Must Watch Week 4

The first 3 weeks of the season have given us lots of shocks and surprises. Here is a list of games you must watch in Week 4 to get the big picture of who’s who in FCS football.

 

Saturday, Sept 24 Time(CST) TV
Charleston Southern @ Monmouth 12:00pm ESPN3
East Tennessee State @ Wofford 1:00pm ESPN3
Samford @ Chattanooga 1:00pm SoCon Digital
Montana @ Cal Poly 2:00pm ROOT Sports
Western Illinois @ Northern Illinois 2:30pm ESPN3
Colgate @ Richmond 2:30pm CSN/STREAM
Sacred Heart @ Stony Brook 5:00pm STREAM
Eastern Washington @ Northern Arizona 6:00pm Fox Sports AZ
Jacksonville State @ Liberty 6:00pm ESPN3
Central Arkansas @ Arkansas State 6:00pm ESPN3
St. Francis @ Albany 6:00pm STREAM
Portland State @ Southern Utah 7:00pm STREAM

 

  • Charleston Southern was a team on the rise in 2015 and they started 2016 with a bang. Their Week 0 game with NDSU was a heavyweight fight that went into OT before the Bison pulled out the win. Since that game CSU has seen some rough times. Their team faced some off the field issues and the on the field action involved a big win over a sub D-I school and a beat down from Florida State while a lot of the CSU players were suspended. This week’s game against Monmouth is the start of their run in the Big South and with their non-conference schedule, a Big South title is their best bet to make the playoffs. Monmouth is off to a 2-1 start with wins over Lehigh and Delaware State.
  • East Tennessee State revived their football program in 2015 and this is their first season back in the Southern Conference. 2016 is off to a shocking 2-0 start and this week the Bucs take on Wofford. Wofford has won the games they were expected to win and this game may be a bigger challenge than the Terriers expected going into the season.
  • Preseason SoCon favorite Chattanooga hosts a feisty Samford team coming off a bye week. Chatanooga was challenged by a scrappy Furman team in Week 3 to get their first SoCon win of the season. Samford is coming off of a win over Central Arkansas. The winner of this game will be the most likely team to challenge The Citadel (2-0 SoCon) for the conference title.
  • Both Montana and Cal Poly both picked up big non-conference wins in the first 3 weeks and now the teams meet up for what will be both teams’ 1st Big Sky conference game of the 2016 season. Cal Poly has won the last 2 matchups against the Griz and the game before that went to overtime. This game looks to be a big part of deciding who wins the Big Sky title in 2016.
  • Western Illinois is off to a great start at 2-0 with wins over two Top 40 FCS opponents. Their in-state FBS rival Northern Illinois is off to a rough start and is clearly in the crosshairs for a potential upset. This game gives WIU a chance to continue their climb in the polls and get some home-state bragging rights for 2016.
  • Richmond is coming off of a shocking upset and is missing some key pieces. Colgate had a Cinderella run in the 2015 FCS playoffs and stomped Yale last weekend. This is a great non-conference match-up between two programs who made deep runs in 2015. I expect it to be a close one.
  • Stony Brook is making a splash on the national scene with their unexpected beat down of a highly ranked Richmond squad last weekend. Sacred Heart is off to a 3-0 start against 3 Pioneer League opponents. This game gives us a chance to see an upward trending Stony Brook team and should be a barometer on where this Sacred Heart team is at heading into NEC play.
  • Eastern Washington has had an exciting roller coaster of ups and downs in the first few weeks of the season with an FBS win, an OT loss, and a last-minute win on a fake FG. They get their first Big Sky challenge on the road against a highly touted Northern Arizona squad that is looking to get things on track before the wheels fall of their 2016 playoff hopes. Expect a high scoring track meet.
  • Jacksonville State got its first challenge of the 2016 season last week against a transitional Coastal Carolina squad. Liberty has had a tough schedule to start 2016, taking on 2 FBS opponents in their first 3 weeks. Jacksonville State needs this win to continue their quest for a top seed and Liberty needs the win if they want a chance at an at-large bid.
  • Central Arkansas is off to a 2-0 start in the Southland Conference, but lost a key out of conference match-up against Samford. This week the Bears get a chance to take on an in-state FBS opponent against Arkansas State. This game should give us an idea if the Bears are in the mix for the SLC title, an at-large bid, or spending Thanksgiving at home.
  • Saint Francis has been off to an interesting start in 2016. They started off the season with a surprising performance in a loss against Montana, battled Towson within a touchdown, and then defeated Columbia. It seems like the Red Flash have improved. Albany is off to a 3-0  start including an FBS win. A win on Saturday for Albany and the playoffs should be in the Great Danes plans for 2016.
  • Portland State and Southern Utah both made playoff appearances in 2015 and left high hopes for the 2016 season.  Portland State essentially scheduled themselves out of at-large contention by playing 2 FBS opponents and a sub D-I team. Southern Utah is coming off of a decent non-conference win over Southeastern Louisiana. This is both team’s first Big Sky clash of the season and Portland State really needs a Division I win if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive.

 

SLC: Week 4 Preview

Week 3 is in the books, with last year’s conference champion McNeese taking a surprising loss to Stephen F Austin, while Sam Houston keeps rolling through conference with a resounding win over Lamar, and Nicholls State and Houston Baptist both picking up their first conference wins. Let’s see what this week has in store for us!

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Abilene Christian at Stephen F Austin

At the beginning of this season, if you had asked me who the SLC dark horse was, I would have told you Abilene Christian, but with surprising losses to Northern Colorado and Houston Baptist, I wonder if they can turn it around and salvage the season. They have a potent offense, but their defense is questionable. Stephen F Austin, on the other hand, is keeping their tradition of Jekyll and Hyde football going. While Zach Conque is earning Southland Conference Player of the Week nods for his performance versus McNeese, it took backup quarterback Hunter Taylor to lead a drive that notched the win. The fans, for the most part, want to see Taylor start and see how well he can do, but nepotism runs rampant in Nacogdoches, and Clint Conque is going to start his son. This game will probably be a tale of two offenses, as SFA pulls out the victory 42-35.

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McNeese at Incarnate Word

For all intents and purposes, McNeese should have beaten SFA last week, except for the fact that they could not play mistake free football. Quarterback James Tabary did everything he could last week to get McNeese the win, going for 348 yards and 4 touchdowns, but special teams mistakes were what hurt McNeese the most. Incarnate Word is coming off of a loss to the momentum carrying Colonels of Nicholls State, and it will be interesting to see if they can bounce back. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, it’s not happening this week. The Pokes give the Cardinals the boot, and win big 38-14.

