AGS Poll: Week 6 Top 25 Results

Top 25 image

For week 6 the top 10 of the AGS top 25 was pretty calm but everything after that got thrown into the blender. The top 5 itself was completely unchanged from last week with North Dakota State at #1, James Madison at #2, South Dakota State at #3, Weber State at #4, and Villanova at #5.

The teams rising up the ranks were led by Nicholls who used a beatdown of fellow ranked Southland foe Central Arkansas to rise up 6 spots to #12. North Carolina A&T took advantage of some turmoil in front of them to move up to a season high #13. Stony Brook, despite losing, moved up 4 spots to #17 after taking #2 James Madison to overtime. Sacramento State shot up 9 spots to #22 to make their first appearance in the AGS top 25 since week 9 of 2012. Dartmouth also moved into the top 25 for the first time this year moving up 3 spots to #24 and Southeast Missouri State returned to the top 25 rising 3 spots to #25. There were also 6 new teams appearing in the ORV this week.

Central Arkansas headlined the teams going in the opposite direction dropping 7 spots to #16 after their aforementioned loss to Nicholls. Fellow Southland team Southeastern Louisiana also tumbled 5 spots to #21 after being upset by McNeese. UC Davis, Elon, and Eastern Washington all dropped out of the top 25 after taking losses on Saturday. In EWU’s case they dropped completely out of the ORV as well and snapped a streak of 48 straight weeks ranked in the top 25.

In terms of conference representation the CAA led the way once again placing 6 teams into the top 25. They were followed by the MVFC with 5, the Big Sky with 4, the Southland with 3, and the Ivy League and OVC with 2 teams each in the top 25. Once again 9 conferences were represented in the top 25.

Full results below:

Rank Change Team Total Points First Place Votes
1 – North Dakota State Bison 2194 86
2 – James Madison Dukes 2076 1
3 – South Dakota State Jackrabbits 2027 1
4 – Weber State Wildcats 1841
5 – Villanova Wildcats 1835
6 1 Montana Grizzlies 1742
7 -1 Montana State Bobcats 1646
8 – Furman Paladins 1579
9 3 Northern Iowa Panthers 1435
10 – Towson Tigers 1362
11 6 Nicholls State Colonels 1250
12 1 Kennesaw State Owls 1248
13 5 North Carolina A&T Aggies 925
14 1 Youngstown State Penguins 850
15 -4 Illinois State Redbirds 847
16 -7 Central Arkansas Bears 792
17 4 Stony Brook Seawolves 696
18 2 Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens 671
19 – Maine Black Bears 516
20 2 Princeton Tigers 489
21 -5 Southeastern Louisiana Lions 364
22 9 Sac State Hornets 354
23 1 Austin Peay Governors 302
24 3 Dartmouth Big Green 271
25 3 Southeast Missouri State Redhawks 266
ORV:
26 – Jacksonville State Gamecocks 191
27 NR North Dakota Fighting Hawks 172
28 7 Sam Houston State Bearkats 152
29 -15 UC Davis Aggies 147
30 4 Yale Bulldogs 98
31 5 Central Connecticut State Blue Devils 62
32 5 South Carolina State Bulldogs 39
33 NR Wofford Terriers 30
34 NR New Hampshire Wildcats 29
35 -6 Houston Baptist Huskies 17
36 NR McNeese State Cowboys 15
37 -7 Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles 14
38T NR Chattanooga Mocs 11
38T NR San Diego Torreros 11
40 -15 Elon Phoenix 8

Most significant win: Nicholls State Colonels
Most significant loss: UC Davis Aggies

Dropped out of the poll:
Eastern Washington Eagles
Idaho State Bengals
Indiana State Sycamores
Samford Bulldogs
Southern Illinois Salukis
The Citadel Bulldogs

Join the discussion here: https://www.anygivensaturday.com/showthread.php?236135-AGS-Poll-Results-WEEK-6-2019-SEASON

Patriot League: Week 7 Preview

Week 7 of the Patriot League football season sees conference battles commence. Colgate’s title defense begins against nemesis Lehigh in Hamilton and Holy Cross makes the long bus ride to Central Pennsylvania to battle Bucknell. Most would agree the start of league play is very much welcomed after what was a dreadful opening month of non-conference performances. There are two intriguing non-conference games set for Saturday. Fordham (vs Yale) and Georgetown (vs Cornell) each take on Ivy League opponents to start the month of October. The Hoyas and Rams are both coming off of quality wins last week. 0-5 Lafayette is on a much needed bye.

