The FCS Wedge – 2018-0926 – Wk4 REVIEW

This week Lance tells Kris it is getting cold out, Kris agrees with him.  They move on to a discussion of these games to start the show.

Morgan State Bears 16 North Carolina A&T Aggies 13

Nicholls State Colonels 27 Sam Houston State Bearkats 7

From here they analyze the AGS Poll for week four.  94 voters this week so good job again this week poll voters!

A few other recaps

Illinois State Redbirds 35  Colorado State Rams 19

Chattanooga Mocs 27 Samford Bulldogs 20

Montana Grizzlies 41 Sac State Hornets 34

Idaho State Bengals 25 North Dakota Fighting Hawks 21

 

Missouri Valley OOC In-Review

MVFC LogoMissouri Valley Conference football games begin this coming weekend, so I figure this is a good time to do a quick review of what happened during the out-of-conference (OOC) games for each team. WIth the exception of South Dakota State, who had their game against Iowa State cancelled due to weather, everyone in the conference has played three games. For the most part, every team has played a game against an FBS team, with the exception of the previously mentioned SDSU, as well as North Dakota State, who FBS teams stopped scheduling out of fear. Everyone has also had their bye weeks now (most this last weekend), so from here on out, it’s all MVFC, all the time, for 8 straight weeks until we hit the postseason.

Illinois State

The Illinois State Redbirds had a tricky time scheduling for this season, having to leave a NAIA team on their schedule for their opener, Saint Xavier (IL). As expected, the Redbirds rolled to a 24-0 halftime score and 46-0 win.

Game #2 was the annual rivalry game against Eastern Illinois. Many years, this game is a hard-fought battle regardless of how good or bad each team is otherwise…that was not the case this year though. Illinois State QB Brady Davis threw for 317 yards and 4 TDs, with 174 yards and 2 TDs of that going to WR Spencer Schnell. RB James Robinson ran for 153 yards and a TD on the ground en route to an easy 48-10 victory.

ISU had their bye week a little earlier than most of the other teams in the conference, with a week off to prepare for a game against FBS Colorado State. CSU got up early with a TD in the first but missed the XP. Illinois State responded with two TDs in the 2nd, with the last one coming with 2 seconds left in the first half to head into halftime up 14-6. The 3rd quarter was pretty well even with each team picking up a TD, but ISU blew things open in the 4th with two more TDs to take a 22 point lead. The Rams picked up a TD with only about 90 seconds left in the game (“garbage time”) to put the final tally at 35-19 Redbirds. RB James Robinson had another great game, running for 184 yards and 2 TDs.

Illinois State is now 3-0 to start their season and will head down to Springfield, MO to take on the Missouri State Bears this weekend.

Indiana State

The Indiana State Sycamores kicked off their season with a home game against Quincy University (DII) and a 49-0 win…their first win since October 22, 2016.

They then headed down the road a bit for their FBS game against Louisville. Indiana State started that game off fairly well, despite giving up a punt return TD early, they scored their TD in the 1st quarter as well and held off the Cardinals in the 2nd quarter, going into halftime tied up 7-7. Depth caught up to the Sycamores though, as Louisville would put up 24 points in the second half to take a 31-7 victory.

Indiana State then headed over to Eastern Illinois for what would turn into quite the offensive display (or maybe everyone’s defenses just forgot to show up). A back-and-forth 1st quarter where 37 points were scored gave EIU a slight lead, but a couple of TDs in the 2nd would give ISU the advantage that they would never relinquish. There was quite a bit more scoring in the game, but Indiana State held on for a 55-41 victory. In this game, Senior RB Ja’Quan Keys had a career day, racking up 234 yards on 34 runs with 4 TDs. True freshman RB Christian Covington had 14 carries for 60 yards and 2 TDs also.

The Sycamores are 2-1 on the season and after taking last weekend off, will welcome Northern Iowa to Terre Haute to open MVFC play.

Missouri State

The Missouri State Bears opened their 2018 season with their FBS game against then #25 ranked Oklahoma State. As expected, Oklahoma State would get up early, scoring 31 first-half points and holding MSU to a TD late in the half. The same story in the second half gave the Cowboys a 58-17 win. Bears QB Peyton Huslig accounted for 150 passing yards and 2 TDs as well as 109 yards rushing.

Game #2 for the Bears essentially flipped the script, hosting the DII Lincoln University of Missouri Blue Tigers. Despite being down early, MSU would have a strong 2nd quarter to pull ahead en route to a 52-24 victory.

MSU would then host (then FCS #20 ranked) Northern Arizona. In a somewhat surprising turn of events, MSU took the lead early with 23 first half points while holding NAU to a TD (missed XP). The second half was similar, with 17 more points for the Bears and a safety in “garbage time” being the only points allowed. In a game that was expected to be much closer, even with the absence of a couple of big NAU playmakers, Missouri State crushed the Lumberjacks 40-8. This was despite MSU QB Peyton Huslig throwing 4 INTs. MSU Senior RB Jason Randall threw down 181 yards on the ground with 2 TDs.

The Bears also had a bye week last weekend, are now 2-1 to start the season, and will host Illinois State next weekend for MSU’s Family Weekend game.