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Northwestern State at Southeastern Louisiana

The two teams at the opposite corners of the state of Louisiana will meet up in Hammond for what should be a blowout. Northwestern State is sitting at 0-3 (0-2) and while one loss was to FBS Baylor, the other two were in games they should have been competitive in. Their offense is struggling mightily, only averaging 11.6 points per game, while their defense is atrocious. Southeastern Louisiana comes in 0-2, but they hung in with Southern Utah two weeks ago, and the Lions should come in refreshed off of their bye week and will be ready to notch one up in the win column. Southeastern takes this one 28-10

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Sam Houston State at Houston Baptist

Back to back road games for Sam Houston, but can you really call it a road game when the visiting team will outnumber the home fans 3 to 1? Sam fans travel well, and they will fill up Husky Stadium. Sam comes into this one after getting their revenge on Lamar 44-31. Until someone knocks them off, they are the class of the conference, and that is going to continue this week. HBU comes in with a conference win over Abilene Christian, which was their second conference win in school history, and they definitely have momentum on their side. One player to keep an eye on is linebacker Garret Dolan. He has 42 total tackles in 3 games, 2 sacks, 9 tackles for loss, and he has a nose for the ball, and is basically a bulldog in the trenches. It will be interesting to see how he matches up against Corey Avery and the Sam Houston offense. While HBU’s program is definitely growing, this game should be over quickly. Sam wins 49-7

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Nicholls State at South Alabama

What is going on in the swamp?!? After almost getting the biggest FCS win in college history, Nicholls, normally a bottom feeder in the SLC, finds themselves in the top 5 in the conference standings after taking out Incarnate Word. Every SLC fan is wondering if Nicholls will be a serious competitor for the championship. I’m calling it now; Nicholls gets their FBS scalp, beating the Jags 24-21

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Central Arkansas at Arkansas State

Central Arkansas still has bragging rights in the Southland Conference, since they are the only team with two conference wins, they can boast about being top dog. They are going to travel to Jonesboro to take on the Red Wolves, who are currently 0-3 on the year. I think we see another FBS scalp here as well as UCA is going to take this one 28-17

SOCON: Week 4 Preview

The SOCON has 2 OOC games including FBS bound Coastal Carolina and Bucknell as well as a key conference matchup between Chattanooga and Samford. ETSU also looks to continue its winning ways against Wofford during its return season to the SOCON.  (SOCON Weekly Notes)

ETSU at Wofford 1:30PM  (ESPN3) (Wofford Game Notes)

ETSU put the SOCON on notice last week that they are ready and capable of playing in the SOCON by knocking off Western Carolina. The Bucs did well in the first week stopping Kennesaw State’s running game.  But they are not Wofford.

The Terriers have cranked out 300+ yards a game on the ground with Lorenzo Long leading the way with about 90 a game. But the Terriers have a stable of capable runners.  Wofford is converting over 50% of their 3rd downs.  The ETSU defense is not exceptional.  They allowed WCU to score 31 points while WCU only had the ball for 22 minutes last week.  They are allowing 390 yards a game on average.  However, they have prospered by controlling the clock fairly well, averaging over 33 minutes of possession per game.  But that is how Wofford operates as well.

The Bucs offense has been fairly balanced so far with QB Austin Herink going 42/63 for 483 yards. He has no interceptions and 3 TDs as well.  Herink’s performance against WCU earned him SOCON Offensive Player of the Week.  ETSU has also sustained their drives making a solid 56% of their 3rd down conversions while averaging 155 yards on the ground and 241 through the air.  The Wofford Defense has allowed only 258 yards a game.  While that included an effort against hapless JC Smith, it also included Ole Miss.

The Bucs can certainly make a game of it, especially if turnovers plague Wofford. That is always the bane of option teams, although Wofford is on the plus side of the turnover margin so far. Penalties have hurt ETSU a bit registering 100 yards a game.  Wofford has about half that.  Both teams have not done well on kickoff or punt returns.

ETSU’s storybook season will probably come to an end with Wofford’s constant grind of the option attack wearing down the Bucs defense. Look for Wofford to win by three scores at home.

#22 Samford at #6 Chattanooga 2PM (SDN) (Samford / UTC Game Notes)

In a key SOCON matchup, the Mocs hope to again put the Samford Bulldogs in the dog house for the SOCON championship race. Chattanooga’s defense will be tested by an explosive Samford passing attack.

The Moccasins lead FCS in total defense after 3 games holding opponents to just 164 yards a game. After registering 2 shutouts they also lead FCS in scoring defense allowing only 2 late scores by Furman last week.  While their offensive opposition has been mediocre so far, this is still impressive.  Their defensive line is stout and they will be sack hungry against Samford’s Devlin Hodges.  The Mocs already have 10 in three games.  If there is a weakness in their defense it may be in the secondary.  Give Hodges time and he may strike.  Hodges is averaging almost 300 yards a game.  He is 62/84 with 1 interception and 8 TDs. Last week against the Mocs, Furman’s Reese Hannon came off the bench in the third and still finished 14-20 for 174 yards.  If Samford’s offensive line can protect Hodges (and that is a big if) or they can maintain success with an up tempo quick strike passing attack, the Mocs will have a game on their hands.

Against the run Chattanooga has been impressive allowing only 185 total yards in 3 games. Given that Samford recorded a minus 25 yards a couple weeks ago against Central Arkansas, they will have a long day if they can’t figure out how to move the ball on the ground, at least a little bit.

On offense, the Mocs have been able to move the ball fairly well averaging a perfectly balanced 204 yards each for running and passing. QB Alejandro Bennifield has gone 30/40 with 2 interceptions and 9 TDs.  He has a decent arm and is gaining more confidence as the season progresses.  The Moc’s leading running back Derrick Craine has averaged 78 yards a game.  Samford has given up 356 yards a game.  But in their one game against a Div I opponent they gave up 577 yards including huge chunks in the 4th quarter, albeit with a lead at the time.  Samford will be doomed if they can’t get more defensive stops.

Both teams have fairly good special teams and they are on the plus side on the turnover margins. The game will come down to the effectiveness of UTC’s defense against Hodges passing game.  He will have some success, but the Mocs should be able to limit him and win by at least 2 touchdowns.

VMI at Bucknell 3PM (VMI Radio) (VMI Game Notes)

The Keydets of VMI travel to Bucknell for their 3rd consecutive road game to start the season. Behind the arm of Al Cobb, VMI is looking for its first winning season since 1981.  They lost to the Bison last year at home in OT 22-28.  That was one of 4 games where they lost by 1 score.  Their road victory two weeks ago was their first in 6 years.  They are close.

Cobb just missed becoming the all time career passer at VMI the last game. He will get it this week; he only needs 30 yards.  He is averaging 203 yards a game going 42-69 with no interceptions and 4 TDs in 2 games.  Their leading receiver, Aaron Sanders leads the conference with 9 catches per game.  VMI is rushing 136 yards a game.  They have had problems converting 3rd downs going a disappointing 30%.

They will have to be productive to get by Bucknell. The Keydet defense is giving up 472 yards a game, although one game was against FBS Akron.  They hung in well in that game, staying within 2 points until the 4th quarter.  They have held their 2 opponents to 134 yards a game on the ground.

They have a respectable return average, but have gone 2-7 on FGs. They lead the conference in fewest penalties and have a positive turnover margin.   They aren’t making a lot of mistakes.

If Cobb continues his accurate throwing and the team continues to be disciplined, look for VMI to get a much needed, although close win over Bucknell on the road.