Fordham (2-3, 0-0) at Yale (2-0) 1 P.M. Yale Bowl; New Haven, CT

Live Streaming: ESPN+

The Need to Know: Fordham makes the 90 minute journey to the historic Yale Bowl to battle the Eli in an intriguing non-conference battle. The Rams are coming off a hard fought 23-16 win over Richmond. It was Fordham’s first win over a team from the vaunted CAA since they crushed Rhode Island 54-7 in 2014. The Rams offense was led by the strong running of Zach Davis (102.2 ypg) and the efficient passing of Tim DeMorat (185 ypg 8 TD 4 INT) in the win over the Spiders. Defensively, Fordham yielded 298 yards through the air but stuffed the Richmond ground game (65 yards). Sophomore LB Ryan Greenhagen (37 solo tackles, 10.5 TFL) is having a monster year so far for the Ram defense.

The preseason Ivy League favorite Eli are off to an expected 2-0 start with workmanlike wins over Holy Cross (23-10) and Cornell (27-16). Despite returning a plethora of talented skill players the Yale offense has yet to explode. The Kurt Rawling-Reed Klubnick (64 ypg receiving) connection has produced but not to the extent many expected. There should be ample opportunities to get things rolling against a Ram secondary that yields 13.4 yards per catch. Yale won the last meeting 41-10 in 2017. Current Fordham head coach Joe Conlin was the Eli’s offensive coordinator (’12-’17) at that time.

This game will tell a lot about both teams. Fordham is a field goal away from being 3-1 against FCS competition. The Eli are 2-0 as expected but have yet to play their best football. Yale has the talent edge, although it’s not as significant as some might think, and home field which should carry them to the win.

Prediction: Yale 30 Fordham 27

Lehigh (1-3, 0-0) at Colgate (0-5, 0-0) 1 P.M. Andy Kerr Stadium; Hamilton, NY

Live Stream: Patriot League Network

The Need to Know: For the second time in the last three seasons (2017) Colgate and Lehigh will enter their annual grudge match with losing records. This has traditionally been a showcase game between the Patriot League’s two most successful programs (Colgate 10 Titles, Lehigh 11 Titles). However, the stakes are much different in 2019. Unless the Mountain Hawks and/or Raiders experiences a drastic turn around it’s quite possible Saturday’s battle in Central New York will determine who stays out of the league basement.

Colgate’s fate might come down to who starts at quarterback. There’s a sense that Grant Breneman will give it a go and see how his lower leg injury holds up. If he’s able to contribute for 4 quarters the Raiders odds of getting their first win of 2019 drastically go up. Their struggling defense (38.6 ppg allowed) should be able to get back on track against a Mountain Hawk “O” that has been among the worst in FCS. Now that league play is underway Colgate’s core of talented, experienced players (Breneman, Wheeler, Daramy-Swaray, Ioanellli etc.) need to have more of an impact if there’s going to be a season saving turnaround.

Like Colgate, Lehigh has a serious question mark at quarterback. Tyler Monaco (182 ypg, 2 TD 4 INT in ‘19) really struggled against Merrimack in the first half. Head Coach Tom Gilmore’s decision to insert junior Andrew Shoup in the second quarter (173 passing yards, 36 yard TD run) gave the offense just enough of a spark to allow Lehigh to escape with a 10-3 win. It’s likely that Monaco and Shoup will both see time against the Raiders. The improved Mountain Hawk defense (24 ppg allowed) will need another strong outing to offset the offense’s struggles.

As bad as Colgate has looked to start the year they still feel like solid favorites over a Lehigh team/program trying to find their way under first year head coach Tom Gilmore. If Breneman plays the Raiders should be able to grind out enough points to win by 2 or 3 possessions. Should the Preseason PL Offensive Player of the Year be unable to go this game could end up being a race to double-digits.