North Dakota State

The North Dakota State Bison had the advantage of playing all of the OOC games at home (actually their first 4 games are all in the Fargodome). First up was Cal Poly. NDSU had the first TD, but then allowed a 50-yard FG to let Cal Poly pull within 4. That was the closest that they would get though, as the Bison defense held the Mustangs scoreless the rest of the game while putting up 21, 14, and 7 points in the next three quarters respectively to win 49-3. For the most part, NDSU got it done on the ground, with RB Bruce Anderson running for 185 yards and 2 TDs and RB Lance Dunn picking up only 65 yards but 3 TDs. Cal Poly was held to a total of 207 yards of offense in the game.

Up next was FCS newcomer (but former DII powerhouse) North Alabama. In this game, NDSU churned out a couple of scores every quarter and holding UNA scoreless until 94 seconds left in the game when they picked up a TD. QB Easton Stick threw for 162 yards and a TD while running for another TD. RB Bruce Anderson and #2 QB Trey Lance each ran for TDs as well. WR Dallas Freeman caught 117 yards on 4 catches and LB Jabril Cox had 7 tackles and an INT taken back 43 yards for a TD. DT Cole Carcz picked up 2 sacks in the game.

Like Illinois State, NDSU then took a week off before welcoming a team with quite a bit of historical success at the FCS level. This time around, the Bison decided to blow things open early, rolling up a 28-0 advantage after the first quarter. They then picked up a TD in the 2nd and a FG in the 3rd while only allowing 10 points to the Blue Hens with both scores coming with under 5 minutes left in the game. Final score of this one was 38-10.

NDSU is 3-0 on the season and have outscored their first three opponents by a combined score of 125-20. In what will likely be their toughest test during the regular season, they will welcome rival South Dakota State to the Fargodome next weekend for the Dakota Marker game.

South Dakota

The South Dakota Coyotes began the season in Manhattan, KS, taking on K-State, where the Coyote defense did a particularly good job of keeping the Wildcats out of the end zone. USD had 3 TDs in the first half, including an INT returned to the end zone while holding K-State to 4 FGs in the first half. A scoreless third quarter meant that USD was taking a 24-12 lead into the final frame. K-State though, was able to get some momentum going on a 85-yard punt return TD and was able to follow it up a short while later with their first actual TD drive of the game, scoring about halfway through the 4th to take the lead and the game 27-24. USD QB Austin Simmons threw for 257 yards and a TD and ran for a TD in the loss.

Heading home to Vermillion, USD welcomed Northern Colorado of the Big Sky Conference. The game would be close for a bit, but a 20 point second quarter gave the Coyotes a lead they wouldn’t relinquish. UNC picked up a couple of TDs in the 4th, but was unable to come back, as USD would take the win, 43-28. QB Austin Simmons had a phenomenal day, completing 31 passes for 462 yards and 4 TDs and rushing for 80 yards and a TD. Receivers Shamar Jackson and Trystn Ducker each caught for over 130 yards and 1 TD apiece.

South Dakota then traveled out to Ogden, UT to play last year’s top non-seeded FCS playoff team, Weber State. In this game, the Wildcat defense showed their strength, holding the Coyotes to only 10 points and forcing 3 turnovers, while their offense did enough to maintain a relatively comfortable lead and come away with a 27-10 win.

South Dakota sits at 1-2 and after their bye week, will head down to Carbondale to take on Southern Illinois.

South Dakota State

The South Dakota State Jackrabbits were supposed to open their season at FBS Iowa State…and, I guess they technically did. Iowa State scored on their first drive, but the game was halted due to thunderstorms. After 2+ hours with no break in the storms projected for a while, the decision was made to cancel the game.

In their second game, SDSU hosted Big Sky team Montana State. In looking for a replacement for their receiving corps of the last couple of years (two of which are in the NFL), the Jackrabbits seem to have found a likely candidate in Sophomore WR Cade Johnson. The first three scores of the game were TD passes from QB Taryn Christion to Johnson. A FG would put SDSU up 24-0 at halftime. In the second half, Montana State started to show signs of life, picking up a couple of TDs, however each was answered shortly thereafter by Jackrabbit TDs leading to a 45-14 victory. QB Christion threw for 319 yards and 4 TDs while running for an additional TD. WR Cade Johnson caught for 138 yards and all 4 of Christion’s thrown TDs.

South Dakota State would then host Arkansas-Pine Bluff and apparently decided to put everything into this game that they had saved up from the cancelled Iowa State game. 4 TD passes…in the first quarter alone…led to three more TDs in the 2nd and a 49-6 lead. Despite SDSU bringing any many second and third string players, the Lions’ defense had a hard time stopping the Jackrabbit offense from pretty much scoring at will. SDSU rolled to a record-setting 90-6 victory. QB Christion threw for 332 yards and 2 TDs, despite only playing the first half. RB Isaac Wallace ran for 192 yards on only 5 attempts (38.4 yards per rush average) with 2 TDs.

South Dakota State heads into their slate of MVFC after a weekend off with a 2-0 record. They could probably use the rest, because their next game is the Dakota Marker game, at rival North Dakota State.