Furman at Coastal Carolina 6PM (Furman Radio)

Furman finishes out a ridiculously hard September slate of games at FBS bound Coastal Carolina (after playing FBS #8 Mich St, FCS #9 The Citadel, and FCS #6 UTC). Coastal may have gained some undefined edge by their announced move, but like some previous SOCON teams who have moved up, that does not necessarily translate into any actual advantage, yet.  And depending on how they are grooming their players, it may actually hurt.  In any event, Coastal has owned Furman lately with the Paladins losing 5 times in 5 years, although they were all one score losses with 2 going to OT.  In other words, Furman would love to win this one.

And they have a chance. Furman’s defense has not disappointed.  They have limited Mich St to 28, The Citadel to 19 and UTC to 21 points.  Their problem is on offense where they just can’t seem to generate any yardage.  They have only managed to gain an average of 260 yards, with only 81 on the ground each week, but it was against 3 very good defenses.  After they struggled against UTC in the first half this past week, they had some success after their starting QB P.J. Blazejowski was knocked out of the game and Reese Hannon replaced him.  And while UTC had the game in hand, Hannon did engineer two 4th quarter scoring drives to make it respectable.  It will be interesting to see who they start this week. CCU is allowing 199 yards through the air each game and 208 on the ground.

After a couple scrimmages against Lamar and Florida A&M which they dominated, the Chanticleers gave Jacksonville State all they could handle losing 26-27. CCU is averaging 398 yards per game.  Against a decent JSU defense they only managed 348 with a paltry 42 on the ground.  Furman is allowing 316 yards a game, including only 147 through the air.  Granted their opposition has not consisted of explosive passing teams, but Furman may be able to limit CCU’s passing game.

Furman’s special teams are solid. They have limited the penalties to a respectable 45 yards a game, but they are last in turnover margin in the SOCON and have a -1 tally.

In order to win they obviously need to generate better numbers on offense. If they can, and their defense holds up, Furman can pull off the upset.  If for no other reason, they are due.  Don’t be surprised with a one score upset by Furman over CCU.  Call it a parting gift.

Big Sky Conference: Week 3 Review and Power Rankings

Week three of the Big Sky Conference football season is in the books and some teams got some needed wins this week to either save their season or help their season along. The biggest win of the week happened in Cheney Washington as the Eagles took down MVFC opponent Northern Iowa in a shootout. The Eagles scored the winning touchdown on a … very large onions call by Beau Baldwin. A fake field goal that would have tied the game turned into the game winning touchdown pass. Been a long time since I’ve seen a call that ballsy, gotta hand it to Baldwin there. Coaches are generally pretty conservative, especially in that situation, but man.

North Dakota got a big win against their border rival South Dakota this week. That win may have saved their season as they could not afford to fall into a 0-3 hole to start the season, especially as being picked as a dark horse in the Big Sky. Cal Poly got a very quality win against South Dakota State on the road this weekend. Good momentum heading into a big home game against Montana. Even though it may have been fairly insignificant, Northern Arizona took care of business against their division II opponent this weekend to notch a win in the win column.

The Big Sky suffered four play-up game losses this weekend, none of them were even remotely close. Average margin of victory in those four contests was 29 points. Granted, all four teams that were playing up this week are likely the bottom four teams in the Big Sky. Montana State also took care of business against their division II opponent for their second win of the season. All in all, not a bad weekend for the Big Sky.

Scores

UC-Davis 22
Wyoming 45

Portland State 3
Washington 41

Northern Colorado 21
Colorado State 47

Western Oregon 0
Montana State 55

Idaho State 7
Oregon State 37

New Mexico Highlands 3
Northern Arizona 73

Cal Poly 38
South Dakota State 31

Northern Iowa 30
Eastern Washington 34

Sacramento State 7
Weber State 14

Player of the Week

Joe Protheroe, running back at Cal Poly. Protheroe had 31 carries for 217 yards and two touchdowns in the Mustangs win over South Dakota State.

Big Sky MVP Candidates

Gage Gabrud, Eastern Washington. 13/26 for 114 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions.
Cooper Kupp, Eastern Washington. Did not accumulate any stats.
John Santiago, North Dakota. 22 carries for 140 yards and one touchdown.
Case Cookus, Northern Arizona. 14/25, 296 yards and seven touchdowns.
Emmanuel Butler, Northern Arizona. 6 receptions for 99 yards and five touchdowns.

Big Sky Power Rankings

1. Eastern Washington
2. Montana
3. Cal Poly
4. Southern Utah
5. Montana State
6. Portland State
7. North Dakota
8. Northern Arizona
9. Weber State
10. Northern Colorado
11. UC-Davis
12. Idaho State
13. Sacramento State

Looking Ahead to Week 4

Three big match-ups in the Big Sky this week as conference play gets fully underway. Montana will travel to Cal Poly. Eastern Washington will travel to Flagstaff to take on Northern Arizona. Portland State will head to Utah to take on Southern Utah. In a game that someone has to win, but in the end, we’re all losers for maybe having watched it, Sacramento State will go to Idaho State. No one wins there, folks.

While this week certainly doesn’t have an immediate impact there could be some games this week that will help sort out auto-bids and playoff seeding. Explosive week of games on the docket.

Final Thoughts and Hot Takes

– Big win for Eastern Washington and the Big Sky. The Big Sky has a certain reputation against the MVFC that it might be a little soft. So far Montana and Eastern have taken down the likely number two team in the MVFC, and Eastern took the champions to overtime in Fargo.

– Expected Portland State to put up more of a fight against Washington this past weekend. Portland State was simply outclasses by a Washington team under Chris Peterson who is rolling right now.

– Honestly a little surprised that North Dakota beat South Dakota. Both teams played very well and the game went to double overtime. Keeton Stensrud’s touchdown in overtime was the winner, and a win that the Hawks needed.

– The Fighting Hawks is still a really dumb choice, and even worse logo.

– Cal Poly’s win at South Dakota State surprised me as well, kind of out of nowhere. South Dakota State may have been surprised by that triple option offense, and Joe Protheroe was a load to handle for the Jacks. We’ll find out this weekend if Cal Poly is for real or not.

– Weber State and Sacramento State made people regret spending money on watching that game.. just brutal. Not even sure it was good defense as Weber put up 580 yards and only 14 points to show for it.

– Weber quarterback Jadrian Clark was responsible for 451 of those yards, by the way.

Big South: Week 3 Review

 

(1-2) Presbyterian 31,   (2-1) Campbell 14

Well, that came out of nowhere.

Presbyterian went on the road to Campbell and routed the home team.  PC scored on each of their first three possessions and held CU to three-and-outs on their first three possessions and jumped out to a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter.  The Blue Hose offense rode heavily on the back of RB Darrell Bridges as he racked up 159 yards on 32 carries.  Presby’s starting QB, Ben Cheek, sat out this game with an injury but his backup, Will Brock, performed efficiently.  Brock threw for two touchdowns and ran in another but, just as importantly, took care of the football, throwing zero interceptions and was only sacked once.

