern Illinois Salukis | 919 | |
| 10 | -4 | Weber State Wildcats | 905 | |
| 11 | 3 | Montana State Bobcats | 657 | |
| 12 | 13 | UC Davis Aggies | 650 | |
| 13 | 2 | Southeastern Louisiana Lions | 603 | |
| 14 | 2 | Villanova Wildcats | 601 | |
| 15 | 2 | Virginia Military Institute Keydets | 516 | |
| 16 | 3 | Northern Iowa Panthers | 497 | |
| 17 | -4 | Central Arkansas Bears | 443 | |
| 18 | 13 | East Tennessee State Buccaneers | 400 | |
| 19 | 4 | Austin Peay Governors | 384 | |
| 20 | -10 | Monmouth Hawks | 354 | |
| 21 | -2 | Missouri State Bears | 347 | |
| 22 | – | Richmond Spiders | 233 | |
| 23 | -11 | Jacksonville State Gamecocks | 223 | |
| 24 | 9 | Holy Cross Crusaders | 209 | |
| 25 | -4 | Murray State Racers | 198 | |
| ORV: | ||||
| 26 | 2 | Samford Bulldogs | 121 | |
| 27 | 5 | New Hampshire Wildcats | 67 | |
| 28 | NR | Furman Paladins | 65 | |
| 29 | -5 | Nicholls Colonels | 63 | |
| 30 | -1 | Sacred Heart Pioneers | 57 | |
| 31 | -13 | Chattanooga Mocs | 51 | |
| 32 | -2 | Sac State Hornets | 49 | |
| 33 | – | Rhode Island Rams | 46 | |
| 34 | 3 | Illinois State Redbirds | 45 | |
| 35 | -9 | Kennesaw State Owls | 31 | |
| 36T | NR | Yale Bulldogs | 19 | |
| 36T | 1 | Princeton Tigers | 19 | |
| 38 | NR | Youngstown State Penguins | 17 | |
| 39 | 1 | Southeast Missouri State Redhawks | 13 | |
| 40T | NR | Incarnate Word Cardinals | 6 | |
| 40T | NR | Wofford Terriers | 6 | |
Most significant win: Montana Grizzlies
Most significant loss: Chattanooga Mocs
Dropped out of the poll:
Albany Great Danes
Alcorn State Braves
Davidson Wildcats
North Carolina A&T Aggies
Join the discussion here: https://www.anygivensaturday.com/showthread.php?279126-AGS-Poll-Results-Week-1-2021