Southern Illinois

The Southern Illinois Salukis started their season by heading down the road to Murray, KY to take on the Murray State Racers. Murray State picked up a FG halfway through the 1st, but SIU answered with a passing TD, a fumble recovery->TD, and an INT->TD to pull ahead 21-3. The Racers picked up another TD later in the 2nd quarter but SIU answered again with their own TD run in the final seconds of the first half to head into halftime up 28-10. From there it was all Salukis with a couple more “regular” TDs and another fumble recovery returned for a TD to win the game 49-10. RB DJ Davis ran for 127 yards in the game. Safety Jeremy Chinn had 2 forced fumbles, while LB Cody Crider and CB Madre Harper had one each. In total, the SIU defense forced 6 turnovers (4 fumbles and 2 INTs).

Next up was an FBS game at SEC member Ole Miss. I’m not going to recap all the scoring…because apparently everyone forgot how to defense…but SIU was up 21-14 after the first quarter. The 2nd was similar but slightly to Ole Miss’ advantage, although SIU still had a slight (38-35) lead going into halftime. The Rebels really kicked things into high gear in the second half though, putting up 14 points in the 3rd and 27 points in the 4th quarters while holding the Salukis to a FG in the 3rd. The P5 team would win this one 76-41. QB Sam Straub threw for 382 yards and 4 TDs and allowed 2 INTs, while running for another TD. RB DJ Davis ran for 121 yards and WR Raphael Leonard caught 117 yards and 2 TDs.

SIU’s third game was the newly-dubbed “War for the Wheel” rivalry against Southeast Missouri State. Despite the new name and the two teams being in different conferences, the teams have been playing each other since 1913 and have met up 85 times…so it’s an old rivalry between teams separated by about 32 miles (45 if you’re driving) and a river. Like any good rivalry game, this one was a back and forth battle. SIU took the lead early, but SEMO would answer back and have the lead at the end of the 1st quarter, 14-10. SIU had the advantage in the 2nd, going on top for a 20-17 halftime score. The Redhawks scored early and often in the second half, rolling to a 34-27 lead going into the final quarter. The 4th saw SIU pull ahead on a FG and a TD…then a SEMO TD….SIU TD…and finally another TD for the Redhawks to pull ahead for good and take the 48-44 victory. SIU QB Sam Straub threw for 338 yards and 2 TDs and ran for a TD, but also threw 3 INTs. RB DJ Davis had another great game, rushing for 172 yards and 2 TDs (he’s now averaging 140 yards per game), as did Raphael Leonard who hauled in 11 catches for 124 yards and 2 TDs.

Southern Illinois had last weekend off and will host South Dakota this weekend for their Family Weekend and Blackout Cancer game, sitting at 1-2.

Northern Iowa

The Northern Iowa Panthers started their season at one of the toughest places to play in the FCS…at Montana. The 25k+ fans helped Montana to an early lead, shutting out the Panthers and putting 26 points up on the board. In the second half though, it was pretty much the reverse, as UNI was able to hold the Grizzlies offense scoreless while doing their best to catch up. They almost did, but would fall a FG short, losing 26-23. QB Colton Howell threw for 140 yards and a TD and ran for a TD.

Next up for UNI was…well….a bye week actually…to prepare for their game against the Big 10’s Iowa. Like the last game, UNI’s offense took a while to start getting things moving (not that I blame them against a decent P5 team). By the time UNI had their first points in the 4th, Iowa was already up 38. UNI would add another TD but would ultimately fall 38-14 to the team just down the road. QB Eli Dunne threw for 200 yards and 2 TDs in this game after being put in for the second half.

To finish up the OOC portion of the season, Northern Iowa welcomed the Hampton Pirates to the UNIDome. Unlike the first two games, however, this one was all Panthers, rolling up 20 points in the first half, 21 in the 3rd quarter and topping it off with a FG while holding the Pirates scoreless the entire game for a 44-0 shutout for their home opener. QB Eli Dunne threw for 191 yards and 3 TDs and true freshman WR Deion McShane (younger brother of WIU RB Steve McShane) caught 7 passes for 117 yards and 1 TD. The UNI defense had 4 interceptions and a forced fumble in this game.

UNI is now 1-2 and will play a Thursday night game at Indiana State to open the MVFC portion of the season.

Western Illinois

Like UNI, the Western Illinois Leathernecks opened their season on the road in Montana, although down the road a bit at Montana State. WIU started off fairly strong, trading WIU TDs for MSU FGs to head into halftime up 13-6. MSU had a productive 3rd quarter, however, with a couple of TD runs and tied the game up at 20 to head into the 4th. WIU picked up 3 more on a FG, but MSU had two FGs to take the victory 26-23. It was a tale of special teams in this game, with MSU hitting 4 FGs including 47 and 50 yarders. WIU was 1 for 2 missing a 48-yarder and missing an XP earlier in the game, which would have made the difference. RB Steve McShane ran for 76 yards and 1 TD and caught for 40 yards and 2 TDs.