On defense, Presbyterian held Campbell without a first down until under eight minutes left in the second quarter.  Just before the half – with PC up 24-6 –, Campbell managed to mount their first sustained drive of the game.  A score there and the knowledge that they would have the ball first in the second half would have given the Camels momentum going into halftime.  However, LB Grant Beidel blitzed up the middle and pressured the CU quarterback into a bad throw that allowed DB Kevin Green to make a leaping interception along the sideline.  Campbell did manage to get a second touchdown but not until midway through the 4th quarter and when the game had been virtually decided.

Presbyterian racked up 346 yards of offense in this game which, by PC standards, was an offensive explosion.  Presbyterian hadn’t come close to that output in nearly a year and was averaging just over half that through the first two games.  Was that because of the high caliber of teams they were playing (Central Michigan and Chattanooga) or was this sudden burst because of the fact that they were playing a non-scholarship program (Campbell)?  The answer is probably a good bit of both.  Without attempting to insinuate anything, this was Presby’s first game of 2016 where the talent level between they and their opponent seemed remotely close to being even.  Three concerns for PC going forward:

  • How significant is QB Ben Cheek’s injury? Brock – who, I believe, is a walk-on – subbed in nicely for Cheek but doesn’t have Cheek’s athleticism.  Still, he managed the game and PC won.  Head coach Harold Nichols has been known to switch QB’s at the drop of a hat so it’ll be interesting to see how this situation plays out.
  • Presby’s defense was effective against Campbell but not at the dominant level they’ve been for the last several years.  They were aided by the offense staking an early lead and holding the ball for 20 minutes in the first half but, at times, the defense looked average and – Saturday’s offensive output notwithstanding – average is not something the PC defense can afford to be.
  • Bridges carried the ball 32 times, twice as many carries as the rest of the team combined. Obviously, Bridges is a workhorse back but he’s also only human.  A year ago, Bridges carried the ball 221 times through 11 games – or roughly 20 times a game – while also fighting through injury.  To this point, he is actually ahead of that pace and is 7th in all of Division I for total rushing attempts.  Can he maintain this pace and remain healthy?

What does this win mean for PC? – This was a victory earned and cemented as the offense built an early three-score lead and the defense had to do nothing more than hold it.  Presbyterian hasn’t had that kind of win over anyone in quite some time.  Even last year’s win over this same Campbell squad stayed in the balance until late in the game.  This is a win you can build on.

(2-1) SMU 29, (1-2) Liberty 14

Turnovers and penalties.

The same problems that cost Liberty two weeks ago against Virginia Tech reared their ugly head again against SMU only in a much more winnable game.  Early in the game, it became clear that LU was there to take down their third FBS opponent in as many years.  After giving up a long touchdown run on SMU’s first drive, the Flames came back and marched right down the field on a 12-play, 75-yard drive to tie the game up midway through the first quarter.  Liberty LB Nick Newman picked off SMU in the end zone on the next drive and it looked like LU had the chance to repeat the pattern.  However, QB Stephon Masha was picked off to end the drive and, following an SMU field goal, again on the next drive.  Meanwhile, the LU defense was holding serve in the red zone.  SMU gained yards all over the field but, inside the +20, had no answers for the Flames’ defense.  On the night, SMU got into the red zone five times and came away with three field goals.  At the halftime break, SMU led 13-7 and it was still pretty much anyone’s game.

However, in the second half, the turnovers continued and the penalties mounted.  Nothing exemplified that more than a five-play stretch early in the 3rd quarter.  Newman’s second interception of the game was nullified by penalty and, on the next play, SMU broke through on the ground for a long touchdown run and a 19-7 lead.  The Mustangs botched the snap on the PAT, however, and Liberty returned it for two points only to have that score wiped out by an illegal kicking penalty.  SMU promptly sent the kickoff out of bounds giving the Flames great field position to start a drive whereupon Masha immediately threw his third interception of the game.  The Liberty defense held but Masha was done for the night.  True freshman Steven ‘Buckshot’ Calvert – I did not make up the nickname – came in and led LU down the field, ending the drive with a pretty back corner pass in the end zone for a touchdown to close the margin to five.  After SMU missed a field goal, Calvert got another crack at the end zone and threw another strike for score that seemed to give the Flames the lead…only to have it called back for a penalty.  Ultimately, that drive– and, truthfully, the Flames hopes – ended with a blocked field goal.  SMU would tack on 10 points in the final 45 seconds of the game with a field goal and a desperation pass from Calvert that turned into a pick-six for the home team.

What does this loss mean for Liberty? – It’s a game that Liberty wasn’t supposed to win – 5dimes had SMU as a 15-point favorite – but, given their history against low-level FBS teams the last two years, it’s a game that Liberty had every reason to believe they could win.  So, from that perspective, it’s disappointing.  Also, an FBS win would have been nice to have in hand come November.

(1-2) Kent State 27, (2-1) Monmouth 7

The Monmouth Hawks flew over to Ohio on Saturday to face an FBS opponent for only the second time in their history.  In a game dominated by weather as much as anything else, Monmouth probably picked the wrong day to come to Ohio.  Aside from the obvious gap in scholarship numbers, Kent State was just coming off of a four-overtime loss the week before to FCS North Carolina A&T so they came out to play in the rain with a sizeable chip on their shoulder.

Offensively, Monmouth was unproductive and that’s putting it mildly.  Monmouth went three-and-out on every drive in the first quarter and finished the first frame with -14 total yards.  It’s important to note that, due to injury, Monmouth was working without the services of explosive running back Lavon Chaney.  Chaney and fellow RB Zach Welch have been something of a ‘thunder and lightning’ tandem through the first two weeks.  While Welch played against Kent and gained 51 of the team’s 67 rushing yards on the day, just as you can’t have thunder without lightning – at that point, it’s more like a bowling ball rolling around in the attic –, Welch was ineffectual.  Monmouth coach Kevin Callahan also rotated QB’s Cody Williams and Kenji Bahar seemingly indiscriminately against Kent State and neither did much of anything but that’s certainly due to the weather in part.

Defensively, Monmouth safety Mike Basile picked up 16 tackles in the game and the Hawks blocked their 5th kick of the season.  However, the Kent State offense was not going to be denied.  The Golden Flashes – I didn’t come up with that nickname either – weren’t exactly good on offense but they mauled out enough yards on the soggy ground to keep their offense on the field and occasionally make a difference on the scoreboard.

What does this loss mean for Monmouth? – The Hawks got paid and got to play in a nominally FBS stadium, so the loss isn’t huge.  What is significant is that Chaney’s absence from the lineup was obvious and severe.   They absolutely need him back on the field.

(3-0) The Citadel 31,  (1-2) Gardner-Webb 24

It was right there.  It was right there.

With 8:10 left in the 4th quarter, when Gardner-Webb quarterback Tyrell Maxwell hit Willie Jackson IV for a touchdown to take a 24-21 lead over 15th-ranked The Citadel, you could feel it.  The G-W offense was clicking, Maxwell had finally been successful throwing the ball downfield, the defense had contained The Citadel’s triple-option offense for the entire second half, the home crowd was behind them and, for a moment, it seemed as if the Runnin’ Bulldogs of Gardner-Webb were going to pull off a season-defining upset win.