Prediction: Colgate 24 Lehigh 13

Holy Cross (1-3, 0-0) at Bucknell (0-4) 2 P.M. Christy Matthewson Memorial Stadium; Lewisburg, PA

Live Streaming: Patriot League Network

The Need to Know: The Crusaders travel to Lewisburg seeking revenge  against the Bison for last year’s surprising 19-16 loss at Fitton Field.  Bucknell’s 3 point victory would end up being the only thing that separated themselves from a winless 2018 campaign. The Bison have now lost 16 out of their last 17 games dating back to the end of the 2017 season. If they want to end their 10 game losing streak the offense must find some traction (13 ppg). The Bucknell “O” did some good things last week against Princeton (23 points) in their 56-23 blowout loss to the Tigers. Quarterback Logan Bitikofer had his best game ever (268 yards passing, 3 Total TD) as a Bison which has to make first year head coach Dave Cecchini somewhat optimistic heading into league play.

Holy Cross is still trying to find out who they are after the first month of the season. They’ve been blown out by two FBS opponents, beat a New Hampshire team in a tough spot and had a ho-hum outing against Yale in a loss. The Crusaders would appear to have a defense capable of leading the team to a Patriot League title. The offense however, continues to be a major concern (8.2 ppg ). Preseason All-PL selection Domenic Cozier is averaging less than 30 ypg and quarterback Connor Degenhardt is barely completing 50% of his passes has thrown for just 1 TD. Offensive Coordinator Patrick Murphy must find a way to get more production from a unit that has talented skill players.

Holy Cross is the better team but until their offense is able to consistently move the ball they’ll be in a lot of close games. Despite the lopsided result, Bucknell should have gained some confidence last week against an excellent Princeton team. The Bison will put up a spirited effort but the Crusaders get their payback.

Prediction: Holy Cross 24 Bucknell 20

Georgetown (3-1, 0-0) at Cornell (0-2) 2 P.M. Schoellkopf Field; Ithaca, NY

Live Streaming: ESPN+

The Need to Know: Georgetown will try to get their second straight victory in the Empire State when they tangle with the Big Red in gorgeous Ithaca, NY. This will be the first meeting between the two academic powerhouses since 2007; a 45-7 Cornell win. The Hoyas are seeking their fourth straight victory which would be their longest winning streak since 2011 (5 straight). Xavier Reddick (4 TFL) and Kristian Tate (2.5 TFL) have led a dominating defense (10 ppg, 1st in PL) so far this season. The Hoya offense is averaging 39 ppg but that is a bit deceiving since they put up 69 against Division 3 Catholic. They’ll be tested by a Cornell defense (17 ppg allowed) that returns 8 starters from a last year’s unit. Gunther Johnson will get the start at the quarterback but don’t be surprised if Joseph Brunell  gets a few opportunities to lead the offense.

Amazingly, Cornell has not posted a winning record since they went 6-4 in 2005. If things are going to turn around for Mike Archer’s team they must get better production from the quarterback position. Junior Richie Kenney has really struggled out of the gate (48% completion, 2 TD 5 INT) so there’s a good chance Mike Catanese gets his shot if the offense needs a boost. Running back Harold Coles (134 ypg) has literally and figuratively carried the offense through the first two games of the season. The Big Red were picked to finish 7th in the Ancient Eight preseason poll.

Georgetown has the defense to contain Coles and force the Big Red to pass the ball. If the Hoyas are able to protect the ball and don’t waste red zone opportunities they should be able to escape the Finger Lakes with a 4-1 record.

Prediction: Georgetown 27 Cornell 23

The FCS Wedge – 2019-1002 – Wk6 PREVIEW

1.) Games of the week/previews

North Dakota State @ Illinois State

James Madison @ Stony Brook

Idaho State @ Montana

Central Arkansas @ Nicholls State

Furman @ Samford

Youngstown State @ Northern Iowa

UC Davis @ North Dakota

2.) Three Big Questions (sometimes we only two, that’s how we roll)

Is it time to take a serious look at Tennessee Tech?
They’re 4-1, are they a possible contender in the OVC race and playoff race?

What is your favorite tailgate food to make and eat?

listen here:

2019-1002 – Wk6 PREVIEW

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The FCS Wedge – 2019-1002 – Wk5 REVIEW

1.) The Big Games

Montana 45 UC Davis 20

Weber State 29 Northern Iowa 17

James Madison 45 Elon 10

Villanova 33 Maine 17

Samford 61 The Citadel 55 (4OT)

Austin Peay 52 Jacksonville State 33

Montana State 49 Northern Arizona 31

Eastern Washington 35 North Dakota 20

2.) The Week 5 AGS Poll

*Real along with that silver tongued devil Lance by clicking the link if you want to.