Next up, WIU headed across the state to play Illinois. WIU got on the board first with a TD to transfer WR George Wahee in the 1st quarter. The Illini would pick up two TDs in the second to take a 14-7 halftime lead. They’d get two more in the 3rd before WIU was able to answer back with one of their own to pull back within 10 points. In the 4th quarter, however, turnovers would doom the Leathernecks as Illinois would halt a quality WIU drive at the ILL 15 (receiver caught the ball but fumbled after being crushed between two defenders) and would put WIU in the position of having to force some risky throws that were intercepted to seal the Illini victory, 34-14. WR George Wahee caught 104 yards and a TD and WR Tony Tate had a 49-yard TD reception.

In their third game, WIU headed home to take on Top 25-ranked Montana at Hanson Field. The game started off looking like it was going to be a blowout win for WIU after a 71-yard TD pass to WR John Brunner on the 2nd play from scrimmage, then a fumble for Montana recovered by WIU which was followed up by a 37-yard TD pass for WIU on the next play. Montana would respond immediately with a kickoff return for a TD. A FG and another TD would put the Grizzlies up after 1 quarter and with just a 44-yard FG for WIU in the 2nd, Montana would head into halftime up 18-17. In the 3rd, Montana had another FG and early in the 4th, a TD drive that put them ahead 27-17. The score would stay that way until ~5 ½ minutes left in the game, when RB Steve McShane would return a Montana punt for a TD to pull within 3. Then, on the first play from scrimmage, WIU would recover a fumble, then drive down the field for a TD to take the lead back, which they would hold onto for the 31-27 victory. QB Sean McGuire threw for 360 yards and 3 TDs while throwing 1 INT. WIU got nothing done on the ground, with only 45 total rushing yards, but Junior transfer WR John Brunner had a big game with 180 yards and 2 TDs receiving. RB Steve McShane had 77 yards and 1 TD receiving as well as the punt returned for a TD.

WIU is 1-2 so far, and will open their MVFC games hosting Youngstown State at Homecoming.

Youngstown State

The Youngstown State Penguins started off their season with a home game against non-scholarship Butler. The Bulldogs started strong with a TD which was answered by a Penguin TD to tie things up in the first quarter. A scoreless 2nd quarter would preserve the tie into the second half when YSU would rifle off two long TD drives to pull ahead 21-7. Butler was not about to go away quietly, however, as they would rally back with two TDs in the 4th. On the second one, the Bulldogs went for a 2-pt conversion, which was stopped and looked like it would give YSU a narrow win. On the kickoff however, Butler would successfully recover an onside kick, which they would then drive down the field with and hit a 44-yard FG with 4 seconds left to steal the victory, 23-21. RB Tevin McCaster rushed for 166 yards in the loss and QB Montgomery VanGorder threw for 234 yards and 3 TDs. PK Zak Kennedy missed FGs from 48 and 33 yards out.

Up next for YSU was a game at FBS #14 West Virginia. The Mountaineers got the scoring started late in the 1st quarter on a 99-yard drive and doubled that up with another one early in the 2nd. YSU answered with a 75 yard drive for a TD of their own, but WVU would get another with 1 minute left in the half to gain a 21-7 halftime lead. West Virginia opened things up in the 3rd, rallying for 21 points although allowing a YSU TD and a 45-yard FG. By then, though, they were up 42-17 and only added onto that total in the 4th with another TD and FG to put the final score at 52-17 for WVU. Receiver Zach Farrar had 6 catches for 135 yards in the game and RB Tevin McCaster ran for 79 yards and a TD.

The final game for the Penguins saw them return back home to take on another Pioneer League team, Valparaiso. At the start, it looked like this could be another close game against a non-scholarship foe, when Valpo would nail a 75-yard TD pass to put the first points on the board with about 5 minutes left in the 1st. YSU was able to answer though, tying things up. The rest of the game, however, was all Penguins, with Youngstown State racking up 14 points in the 2nd and 3rd quarters and topping it off with 7 more in the 4th while holding the Crusaders scoreless the rest of the game to grab their first win, 42-7. In this game, RB Tevin McCaster ran for 141 yards and 2 TDs, QB Montgomery VanGorder threw for 202 yards and 3 TDs, and LB Armand Dellovade picked up an interception and 8 tackles.

Youngstown State is 1-2 to start the season, was off last weekend, and will head to Western Illinois this week for a matchup with the Leathernecks.

Standings

So, here’s where things currently stand with the OOC games all taken care of. I’ve also added in Massey’s ranking of Strength of Schedule (out of 125 FCS teams) based on only games played so far. It’s not perfect, but it gives some idea of the quality of opponents that each team played before wading into the MVFC season.

Team  Record
 SoS Rank
Illinois State 3-0 77th
North Dakota State 3-0 67th
South Dakota State 2-0 86th
Indiana State 2-1 89th
Missouri State 2-1 57th
Northern Iowa 1-2 4th
South Dakota 1-2 1st
Southern Illinois 1-2 35th
Western Illinois 1-2 3rd
Youngstown State 1-2 52nd

AGS Poll: Week 4 Top 25 Results

While this week wasn’t as crazy as last week there was still plenty of movement in the AGS poll, especially in the bottom half, as some surprising results over the weekend caused some major shifting amongst a few teams. The top 5, as it has all year, stayed very calm as the top 3, as they’ve been all year, remained North Dakota State, James Madison, and South Dakota State in that order. Eastern Washington and Kennesaw State swapped places again to come in at #4 and #5, respectively.