But, then, The Citadel offense went to work.  Over the course of the next five minutes and ten plays, the (other) Bulldogs gnawed their way down the field, eating away the clock before punching the ball into the end zone from a yard out to take the decisive lead.  Despite there being more than two minutes left in the game, Gardner-Webb was done.  Maxwell took a first down sack on his own 15-yard line and, two plays later, completely froze in the face of a linebacker blitz for another sack that, essentially, ended the game.

Gardner-Webb seemed to be the superior team athletically in this contest but it made no difference to the end result.  Despite establishing a couple of early leads as well as the 4th-quarter advantage, Gardner-Webb was never able to extend them.  Ultimately, The Citadel’s methodical offense along with a special teams touchdown from explosive punt returner DeAndre Schoultz – who had nearly broken through with another punt earlier — were enough to net the visitors yet another fourth quarter comeback win.  Even though they kept The Citadel offense out of the end zone for a full 30 minutes, the (other) Bulldogs had four players average more than five yards a carry on their way to a 400-yard rushing night as a team.

What does this loss mean for Gardner-Webb? – On the one hand, it’s gratifying to know that Gardner-Webb can compete with a team that’s 3-0, ranked in the top 15 nationally and sitting atop the Southern Conference standings.  On the other hand, it’s at least equally as disappointing to have so large a chance to put a stamp on your season simply slip through your collective fingers like, well, like DeAndre Schoultz returning a punt.

 

Biggest surprise of the week:  Presbyterian’s sudden flurry of offense.  Also, the number of teams in the conference with quarterback questions.  If you’re counting at home, it currently stands at five of the six teams. Charleston Southern’s QB was lost for the year with a knee injury and, over the course of 1 ¾ games since, CSU has filled the spot with four different players.  Presbyterian and Kennesaw have QB’s who are also dealing with injuries, albeit less severe than CSU’s situation, and their backups have performed admirably.  Liberty and Monmouth both began the season with a stated starter but have freely substituted in a younger, developing player with mixed results.

Biggest disappointment of the week:  Tough call this week between Gardner-Webb and Liberty.  Both teams have to feel like they had their chances to do something significant and let it get away.  I’ll have to go with Liberty simply because (a.) I had G-W in this space last week and (b.) because the stage and subsequent upside of a victory was larger for Liberty.

Patriot League: Week 3 Review & Power Rankings

The third week of the season continued the trend of “some good, some bad” for the Patriot League. Colgate and Lehigh notched impressive road wins over two of the top teams from the Ivy league. Meanwhile, Lafayette put up a great fight before falling to their Ancient Eight kryptonite, the Princeton Tigers. Bucknell and Holy Cross each put forth disappointing performances in their respective losses. After three weeks Georgetown remains the only league member with a winning record. The Hoyas enjoyed the week off along with Fordham.

#22 Colgate 55 Yale 13

The Raiders (1-1) handed Yale their worst defeat in the history of the series behind a dominating offensive performance. Yale’s (0-1) 42 point margin of defeat also tied the record for the worst home loss ever. To put that in perspective Yale has been playing football for 144 years. The Colgate rout also ended Yale’s streak of 9 consecutive season opening victories.

It did not look like the game would be a historic blowout early on. Yale grabbed an early 7-0 lead on a short Chapple to Williams-Lopez TD pass. The scoring drive was setup when Haydon Carlson intercepted Jake Melville on Colgate’s opening possession. The Raiders responded a little over two minutes later when Mellville hit Jake Diaco for a 22 yard TD strike to tie the game at 7. Colgate would tack on two more first quarter touchdowns to take a 21-7 lead after 15 minutes of play. Yale would close the gap to 8 points following two Alex Galland field goals early in the second quarter. That would be the closet the Eli would get the rest of the game. Colgate put together scoring drives of 65 and 82 yards to take a commanding 35-13 halftime lead.

The game was not completely out of reach until back-to-back 3rd quarter Yale interceptions resulted in Melville’s fourth touchdown pass and a Jonah Bowman 31 yard field goal. The quick 10 point Raider outburst pushed the score to 45-13. Melville’s school record 5th touchdown pass came early in the 4th quarter when he found senior wide receiver John Maddaluna.

The Raiders outgained Yale 558 to 188 (243 to 12 rushing) on the day. James Holland led the Raider ground attack with 110 yards and 1 TD on 18 carries. John Maddaluna paced the receiving corps by hauling in 7 receptions for 147 yards and 1 TD.

Up Next: The Raiders hit the road for the third consecutive game to start the year when they head to Richmond to take on the Spiders. Richmond who was ranked #2 heading into the weekend suffered a shocking 42-14 loss to Stony Brook. Colgate will be seeking their third straight win over a team from the CAA.

Princeton 35 Lafayette 31

Senior quarterback Drew Reed put forth another excellent performance but it wasn’t quite enough as Lafayette once again fell to Princeton. The Tigers used a balance offensive attack (182 rushing, 178 passing) to escape with a season opening win. It was the Tiger’s 9th consecutive win in the series. It also pushes their overall record against Lafayette to a headshaking 42-4-4.

Princeton started the scoring in first quarter when Joe Rhattigan ran for a 23 yard touchdown. The Tiger scoring drive was aided by a personal foul penalty against Lafayette on third down. Lafayette would not be deterred by the early deficit as the responded with two scoring drives of their (Mayfield 2 yard TD rush, Reed to Mzarek 4 yard TD reception) own to close out the opening quarter with a 14-7 lead. Princeton was able to even the score at 14 midway through the second quarter when John Lovett plunged into the end zone from 2 yards out. The first half offensive firework weren’t over yet. The Leopards and Tigers would trade touchdowns over the final two minutes of the half to head into the locker room tied at 21.

Lafayette once again grabbed the lead in the third quarter when Jacob Bissell booted a 36 yard field goal. Unfortunately for the Leopards, Princeton responded with a 10 play 67 yard drive that was capped by Rhattigan’s second rushing TD of the game. Trailing 28-24 midway through the quarter Drew Reed was picked off for the second time. The Tigers made sure Lafayette paid for the turnover. Rhattigan notched his third TD of the night with 48 seconds left in the third quarter. The xtra-point made it 35-24 Princeton heading into the final 15 minutes.

Lafayette was able to close the gap to 35-31 with 5:27 left when Reed found Mzarek for a second time. Amazingly, the Leopards would never see the ball again. Princeton turned to a grinding running attack to eat up the final five minutes of the game.

As a team, Lafayette failed to reach 100 yards rushing for the 3rd straight game.

Up Next: For the first time in 94 years Lafayette will take on #20 Villanova. Despite the two schools close proximity to one another they’ve only met 4 times, all Leopard wins. Villanova will be coming off an impressive 40-21 win over conference foe Towson.