Most of all though you can listen here:

2019-1002 – Wk5 REVIEW

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Big Sky Quad Shot: Week 5

Big Sky week five is in the books and conference play has started!  A few games this week were certainly eye openers for a couple teams, possibly in a good way or bad way. Depends who you’re rooting for. The top of the Big Sky is going to be an absolute race to the top with a few teams going to suffer some heart break. It will be a log jam all season. That’s good for the health of the conference, to have so many competitive teams.

Montana made the trip to warmer climates to take on UC-Davis. The Aggies were riding high in their saddles sitting at #4 in the rankings. After the third quarter was over the Aggies were no longer competitive in this football game. Montana scored 24 straight points to race out to a 38-7 lead and never looked back. Meanwhile, in Bozeman, Northern Arizona jumped out to a 21-0 lead and ended up losing 49-31. Not sure what NAU’s defense was doing, but the Cats ripped off 35 straight points and beat the plaid off the Lumberjacks. I thought getting rid of Jerome Souers would fix this mid-season NAU collapse thing, but apparently not.

In the pillow fight of the week Northern Colorado held on for dear life and beat Idaho after being down 24-10 in the third quarter. The Bears iced the game with a Ben Raybon field goal to pull ahead of the Vandals and get their first win of the season. Eastern Washington turned to the rushing attack, as we all predicted they would, and beat North Dakota in the snow. The Eagles ripped off 284 yards rushing and five scores. Three of those scores came from running back Antoine Custer Jr, who had 134 yards on the ground. Weber State did the conference good and handed Northern Iowa a loss in Ogden. Weber State led 27-3 halfway through the second quarter before Northern Iowa started mounting their comeback. A late Panther touchdown wasn’t enough to keep the momentum moving and Weber State sits in the driver’s seat for the auto-bid. Final game of the night featured Cal Poly beating Southern Utah in which Cal Poly rushed 72 times for 278 yards.

This weekend is a full slate of Big Sky football games. Idaho State will travel to Montana. UC-Davis will go to North Dakota again. Southern Utah and Portland State will play in the Big Sky pillow fight of the week. Weber State will head north to take on Idaho. Northern Colorado will go south to Flagstaff to face Northern Arizona. Montana State goes West to take on Cal Poly. In the night cap will be Eastern Washington locking horns with Sacramento State in a game that will be a must-win for the Eagles if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Scores

Montana 45
UC Davis 20

Idaho 24
Northern Colorado 27

Northern Arizona 31
Montana State 49

North Dakota 20
Eastern Washington 35

Portland State 24
Idaho State 51

Northern Iowa 17
Weber State 29

Cal Poly 24
Southern Utah 21

Big Sky Player of the Week

This week’s Big Sky player of the week is Montana quarterback Dalton Sneed. Sneed was 22/33 for 268 yards and five touchdowns, and also ran for 81 yards as the Griz beat UC Davis on the road 45-20.

Big Sky MVP Candidates

Dalton Sneed, QB, Montana
Jake Meier, QB, UC Davis
Case Cookus, QB, Northern Arizona
Jeff Cotton, WR, Idaho
Ulonzo Gilliam, RB, UC Davis

Big Sky Power Rankings

Weber State
Montana
Montana State
UC Davis
Northern Arizona
Sacramento State
Eastern Washington
Cal Poly
Idaho State
Idaho
Portland State
Northern Colorado
Southern Utah

The Quad Shot

Man, the bottom of the Big Sky Conference is an absolute dumpster fire. It’s actually a race to the bottom at this point. Which bad team can out-do the next bad team. Idaho coming off of a win over Eastern Washington, then loses to Northern Colorado? I mean, what has to happen for that to happen? Is Eastern Washington actually really bad? I saw Eric Barriere’s stats against North Dakota.. thinking he might be the reason EWU experiments with a triple option.