Illinois State headlined the big risers of the week moving up 4 spots to #6 after throttling FBS Colorado State. UC Davis also rose 4 spots to #13, their highest ranking ever in the AGS Poll, following a dominating win over Idaho. Nicholls moved up 4 spots as well to #17 with their first win over Southland rival Sam Houston State in 13 years. Chattanooga took the biggest jump of the week making their first appearance in the AGS top 25 this year rising 8 spots #20 following their win over SOCON favorite Samford which moved them to 4-0. Despite being idle Towson rose 3 spots to crack the top 25 for the first time this year at #23. Montana State also took advantage of losses in front of them and climbed back into the top 25 rising 7 spots to #24.

As for the teams going in the opposite direction North Carolina A&T plummeted 11 spots down to #16 after getting stunned at home by Morgan State. After that the rest of the teams falling for the week fell completely out of the top 25 as Samford, Sam Houston State, and North Dakota all dropped double digit positions settling into the ORV category of the rankings.

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, the Southland with 3, and the SOCON with 2 teams in the top 25.

Full results below:

Rank Change Team Total Points First Place Votes
1 North Dakota State Bison 2349 93
2 James Madison Dukes 2250 1
3 South Dakota State Jackrabbits 2144
4 1 Eastern Washington Eagles 1968
5 -1 Kennesaw State Owls 1881
6 4 Illinois State Redbirds 1826
7 Weber State Wildcats 1767
8 1 Wofford Terriers 1550
9 -1 Maine Black Bears 1542
10 1 Elon Phoenix 1403
11 2 Jacksonville State Gamecocks 1150
12 McNeese State Cowboys 1149
13 4 UC Davis Aggies 1122
14 1 Villanova Wildcats 1121
15 -1 Central Arkansas Bears 1017
16 -11 North Carolina A&T Aggies 861
17 4 Nicholls State Colonels 775
18 2 Stony Brook Seawolves 744
19 3 Montana Grizzlies 686
20 -1 Rhode Island Rams 664
21 7 Chattanooga Mocs 659
22 2 Northern Iowa Panthers 355
23 3 Towson Tigers 329
24 7 Montana State Bobcats 271
25 Western Illinois Leathernecks 255
ORV:
26 7 Colgate Raiders 220
27 2 South Dakota Coyotes 120
28 -12 Samford Bulldogs 69
29 -11 Sam Houston State Bearkats 55
30 7 Princeton Tigers 53
31 9 Western Carolina Catamounts 32
32 6 Harvard Crimson 30
33 -4 Sac State Hornets 29
34T 2 Missouri State Bears 21
34T 4 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks 21
36 -9 Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens 14
37 -14 North Dakota Fighting Hawks 12
38 -3 Richmond Spiders 11
39 NR Youngstown State Penguins 10
40 -6 Austin Peay Governors 8

Most Significant Win: Illinois State Redbirds
Most Significant Loss: North Carolina A&T Aggies

Dropped out of the poll:
Mercer Bears

Join the discussion here.

Patriot League Week 4: Wins, We Need Wins!

The Patriot League’s non-league woes continued in week 3. Holy Cross’s come from behind win against preseason Ancient Eight favorite Yale prevented the dreaded Patriot League “O’fer”. It was the second week in a row the Patriot League could only manage a single out of conference “W”. Things don’t get any easier as the first weekend of fall dawns.

The Picks

With the league’s dreadful performance in non-league contests so far it’s hard to get excited for the remaining games. But the show must go on; for better or worse…..

Central Connecticut State (1-2) at Fordham (0-3) 1 P.M. Jack Coffey Field Bronx, NY

Live Streaming: Patriot League Network

The Pick: Preseason NEC favorite CCSU’s win over a poor D2 program (Lincoln) is the only thing keeping this from being a battle of 0-3 teams. Blue Devil’s quarterback Jacob Dolegala needs do a better job of protecting the ball after a rough outing against Columbia last week.  The Rams offensive line has struggled mightily to start the year. As a result, Fordham’s rushing attack ranks among the worst in FCS.  Fordham has faced a brutal schedule to this point so getting a team at home they beat last season should give them a boost of confidence. These are two teams in desperate need of a win. Last year’s game went to OT. This one might as well.

Fordham 27 Central Connecticut State 24

Lafayette (0-3) at Colgate (2-0, 1-0) 1 P.M. Andy Kerr Stadium Hamilton, NY

Live Streaming: Patriot League Network

The Pick: The lone league battle this week sees preseason favorite Colgate host the winless Leopards. Colgate enters the game following an unexpected week 3 bye. Hurricane Florence’s presence in The Carolinas last week forced the cancellation of the Raiders showdown with Southern Conference power Furman. Lafayette is heads to Central New York fresh off a heartbreaking 24-20 loss to Monmouth. It was the Leopard’s best offensive performance since last year’s season finale against Lehigh. Duplicating that type of production likely won’t happen against Colgate’s top rated “D”. Lafayette will build off of last week’s near miss but the Raiders ultimately wear them down in the second half.