Lehigh 49 Penn 28

For the second consecutive year Lehigh (1-2) dealt Penn a season opening 21 point loss. Nick Shafnisky (317 yards passing, 71 yards rushing, 6 total TDs) out-dueled Ivy League preseason offensive player of the year Alek Torgersen as the Mountain Hawk offense finally found their stride after two shaky performances to start the year. After struggling in the first half the Lehigh defense also stepped up their game. The much maligned Lehigh D held the Quakers (0-1) scoreless in the second half which allowed the Mountain Hawks to win going away.

It didn’t take long for the offensive fireworks to begin on a warm evening in Philadelphia. Penn emphatically opened the game with a 1 minute 38 second 87 yard touchdown drive. Alek Torgersen found stellar WR Justin Watson from 24 yards out to give the Quakers the very early lead. Lehigh tied the game up a few minutes later when Shafnisky finished a 10 play 72 yard drive with a short touchdown run. The two teams then proceeded to trade touchdowns the rest of the first half which resulted in the score being deadlocked at 28 after 30 minutes of play.

There would be no trading of punches in the second half as the Mountain Hawks took control of the game. Lehigh grabbed their first lead with 12:31 left in the quarter when sophomore running back Micco Brister ran for a 6 yard TD. Lehigh stretched the lead to 42-28 later in the quarter following a Shafnisky to Pelletier (10 reception 123 yards 1 TD) touchdown pass. The Mountain Hawks put the game on ice midway through the 4th quarter on Shafnisky’s third touchdown pass of the night.

Perhaps the most impressive part of Lehigh’s victory was the way the defense played in the second half. After struggling to get their opponents off the field in key second half situations in the first two games, the Lehigh defense held Penn to 3 first downs over the final 30 minutes. Pierce Ripanti led the Lehigh defense with 5 solo tackles and 1 sack.

Up Next: Lehigh will try to avenge a 52-26 beating Princeton dished out last year in New Jersey. Princeton owns a commanding 40-16-2 series lead but Lehigh has won 11 out of the last 15 meetings.

Cornell 24 Bucknell 16

Without starting QB R.J. Nitti the Bison’s (1-2) offense found itself once again struggling to put up points. This time it was the Cornell Big Red (1-0) taking advantage of Bucknell’s inability to score. Matt Muh, who made his first career start, was able to keep Bucknell afloat early on but struggled to find consistency in the second half. The victory meant Cornell matched their 2014 (1-9) and 2015 (1-9) win total after just one game.

Bucknell opened the game by turning to their one consistent force on offense so far this year, Joey DeFloria. The bruising junior RB accounted for 38 of the Bison’s 50 yards during the first possession of the game. DeFloria finished off the drive with a 7 yard TD run to give the Orange and Blue an early 7-0 lead. Bucknell’s next two drives also showed promise before being derailed by Matt Muh turnovers (1 fumble, 1 INT). On their 4th possession of the game the Bison were able to convert a chip shot FG to go ahead 10-0 with 6:24 left in the 2nd quarter. Cornell closed out the first half with 10 straight points of their own.

Bucknell started the 2nd half with an impressive 75 yard scoring drive. DeFloria found the end zone for the second time during the game; this time from 22 yards out. Cornell was able to block the extra point which left the score at 16-10 Bison. Cornell responded with an impressive drive of their own. Cornell QB Dalton Banks used his arm and legs to key a 73 yard TD drive. After the extra point sailed through the uprights the Big Red had their their first lead of the game. Cornell tacked on one more TD late in the 3rd quarter following Matt Muh’s second interception on the night. Bucknell had one final chance late in the game but their drive ended at the Cornell 20 yard line after failing to convert on a 4th and 7.

Joey DeFloria has 397 yards rushing and 6 TDs to start the year. The Bison running back is making an early claim for 1st team all-league honors.

Up Next: Bucknell will try to get back on track next week against Southern Conference member VMI. Bucknell snuck past the Keydets 28-22 in OT last year. VMI is coming off a lackluster 17-13 win over non-scholarship Morehead State.

#19 Albany 45 Holy Cross 28

For the second straight week the Crusaders (1-2) saw their hopes of beating a CAA opponent end in disappointment. The Danes (3-0) found the Holy Cross defense to be the perfect remedy to escape their early season offensive woes. Neven Sussman came with only 120 total passing yards through the first two games but put together an efficient performance (8-12 183 yards 2 TDs) against a struggling Holy Cross “D”. Dane RB Elijah Ibitokun-Hanks continued his early season rampage by piling up 183 yards and 4 TDs. Crusader signal caller Peter Pujals (35-55 355 yards 3 TDs 1 INT) enjoyed his third consecutive monster passing game.

The early stages the game saw the two team’s trade punts and a missed 47 yard Holy Cross FG attempt. The Crusaders finally lit up the scoreboard with 1:47 left in the first quarter when Pujals hit Jordan Montgomery for a 9 yard TD toss. After Holy Cross took a 7-0 lead Albany used the big play to seize control of the game in the second quarter. Ibitokun-Hanks busted off a 40 yard TD run to get the Dane onslaught going with 14:21 left in the first quarter. After a quick 3 and out by the Crusader offense the Danes needed only 28 seconds for their second scoring drive. Sussman connected with Zee Roberson for a 41 yard TD pass which gave the Danes a 14-7 lead. The Danes third scoring drive was setup when Eli Mencer forced a fumble on Darris Lucy’s punt return. Albany capitalized on the short field to up 21-7 with 4:58 to go in the first half. Following a Crusader punt the Danes hit pay dirt for the 4th time in the half when Sussman connected with Zee Roberson for a 49 yard TD with just under 2 minutes left before halftime.

Holy Cross had a nice drive going before half but a fumble at the Albany 4 yard line ended the threat. Albany took a knee and happily headed to the locker room with a commanding 28-7 lead. The closest Holy Cross would get to Albany the rest of game is 10 points (on two occasions).

Despite the 17 point defeat the Crusaders finished with more first downs and more total yards.

Holy Cross WR Brandan Flaherty missed his second straight game due to injury.

Up Next: The Crusaders begin the Ivy League portion of the out of conference schedule against Dartmouth in Worcester. Dartmouth opened their season with a thrilling win over New Hampshire. It was the Big Green’s first win over their Granite State rival since 1976.

Power Rankings

  1. Colgate
  2. Fordham
  3. Lehigh
  4. Lafayette
  5. Holy Cross
  6. Georgetown
  7. Bucknell

 

 

 

AGS Poll: Top 25 Week 3 Results

Week 3 saw a pretty significant re-shuffling amongst the teams in the AGS Top 25. North Dakota State put a stranglehold on the #1 spot garnering 87 of 88 first place votes after their stunning road upset of previously ranked FBS foe Iowa. Jacksonville State received the final first place vote to settle in at #2 and Eastern Washington used an impressive home victory against UNI to vault themselves up 5 spots to #3. Montana and Sam Houston State rounded out the top 5.