Montana beating up on UC Davis is a result I didn’t really see coming. The Griz have been somewhat of an unknown in my eyes. The defense is good, the offense is good, but the only team thus far that the Griz really struggled with is Oregon. Nice to see this game as a more accurate gauge of where the team is and where they might be headed. The Griz offense seems to have a lot of mouths to feed and not enough plays in the game to get them all fed. Good problem to have.

In reviewing my MVP picks there really isn’t anyone close to Dalton Sneed right now. Jake Meier had a chance to shine this weekend against a good team this weekend and he folded. He folded a little bit against NDSU as well, turning the ball over multiple times. These are the games that NFL scouts are going to pay attention to. Case Cookus is still a good quarterback, but the sputtering NAU offense and a terrible defense gave up a gift against Montana State. Jeff Cotton is a legit talent for Idaho, but as long as the Vandals keep being terrible then he’ll never be considered. Remember, I don’t really look at the defensive side of the balls in these, so please save your Dante Olson comments for someone who ranks those types of players.

I pondered this question on my Mountain West blog this week, but curious.. who are teams you actively root against every single week? For me it’s BYU, Florida State, Ohio State, Liberty, and North Dakota State. I have an explanation for every team on that list. I’ll save that for another day over beers. Who’s on your list?

AGS Poll: Week 5 Top 25 Results

Top 25 image

After 2 pretty calm weeks we saw a couple upsets involving teams near the top of the AGS top 25 that churned the poll up quite a bit. The very top remained calm however as for the fifth straight week the top 3 were North Dakota State, James Madison, and South Dakota State in that order. Weber State got into the top 5 for the first time this year moving up to #4 after their big win over Northern Iowa and Villanova climbed all the way up to #5 after not even appearing in the 2019 preseason poll.

Other teams moving up included Montana who shot up 9 spots to #7 after throttling previously 5th ranked UC Davis. Youngstown State took advantage of some turmoil from teams in front of them to move up 4 spots to #15. After hanging just outside for the last few weeks Stony Brook made their first appearance of the year in the top 25 moving up 5 spots to #21 after their 4-1 start. Austin Peay came from completely out of the poll last week all they way up to #24 this week after taking down OVC power Jacksonville State decisively last Saturday.

The teams moving in the opposite direction were headlined by Northern Iowa who dropped 7 spots to #12 after their aforementioned loss to Weber State. UC Davis plummeted 10 spots to #14 following their second straight loss. Elon dropped 4 spots to barely hang on at #25 after getting demolished at home by James Madison. Jacksonville State fell out of the top 25 snapping a 78 week streak being in the AGS top 25 dating back to week 13 of 2013. The Citadel also dropped out of the top 25 after dropping a 4OT classic to Samford last Saturday.

In terms of conference representation the CAA led the way placing a whopping 7 teams into the top 25. They were followed by the Big Sky and MVFC with 5 each and the Southland with 3 teams in the top 25. Once again 9 conference were represented in the top 25.

Full results below:

Rank Change Team Total Points First Place Votes
1 – North Dakota State Bison 2210 80
2 – James Madison Dukes 2119 6
3 – South Dakota State Jackrabbits 2049 3
4 2 Weber State Wildcats 1860
5 2 Villanova Wildcats 1839
6 2 Montana State Bobcats 1658
7 9 Montana Grizzlies 1594
8 2 Furman Paladins 1445
9 3 Central Arkansas Bears 1305
10 -1 Towson Tigers 1292
11 2 Illinois State Redbirds 1283
12 -7 Northern Iowa Panthers 1261
13 -2 Kennesaw State Owls 1240
14 -10 UC Davis Aggies 1142
15 4 Youngstown State Penguins 972
16 2 Southeastern Louisiana Lions 960
17 -2 Nicholls State Colonels 779
18 2 North Carolina A&T Aggies 706
19 -5 Maine Black Bears 492
20 3 Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens 453
21 5 Stony Brook Seawolves 439
22 2 Princeton Tigers 349
23 2 Eastern Washington Eagles 205
24 NR Austin Peay Governors 184
25 -4 Elon Phoenix 132
ORV:
26 -10 Jacksonville State Gamecocks 131
27 2 Dartmouth Big Green 123
28 -1 Southeast Missouri State Redhawks 118
29 8 Houston Baptist Huskies 102
30 NR Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles 73
31 2 Sac State Hornets 58
32T NR Samford Bulldogs 57
32T -10 The Citadel Bulldogs 57
34 -3 Yale Bulldogs 50
35 5 Sam Houston State Bearkats 35
36 2 Central Connecticut State Blue Devils 30
37T -2 South Carolina State Bulldogs 23
37T -4 Southern Illinois Salukis 23
39 -3 Indiana State Sycamores 22
40 -1 Idaho State Bengals 15