Colgate 37 Lafayette 13

Dartmouth (1-0) at Holy Cross (1-2, 0-1) 1 P.M. Fitton Field Worcester, MA

Live Streaming: Patriot League Network

The Pick: Holy Cross welcomes the Big Green to Worcester on the heels of a thrilling win over defending Ivy League Yale last Saturday. The Crusaders scored 14 unanswered fourth quarter points to force OT. In the extra frame Holy Cross secured Bob Chesney’s first win in purple on Derek NG’s 45 yard FG. Dartmouth meanwhile pounded Patriot League member Georgetown 41-0 in our nation’s capital. Dartmouth’s highly touted defense limited the Hoya’s not so “O” to 3 first downs and 112 total yards. Crusader QB Geoff Wade will need to build off of his breakout performance (286 passing yards, 70 rushing) against Yale. After such an uplifting win, expect Holy Cross to ride the wave of a confidence with their most complete game of the year.

Holy Cross 27 Dartmouth 17

Columbia (1-0) at Georgetown (1-2) 2 P.M. Cooper Field Washington D.C.

Live Streaming: Patriot League Network

The Pick: The Hoya’s offense bottomed out, and that’s saying something, last week in their 41-0 loss to Dartmouth. Georgetown’s offense started to head south against Campbell two weeks ago then proceeded to enter dumpster fire mode against the Big Green. After a strong opener, QB Gunther Johnson has regressed significantly the last two weeks. Johnson will have to find a way to generate points against a Lion team that put up 41 points on a solid Central Connecticut State squad last week. Georgetown will player better this Saturday but that won’t be enough against an Al Bagnoli coached team.

Columbia 21 Georgetown 9

Lehigh (1-2) at Penn (1-0) 3 P.M. Franklin Field Philadelphia, PA

Live Streaming: ESPN+

The Pick: The Mountain Hawks head to the “City of Brotherly Love” licking their wounds following two 20+ point losses against very good competition (Villanova and FBS Navy). The Mountain Hawk’s need QB Brad Mayes and company to find their stride after two straight subpar outings. The return of All-American RB Dominic Bragalone and added depth along the offensive line will help significantly. Penn opened up their season last weekend with a 34-17 win over bumbling Bucknell. The Quakers defense limited the Bison to a mere 35 yards rushing. Early season struggles not withstanding, Lehigh has far more playmakers on offense than Bucknell. These two combined for 112 points (65-47 Penn win) last year in Bethlehem. While this won’t be a defensive struggle, don’t expect to see last year’s basketball game on grass. Mayes has his much needed breakout game of 2018 to lead Lehigh to another non-league win.

Lehigh 34 Penn 24

Bucknell (0-3) at Villanova 6 P.M. Villanova Stadium Villanova, PA

Live Streaming: Nova Nation All-Access

The Pick: Bucknell heads to the Mainline in search of their first win over Villanova since 1944. This is the second straight week the Bison are making the trip to the Philly metro area (lost to Penn 34-17) for a game. Coach Susan made the switch to back-up QB Logan Bitikofer last Saturday against the Quakers and it seemed to energize the passing game, relatively speaking. The Bison offense will need to play far and away their best game of the year to have any chance against a very talented and likely angry Villanova team. The Wildcats enter this one after a shocking 45-35 loss to Towson. The much vaunted ‘Nova defense was torched by Tom Flacco (brother of Joe) for 320 yards and 3 TDs. Look for the Wildcats to come out flying on both sides of the ball and send Bucknell back to Central Pennsylvania 0-4.

Villanova 38 Bucknell 10

The FCS Wedge – 2018-0919 – Week 4 PREVIEW

Here is the The FCS Wedge topic lineup for the Week 4 Preview.

Samford @ Chattanooga
The Bulldogs need this game more than the Mocs do, will that make a difference?

Sacramento State @ Montana
Montana is giving up less than 70 yards rushing per game but the Hornet’s Kevin Thompson is a very capable passer averaging around 300 yards per game so far this year.

Sam Houston State @ Nicholls State
Is this a must win game for either team?

Richmond @ Stony Brook
Seems like this could be a very good, close game in the CAA this week.

Idaho @ UC-Davis This is the first Big Sky game for Idaho since 1995 when they beat Boise State University in both teams final game in the BSC before their move to FBS.

Casey Kasem visited me in a dream and asked me to include that the #1 song that week was…

How will cancelled games affect the rest of the season and potential playoff selections?

A discussion on some slow starts.

Samford 1-2
Furman 0-2
USD 1-2
SHSU 1-1
NAU 1-2
Nicholls 1-2
UNH 0-3
WIU 1-2

The FCS Wedge – 2018-0919 – Week 3 REVIEW

This week’s review podcast goes a little something like this:

TOPIC 1
Upsets in the T10
Towson 45 Villanova 35
North Dakota 24 Sam Houston State 23
Mercer 30 Samford 24

Topic 2
AGS Poll

Topic 3
A few other recaps

Weber State 27 South Dakota 10
McNeese State 20 Nicholls State 10
Western Illinois 31 Montana 27
Missouri State 40 Northern Arizona 8

They discuss and recap all of these games with a fair amount of stats, insight, and detail so give them a listen.