Richmond and South Dakota State were a couple of the biggest drops of the week with Richmond dropping 8 spots to #10 after they were pounded by Stony Brook and South Dakota State dropping 10 spots to #15 after Cal Poly dropped the Jackrabbits in Brookings.  Among the biggest risers were four teams that found their way into the top 25 this week. After their previously mentioned win over SDSU, Cal Poly debuted at #17, a 10 spot jump from last week. Stony Brook used their upset of Richmond to rise all the way to #21 from outside of the top 40 last week. Other teams that were impressive enough to make their way into the top 25 were Eastern Illinois, who rose 10 spots to #19, and Harvard, who rose 5 spots to #25, after their first game (and win) of the year.

The CAA and the MVFC led the way with 6 teams each placed into the top 25. The Big Sky was next with 4 and the SOCON followed them with 3.

Full results shown below:

WEEK 3 – 09/19/2016

Rank Team: Total Points First Place Votes Previous Wk.
1 North Dakota State Bison 2199 87 1
2 Jacksonville State Gamecocks 2003 1 3
3 Eastern Washington Eagles 1948 8
4 Montana Grizzlies 1849 7
5 Sam Houston State Bearkats 1842 4
6 Chattanooga Mocs 1784 9
7 James Madison Dukes 1400 10
8 Western Illinois Leathernecks 1376 12
9 The Citadel Bulldogs 1291 13
10 Richmond Spiders 1258 2
11 William & Mary Tribe 1123 15
12 Illinois State Redbirds 1101 6
13 Northern Iowa Panthers 999 11
14 Charleston Southern Buccaneers 983 14
15 South Dakota State Jackrabbits 959 5
16 Youngstown State Penguins 860 17
17 Cal Poly Mustangs 809 27
18 Albany Great Danes 755 19
19 Eastern Illinois Panthers 708 29
20 Villanova Wildcats 689 20
21 Stony Brook Seawolves 632 NR
22 Samford Bulldogs 444 21
23 Colgate Raiders 372 22
24 Portland State Vikings 192 18
25 Harvard Crimson 147 30

 

Most Significant Win:    North Dakota State Bison

Most Significant Loss:    Richmond Spiders

ORV:
26 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks 142 24
27 North Carolina A&T Aggies 140 23
28 McNeese State Cowboys 102 16
29 Southern Utah Thunderbirds 97 26
30 Dartmouth Big Green 48 NR
31 Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks 43 NR
32 Fordham Rams 41 32
33 Southern Illinois Salukis 41 40
34 Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens 25 31
35 Nicholls State Colonels 25 38
36 Tennessee State Tigers 18 NR
37 Western Carolina Catamounts 17 NR
38 North Dakota Fighting Hawks 16 33
39 South Carolina State Bulldogs 15 NR
40 Mercer Bears 14 39

 

Fell Out Of Poll:
Towson Tigers
New Hampshire Wildcats
Eastern Kentucky Colonels
Liberty Flames
Furman Paladins
Pennsylvania Quakers

 

 

SOCON: Week 3 Review and Power Rankings

The SOCON picked up 2 OOC FCS wins and the conference games did not disappoint as ETSU pulled off a huge upset over Western Carolina in the Battle at Bristol and the UTC at Furman game proved to be an entertaining defensive struggle for much of the game.

#9 Chattanooga 21 at Furman 14 (recap)

The Mocs started the season by playing 8 straight quarters of football without allowing a score. While not quite as perfect, Furman’s defense has been impressive.  As a result. the fact that the first half was an all out defensive struggle was no surprise.  Of the 12 first half possessions by both teams, there were 9 punts, 1 interception, one missed FG and 1 TD, scored by UTC late in the second quarter.  The teams combined for only 205 first half yards and a stingy score of 7-0.

The second half saw the fortunes of both teams change. UTC put up 14 more points in the third on their first 2 possessions which went for 70 and 77 yard drives.  While UTC made some improvements after the half, Furman’s situation appeared to worsen fast as their starting QB P.J. Blazejowski went out of the game with an injury at the start of the third.  On again, off again starter Reese Hannon came in at that point and after a few disappointing drives to get warmed up, he actually began a Furman rally in the 4th quarter.  Furman scored with 8 minutes to go in the game after a 55 yard 2 minute drive to make it 21-7.  After the Paladins held the Mocs on their ensuing drive, Furman again scored on an 11 play 94 yard drive to make it 21-14.  However, that left just 1 minute to go, and Furman’s on-side kick was not successful in any event, and the Mocs preserved the win to go 3-0, 1-0 in SOCON.

The Mocs finished with 288 total offensive yards (142 rush/146 pass). UTC QB Alejandro Bennifield went 11-14 with 1 interception, 1 passing TD and 1 rushing TD. Overall, Furman gained 281 yards with only 85 on the ground. Hannon finished 14-20 for 174 yards passing.

Furman finishes out their brutal September schedule with a trip to Coastal Carolina next week while UTC hosts Samford in what could be a pivotal SOCON game. Furman drops to 0-3, but may very well be the best winless team in FCS.

#13 The Citadel 31 at Gardner-Webb 24 (recap)

The good news for The Citadel is they won again. The not as good news is they had to accomplish a come from behind 4th quarter scoring drive for the third week in a row.  But a win is a win and their 3-0 start must be a great feeling for first year head coach Brent Thompson.  Gardner-Webb has upset a couple top 25 teams the last few years and they almost got another one on Saturday.  The Runnin’ Bulldogs led 4 different times during the ballgame.  The Bulldogs of The Citadel came back each time while racking up 419 yards on the ground and returning a punt for 81 yards and a score.  That was the first punt returned for a TD by The Citadel since 2008 when Andre Roberts scored against UTC.

Both Bulldogs scored on their opening drives. After that it got a little tougher.  The Citadel drives, as expected, were long, laborious affairs.  They held the TOP margin at halftime by about 18 to 12 minutes.  But the G-W scoring drives also covered lots of ground going for 86 and 70 yards.  An inopportune penalty by The Citadel erased a score, and a turnover wasted a long drive for The Citadel in the first half.  Still, it looked as though The Citadel Bulldogs had taken control of the game by pounding out 298 yards on the ground before half.  This surpassed their average per game output which has been on the lean side so far, and it was good enough to take a 14-10 lead into halftime.

The 3rd quarter saw the Runnin’ Bulldogs come roaring back on both sides of the ball. They held The Citadel to a meager 53 yards in the 3rd quarter which resulted in 4 punts and a turn over on downs.  The Gardner-Webb offense ground out a 61 yard scoring drive capped off by a 28 yard scamper up the middle to make it 17-14 with 4:05 to go in the 3rd.  As the quarter came to a close, and Gardner-Webb was forced to punt, DeAndre Schoultz returned the punt for 81 yards for a go ahead score to make it 21-17.

Taking a page from The Citadel playbook, Gardner-Webb answered back with a 91 yard drive in 15 plays in the 4th quarter. They chewed up 6:41 on the clock and went ahead 24-21.  The Citadel answered yet again with a 10 play 72 yard scoring drive.  The key play of this drive being a 41 yard dash by Dominique Allen to the G-W 3 on a 3rd and seven.  Allen punched it in two plays later to make it 28-24.  With 2:45 to go Gardner-Webb had a chance since they appeared to be moving the ball well in the second half.  However, The Citadel defense cranked up the heat and sacked the G-W QB Tyrell Maxwell twice for a loss of 15 yards and forced a punt from the G-W 2 with less than minute to go.  The Citadel added a field goal a few plays later to make it 31-24 for a final.