Most significant win: Montana Grizzlies
Most significant loss: Jacksonville State Gamecocks

Dropped out of the poll:
Abilene Christian Wildcats
Idaho Vandals
North Dakota Fighting Hawks

Join the discussion here: https://www.anygivensaturday.com/showthread.php?235480-AGS-Poll-Results-WEEK-5-2019-SEASON

Patriot League: Week 6 Preview

For the second time in this still young 2019 season the Patriot League posted a dreaded “O’fer” weekend.  After last Saturday’s 0-4 performance the Patriot League now stands at an atrocious 4-20 overall record. What makes last week’s “O’fer” even more disheartening is the fact that all four losses were by double digits. Colgate and Holy Cross fought hard but never truly threatened to win while Fordham and Lafayette were outclassed from the start.

There are many theories as to why the Patriot League has performed so poorly  the last three seasons. Colgate’s 2019 campaign is clearly the outlier. The one thing that everyone seems to agree upon is the three league-imposed restrictions (60 scholarships instead of 63, no redshirts, roster size capped at ??) must be either eliminated or significantly tweaked. Not allowing an additional three scholarships appears to be nothing more than administrative pettiness. The ban on non-medical redshirts is quite complex due to the differing academic missions of each school. With that said, it’s believed that redshirts can be implemented in a manner that benefits each football program without compromising academic integrity. The roster limit is simply dumb. It compromises depth at certain positions and can affect how coaches are able to conduct their practices. The ability to have normal practices becomes more of an issue as the season progresses and injuries mount.

Until concessions are made regarding those three glaring issues it might be wise for the Patriot League as a whole to schedule accordingly. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to challenge your team but each game does not need to be a barometer of FCS greatness. The ultimate goal is and always will be to win games. And that’s an area where the league has failed in epic fashion.

Not surprisingly, the Patriot League appears to be headed for another rough Saturday.

The Games

Since the Patriot League has shown very little interest in winning these out of conference games TheFCSWedge has decided not to invest time researching and predicting loss after loss. Thankfully, league play begins next week so the stakes will ramp up when the pillow fights commence. Until then, take solace in the fact the non-conference ugliness is nearly over and conference victories are destined to happen!

Holy Cross (1-2, 0-0) at Syracuse (2-2) 12 P.M. Carrier Dome; Syracuse, NY

Live Streaming/TV: ACC Network

Need to Know: Syracuse is an ACC team loaded with athletes and depth. While the Orange might not be as good as their preseason Top 25 ranking once suggested, they have more than enough to firepower to run the Crusaders out of the Dome.

Prediction: Syracuse 52 Holy Cross 13

Merrimack (2-2) at Lehigh (0-3, 0-0) 12:30 P.M. Goodman Stadium; Bethlehem, PA

Live Streaming: Patriot League Network

The Need to Know: Merrimack is transitioning to Division I in 2019 after spending the last 22 seasons at the DII level. The Warriors two wins so far this season have come over non-D1 competition. While this isn’t a must win for Lehigh in the truest sense, a loss to a Merrimack program trying to find its way would be devastating for the Mountain Hawks.

Prediction: Lehigh 31 Merrimack 13

Georgetown (2-1, 0-0) at Columbia (1-0) 1 P.M. Wein Stadium; Manhattan, NY

Live Stream: ESPN+

The Need to Know: The Lions were picked to finish 6th in the Preseason Ivy League Poll. Al Bagnoli has done a good job turning the perennial cellar-dweller Lions into a competitive force within the Ancient Eight. This should be a good barometer for each team. Georgetown’s offense needs to pick up where it left off against Marist and Catholic in order to get a rare win over an Ivy League opponent.

The Pick: Columbia 27 Georgetown 24

Richmond (1-2) at Fordham (1-3, 0-0) 1 P.M. Jack Coffey Field; Bronx, NY

Live Stream: Patriot League Network

The Need to Know: The Rams and Spiders enter this contest staggering a bit after slow starts to the 2019 season. Richmond was pegged to finish 10th in the 12 team CAA this season. The Spiders hammered Fordham 52-7 last season when the two met in Virginia. While this season’s game will be far more competitive, the winner will be the same.