AGS Poll: Week 3 Top 25 Results

After a relatively stable week last week in the AGS poll we saw a tumultuous week 3 where 12 of the 20 teams in action that were previously ranked in the top 25 all lost, some in surprising and some in not-so-surprising fashion. Despite that the top 5 remained mostly unchanged with North Dakota State, James Madison, and South Dakota State staying as the top 3 in that order. Kennesaw State and Eastern Washington swapped spots from last week coming in at #4 and #5, respectively. this week.

The high risers of the week were headlined by Weber State who moved up 5 spots to #7 after dismantling previously ranked South Dakota. McNeese shot up 10 spots to #12 after soundly beating Southland rival Nicholls. Rhode Island and Stony Brook each slid up 5 spots to #19 and #20 respectively following a multitude of teams in front of them losing. North Dakota made their debut in the AGS top 25 this year coming from completely out of the poll all the way up to #23 after a big road win in Huntsville against Sam Houston State. Western Illinois also climbed back into the top 25 coming in at #25 after picking up their first win of the year against Montana.

Due to the previously mentioned upsets there were quite a few teams that took a tumble starting with Villanova who dropped 6 spots to #15 after falling to unranked Towson. Samford dropped 9 spots to #16 after being upset at home by unranked Mercer. Sam Houston State tumbled 10 spots down to #18 following their aforementioned loss to UND. Nicholls and Montana both dropped 6 spots to #21 and #22, respectively, after the both dropped contests over the weekend to ranked foes. South Dakota and Northern Arizona both dropped out of the top 25 after lopsided losses.

In terms of conference representation the CAA led the way placing 6 teams into the top 25. They were followed by the MVFC with 5, the Big Sky and Southland with 4 each, and the SOCON with 2 teams in the top 25.

Full results below:

Rank Change Team Total Points First Place Votes
1 North Dakota State Bison 2296 89
2 James Madison Dukes 2198 3
3 South Dakota State Jackrabbits 2093
4 1 Kennesaw State Owls 1873
5 -1 Eastern Washington Eagles 1817
6 North Carolina A&T Aggies 1811
7 5 Weber State Wildcats 1645
8 3 Maine Black Bears 1591
9 1 Wofford Terriers 1488
10 3 Illinois State Redbirds 1353
11 3 Elon Phoenix 1279
12 10 McNeese State Cowboys 1122
13 4 Jacksonville State Gamecocks 1033
14 4 Central Arkansas Bears 949
15 -6 Villanova Wildcats 901
16 -9 Samford Bulldogs 786
17 2 UC Davis Aggies 771
18 -10 Sam Houston State Bearkats 733
19 5 Rhode Island Rams 520
20 5 Stony Brook Seawolves 439
21 -6 Nicholls State Colonels 423
22 -6 Montana Grizzlies 349
23 NR North Dakota Fighting Hawks 269
24 -1 Northern Iowa Panthers 250
25 6 Western Illinois Leathernecks 249
ORV:
26 NR Towson Tigers 235
27 Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens 234
28 2 Chattanooga Mocs 181
29T -1 Sac State Hornets 164
29T -9 South Dakota Coyotes 164
31 2 Montana State Bobcats 158
32 NR Mercer Bears 144
33 -7 Colgate Raiders 120
34 -6 Austin Peay Governors 119
35 -1 Richmond Spiders 29
36 NR Missouri State Bears 23
37 NR Princeton Tigers 22
38 2 Harvard Crimson 20
39 -19 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks 11
40 NR Western Carolina Catamounts 10

Most Significant Win: North Dakota Fighting Hawks
Most Significant Loss: Sam Houston State Bearkats

Dropped out of the poll:
Southern Illinois Salukis
Yale Bulldogs
Furman Paladins
Prairie View A&M Panthers
New Hampshire Wildcats
Youngstown State Penguins

 

Join the discussion here: http://www.anygivensaturday.com/showthread.php?212803-AGS-Poll-Results-WEEK-3-POLL-2018-SEASON

Patriot League Week 3: A Tropical Cyclone and Winless Teams

It was a stormy start for everyone in the Patriot League not named Colgate (2-0) through the first two games of the season. Then Hurricane Florence picked up steam early this week and decided to bear down on The Carolinas. With Florence’s impending wrath expected to cause major headaches in the Greenville, SC area the Colgate-Furman game was wisely cancelled on Wednesday.

The Picks

With this week’s schedule still in a bit of limbo due to Hurricane Florence and the league facing another year of non-league (1-6 last week) struggles we’re going to keep things simple and to the point.

Yale (0-0) at Holy Cross (0-2, 0-1) 1 P.M. Fitton Field Worcester, MA

Live Streaming: Patriot League Network

The Pick: Yale is coming off a 9-1, outright Ivy League Championship season. With so much talent returning, especially on offense, the Eli are the prohibitive favorite to repeat. Holy Cross enters this game a bit bruised and battered after last week’s 62-14 blowout loss to Boston College. Holy Cross’s QB situation is still unsettled while Yale has a dynamic QB-RB combo in Rawlins and Dudek. The Eli will likely be a little rusty to start but they will ultimately take control in the second half.