Prediction: Richmond 35 Fordham 27

#24 Princeton (1-0) at Bucknell (0-3, 0-0) 3:30 P.M. Christy Mathewson Memorial Stadium; Lewisburg, PA

Live Stream: Patriot League Network

The Need to Know: Nationally ranked Princeton makes the pilgrimage to Central Pennsylvania to take on the struggling Bison Saturday afternoon. Despite suffering significant losses to graduation, the Tigers remain absolutely loaded with talent on both sides of the ball. That’s not good news for a Bison program still trying to find their way under first year head coach Dave Cecchini.

Prediction: Princeton 62 Bucknell 17

Penn (1-0) at Lafayette (0-4, 0-0) 3:30 P.M. Fisher Field; Easton, PA

Live Streaming: Patriot League Network

The Need to Know: For the 90th time Penn and Lafayette will clash on the gridiron. The Quakers are coming off a heartbreaking 28-27 loss to #23 Delaware.  Penn’s failed 2 point attempt late in game proved to be the difference. Lafayette quarterback Keegan Shoemaker and the rest of offense need to bounce back from an ugly performance against Albany last Saturday.

Prediction: Penn 38 Lafayette 21

Colgate (0-4, 0-0) at Dartmouth (1-0) 6 P.M. Memorial Field; Hanover, NH

Live Stream: ESPN+

The Need to Know: Things do not get any easier for defending Patriot League Champion Colgate. The Raiders now must contend with a stout Dartmouth team that has legit Top 25 and Ivy League title potential. Adding to the difficulty for Colgate is the fact that junior quarterback Grant Breneman is expected to miss his second straight game with an injury. It’s hard to believe but the Raiders are likely going to sustain a sixth straight double-digit loss dating back to last season.

Prediction: Dartmouth 37 Colgate 14

The FCS Wedge – 2019-0925 – Wk5 PREVIEW

1.) Games of the week/previews

Northern Iowa @ Weber State

Montana @ UC Davis

Maine @ Villanova

Jacksonville State @ Austin Peay

James Madison @ Elon

North Dakota @ Eastern Washington

2.) Three Big Questions

12 Game seasons: Do they add clarity to the polls and how good teams will be the remainder of the season?

Criticism: It’s inevitable in our troll culture but should coaches and players be fair game?

Different uniform color combos. What’s your all time favorite?

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The FCS Wedge – 2019-0925 – Wk4 REVIEW

1.) The big story & the recaps

Top five showdown in Fargo proved to be a very exciting game.

North Dakota State 27 UC Davis 16

Villanova 52 Towson 45 (OT)

Eastern Michigan 34 CCSU 29

Idaho 35 Eastern Washington 27

Montana 47 Monmouth 27

East Tennessee State 20 Austin Peay 14

Illinois State 40 Northern Arizona 27

Southeastern Louisiana 45 Lamar 34

Sam Houston State 45 Incarnate Word 6

2.) AGS Poll

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Big Sky Quad Shot: Week 4

We’re through the non-conference part of the Big Sky Conference football season. Can’t come soon enough, time to start the race towards the playoffs and the auto-bids. There’s a horse race at the top of the Big Sky and everyone’s still got a chance to snag that auto-bid. Except Northern Colorado. They do not have a chance.

This week saw Monmouth make the cross-country trip to Montana and face the Grizzlies. After the teams spent a quarter feeling each other out the fireworks started. Dalton Sneed threw for four touchdowns to lead the Griz over the Hawks. Monmouth quarterback Kenji Bahar put on a show, however, throwing for 393 yards, an impressive young quarterback. Eastern Washington took the trip down the Palouse to take on Idaho. The Vandals jumped out to a 28-0 lead and never looked back as they defeated Eastern Washington. Montana State made quick work of the visiting Norfolk State Spartans.

In the Big Sky game of the week UC Davis went to the Fargo Quanset Hut and took on North Dakota State. Close game most of the way through, but a late Bison touchdown iced the win. Jake Meier had a big day through the air, throwing for 312 yards and a score, but also had way too many turnovers to keep the Aggies in the game. South Dakota State beat up on Northern Colorado in the Big Sky pillow fight of the week. Northern Iowa eeked one out against Idaho State. Haven’t decided if Idaho State is good or lucky. Portland State beat some directional school. South Dakota State put a hurting on Southern Utah. Illinois State had a big third quarter to get past Northern Arizona. To cap the night Sacramento State hung with Fresno State for two quarters before eventually giving up 20 points in the fourth quarter and losing to the Bulldogs.

This week we’ll see Montana go to California and take on UC Davis. Northern Arizona will come north to take on Montana State in Bozeman. Idaho will head to Greeley to take on Northern Colorado. North Dakota comes across the Big Sky to take on Eastern Washington. In the Big Sky pillow fight of the week Portland State heads to Pocatello to take on Idaho State. Northern Iowa can’t get enough of the Big Sky, and will take on Weber State in Ogden. In the night cap Cal Poly will travel to Southern Utah.

Scores

Monmouth 27
Montana 47

Eastern Washington 27
Idaho 35

Norfolk State 21
Montana State 56

UC Davis 16
North Dakota State 27

South Dakota 14
Northern Colorado 6

Idaho State 6
Northern Iowa 13

Eastern Oregon 9
Portland State 59

Southern Utah 7
South Dakota State 43

Northern Arizona 27
Illinois State 40

Sacramento State 20
Fresno State 34

Big Sky Player of the Week

This week’s Big Sky Player of the Week is Montana quarterback Dalton Sneed. Sneed was 30/40 for 334 yards and four touchdowns in Montana’s win over Monmouth this weekend.

Big Sky MVP Candidates

Jake Meier, QB, UC Davis
Dalton Sneed, QB, Montana
Case Cookus, QB, Northern Arizona
Ulonzo Gilliam, RB, UC Davis
Jeff Cotton, WR, Idaho

Big Sky Power Rankings

Weber State
UC Davis
Montana State
Montana
Eastern Washington
Northern Arizona
Sacramento State
Cal Poly
Idaho
Portland State
Idaho State
Southern Utah
Northern Colorado

The Quad Shot

The Big Sky Conference took it on the chin this week. Going 0-5 against the Missouri Valley this week isn’t doing the conference reputation a lot of favors. A few lopsided match-ups this week, not exactly pairing 1:1 matchups. The only good game of any of these was UC-Davis and NDSU. Davis looks like a formidable team heading into conference play. Surprised that Jake Meier threw three interceptions, thought he’d have a little better showing. Once again, I guess it’s NDSU and everyone else.

Eastern Washington what the hell are you doing? I know Idaho isn’t good, or at least good enough to jump out to a 28-0 lead on a supposed top five team heading into the week. Still hope for the Eags though, it was a non-conference game. But man, that’ll probably be a black mark on the playoff resume if the Eags can turn around their season. Just watch, Idaho will now run the table.

I’ll be curious if Weber State can win out this season. The top of the Big Sky is particularly strong and right now I can see a scenario where any of the top five can win the conference. Eastern better fix that whole defense thing they have going on. Montana needs to fix that giving up a lot of passing yards things. Montana State better fix that quarterback thing. UC Davis, can they keep scoring against tough defenses? Weber State, will they be able to score at all or just play defense and pray? I might be way off, none of these teams are perfect, at least perfect enough to beat NDSU. Or even SDSU, for that matter.

On a more non-Big Sky related note.. I’ve been an AGS top 25 poll voter for quite a few years. FCS I would say is generally the toughest of all divisions of college football to rank. You have teams playing up, teams playing down, teams that don’t play up or down and it’s really tough to gauge where a team is at after the first three to four weeks of the season. Furman I getting top 10 votes and I just don’t get it. Two FBS losses, two FCS wins against “eh” opponents.. does that make them top 10? Then there’s the Ivy League.. teams like Princeton getting top 25 consideration and votes despite not playing a single game until week four. What sense does that make? Even then, the Ivies play a game or two non-conference then stick to their own league. How do we know if they’re good or bad? Do we give credit for FCS teams playing up and not getting completely obliterated by an Oregon-esque team? Tough to judge, not a fan of being a poll voter this time of year, but I’ll keep my perfect year streaks intact once more this year.