Yale 34 Holy Cross 20

Georgetown (1-1) at Dartmouth (0-0) 1:30 P.M Memorial Stadium Hanover, NH

Live Streaming: ESPN+

The Pick: The Hoyas head to New England with several questions surrounding their offense. After a strong opener against Marist, the Hoyas offense returned to 2017 form in their 13-6 loss to Campbell last week. Georgetown QB Gunther Johnson and the rest of the “O” must find a way to generate points against a tough Dartmouth defense. The Big Green were picked 5th in Ivy League but have the potential to challenge for the title. The key will be getting the quarterback and running back spots settled. The Hoya’s defense will keep this interesting but Dartmouth is too good on both side of the ball to lose their season opener.

Dartmouth 24 Georgetown 10

Bucknell (0-2) at Penn (0-0) 3 P.M. Franklin Field Philadelphia, PA

Live Streaming: ESPN+

The Pick: The Bison’s offense continues to be among the worst units in the Patriot League. Quarterback John Chiarolanzio has struggled out of the gate. As a result the passing attack has been stuck in neutral. Without Freshnock, the running game has also failed to establish itself with any semblance of consistency. The defense, however, remains formidable. Penn was tabbed for 5th in the preseason Ivy League Poll. The Quakers must find playmakers after losing one of the top WR’s in FCS to graduation. Expect a healthy dose of RB Karekin Brooks behind a strong OL. The Bison will need to win the turnover battle to escape Philly with a win.

Penn 27 Bucknell 13

Lehigh (1-1) at Navy (1-1) 3:30 P.M. Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium Annapolis, MD

Live Television: CBS Sportsnetwork

The Pick: For the first time in 31 years Lehigh and Navy will square off on the gridiron. Interestingly, the then Engineers won that game 24-9. With the status of All-American RB Dominic Bragalone up in the air it’s hard to see the Lehigh offense emerging from their early season funk against a solid FBS defense. Navy, who is averaging 295 ypg on ground behind QB Malcom Perry, will find plenty of running room against an improved but still leaky Lehigh defense. The Mountain Hawks might be able to avoid complete embarrassment but this one still won’t be pretty.

Navy 42 Lehigh 17

Monmouth (1-1) at Lafayette (0-2) 6 P.M. Fisher Field Easton, PA

Live Streaming: Patriot League Network

The Pick: It’s hard to find a team in FCS that has endured an uglier start to the 2018 season than Lafayette. The Leopards have shown very little on offense and defense in their two blowout losses to start the year. The quarterback position has become a revolving door between Northrup and O’Malley while the defense has struggled to get off the field. Monmouth has been a bit up and down to start the season. The Hawks entered the season with hopes of a return trip to the playoffs given the amount of talent returning. They know a loss to the Leopards would be devastating.

Monmouth 42 Lafayette 10

Stony Brook (1-1) at Fordham (0-2) 6 P.M. Jack Coffey Field Bronx, NY

Live Streaming: Patriot League Network

The Pick: The Joe Conlin era has officially gotten off to a cringe worthy start after last week’s 52-7 loss to Richmond. The Spiders are always a tough out but the Rams overall effort from the opening kickoff to the final whistle left a lot of be desired. The defense had no answer for the Spider rushing attack. That’s not a good sign heading into this week’s battle with Stony Brook who possess one of the more physical offenses in FCS. The Seawolve RB tandem of Jordan Gowins and Don Liotine should be inline for another big week.

Stony Brook 38 Fordham 17

 

The FCS Wedge – 2018-0912 – Wk3 PREVIEW

Kris leads us in to the Week 3 preview by questioning Lance on his big games for the week.  Lance goes with these candidates.

South Dakota @ Weber State

Nicholls State @ McNeese State

Colgate @ Furman (this game was cancelled after recording of show)

Montana @ Western Illinois

Additional Topic:

The lads go over a couple of breakout players through the first couple weeks who may not have been on the radar coming into the season.

South Dakota QB Austin Simmons has thrown for 719 yards and 5 touchdowns and has run for another 80.

Houston Baptist linebacker Langston Tunson already has 9 tackles for loss including 3 sacks and leads the nation at 17.5 tackles per game.

Same question with teams to follow that up…

Kris decided he had to go with Maine and Rhode Island.  Lance is forced out on a limb due to those picks and goes with UC Davis and Villanova.

They flip the script and go on to talk about the teams that have been a disappointment so far.

#1is New Hampshire with a bad loss to Maine and close loss to Colgate.

#2 would be Furman. The 48-7 loss to Clemson is explainable but not losing by a similar score to Elon.

#3 for Lance was YSU with his expectation that some of Bo’s recruits might come in to their own this year.

Kris adds in the Leathernecks and Lehigh as two teams he expected a lot more out of so far this year.

The FCS Wedge – 2018-0912 – Wk2 REVIEW

In the week 2 review Kris and Lance hit us with some great FCS discussion and also look over several of the games from last weekend.  This is the lowdown for this week.

TOPIC 1 Maine Strikes Again

Maine 31 Western Kentucky 28

They discuss the glory of the AGS Poll

More Recaps From The Previous Week

Eastern Washington 31 Northern Arizona 26

South Dakota State 45 Montana State 14

Elon 45 Furman 7

UC-Davis 54 San Diego 21

Colgate 10 New Hampshire 3

Rhode Island 45 Albany 26

Spoiler alert, the show ends by Kris saying “goodbye for now”.

Having trouble with the player today so visit this link for the podcast.

The FCS Wedge Link