The Citadel had two 100 yard rushers (Reggie Williams-112 and Dominique Allen-108) and it appears that they finally got some traction in their option attack. They tallied 419 yards on the day, even with G-W doing an outstanding job stuffing The Citadel FBs between the tackles.  As a result, The Citadel ran outside, more than normal, for much of the game and resulted in the FBs gaining only 37 yards on the day.  The Citadel also had a token 12 yards through the air.

At 3-0 and 2-0 in the SOCON, The Citadel takes a breather next week before meeting WCU on 1 October.

ETSU 34 Western Carolina 31 (recap)

It could have been a movie script. The Bucs were playing their first conference game following ETSU’s return to the Southern Conference.  They pulled off a stunning upset two weeks ago against Kennesaw State who had humiliated them last year.  They were also playing in the venue that recorded the largest college football attendance ever last week and while they would not come close to filling it, they were still there, at the Bristol Motor Speedway.  ETSU would have the hardest part in that all they had to do, was win the game.  All they had to do is beat a decent Catamount team that missed the FCS playoffs last year by a couple whiskers.

Towards the end of the first half, with WCU up 21-3, it looked like ETSU would not hold up their end of this Cinderella story. But them something happened to turn the tide.  WCU fumbled and the Bucs swaggered their way down the field in 8 plays for 71 yards to score as the first half ended.  Down 21-10 at half, they had the momentum and they would also get the ball first to start the second half.

In the first half, ETSU had punted 4 times, fumbled, and got a FG on their first 6 possessions. They only had 4 possessions in the entire second half, but they scored on every one of them.  They opened the third quarter with a 10 play 75 yard drive to make it 21-17.  Their defense must have been inspired and they forced a three and out on Western.  The Bucs then proceeded to drive 76 yards in 16 pays for another score to take the lead 24-21.  That drive was assisted by 3 WCU penalties including a personal foul and an unsportsmanlike conduct.  The frustration must have been mounting by this time.  That drive took 7:26.  That is serious ball control.

After forcing WCU to punt yet again, the WCU defense stirred a bit and held the Bucs to a FG this time to make it 27-21. WCU answer back with a FG of their own to keep it within 3 points at 27-24.

The Bucs then proceeded to go on a 13 play 75 yard drive for 6:37 to make it 34-24 with little over a minute to go in the game. The Cats would answer back in under a minute, but it was too little, too late and ETSU had pulled out a beautiful upset victory to mark its return to the Southern Conference.  Take that Cinderella.

ETSU totaled 474 yards of balance offense and lost one fumble. Bucs QB Austin Herink went 24/37 for 269 yards and 3 TDS.  Most important of all, they held the ball for 38 minutes!  It’s pretty hard to win if you only have the ball for 22 minutes.  More to the point, in the second half WCU had the ball for less than 7 minutes!  Western needs to get their defense in gear.  Their offense can score, that is, if they ever get the ball.  Western put up 443 yards including 343 through the air.  Tyrie Adams went 26/39, 2 TD and no picks in a losing effort.  WCU’s Detrez Newsome had only 32 yards, but also 2 TDs on 11 carriers.

Western Carolina gets a week off to work on ball control and defense. They will need to with The Citadel up next on 1 Oct.  ETSU travels to Spartanburg next week to face Wofford to see if they can continue their Cinderella story.

Mercer 34 Tennessee Tech 27 (recap)

Mercer occasionally has a habit of putting itself in a hole early. Giving up a 100 yard kickoff return to start Saturday’s game against Tennessee Tech was a prime example.  But while that can be a back breaker, it can also be a great motivator.  Mercer did answer on their ensuing drive, but they were stymied deep in Tech territory by a holding penalty and forced to kick a FG to make it 7-3.

After trading 4 punts between them, Mercer caught a break and recovered a fumble at their own 22. Striking fast, Mercer QB John Russ tossed a 45 yard pass to quickly flip the field.  Three plays later, Russ ran it in from 15 yards out to make it 10-7 Mercer.  Not to be outdone, the Golden Eagles answered right back with a 6 play, 62 yard scoring drive, aided by a Mercer unsportsmanlike penalty, to make it 14-10 going into the half.

The third quarter saw an explosion of scoring and more than just a bit of controversy.  After forcing a Mercer 3 and out on their first possession, the Golden Eagles flew 71 yards in 7 plays to go up 21-10. Mercer answered back on a 9 play 87 yard drive that ended with a 22 yard toss by Russ to Sam Walker.  This was the first of two second half TDs for this combo.  After forcing a fumble on TTUs next possession, Mercer seemed to be taking charge.  They pawed their way down the field for 66 yards on 10 plays and Russ tossed it to Walker again, this time from 9 yards to make it 24-21.

After the Mercer defense forced a 3 and out, the momentum had certainly shifted in their favor. Starting from their own 1 after the punt, Mercer faced a long drive ahead of them.  After an off-sides penalty on TTU, Mercer attempted a pass and it was incomplete, or so they thought.  A TTU player ran over a picked up the ball thinking it might be a lateral that got away and walked into the end zone.  The Line Judge made the call of a TD for TTU after apparently ruling it was a catch and fumble.  The Mercer players, coaches, and fans, were obviously incredulous.  The Mercer receiver never even had any sort of control.  It actually looks like the ball may have never even touched the receiver’s hands but hit his forearms.  Also, there was never any bean bag throw by any official to mark a fumble.  Regardless, the call stood and TTU went up 27-24 after Mercer blocked the XP.

This situation may have lit a fire under the Mercer Bears. In the three 4th quarter possessions by TTU, they got a cumulative total of 1 yard.  Mercer also grabbed an interception.  After the dust settled, the Bears scored another TD and FG to seal the win 34-27.

Mercer’s John Russ went 23/35 passing for 259 yards and 2 TDs. He tacked on 2 TDs running as well. Overall, the Bears totaled 401 yard on offense.  Mercer gave up 257 yards including only 18 on the ground.  Mercer also won the turnover battle benefiting form 3 lost fumbles and 1 interception tossed by TTU.

Mercer gets a week off before returning to SOCON play 1 Oct at VMI.

Wofford 59 JC Smith 0 (recap)

It took Wofford a little while to get going against the Div II Golden Bulls of JC Smith. Holding a lackluster 17-0 lead at half, Wofford would explode in the second half with 42 points including 21 defense points.   On the day Wofford racked up 482 yards and held JC Smith to 102.  Wofford played 72 different players during the game including 12 different ball carriers. Lorenzo Long gained 127 yards and 3 TDs on 13 carries.

Brad Butler and Brandon Goodson shared QB duties with Butler going 10-12 through the air for 124 yards. Goodson added 28 more yards on 2 completions.  While this is a pretty good showing for Wofford, it was obviously against lesser competition.  Last year they averaged 69 yards passing a game.

Racking up 9 penalties for 80 yards, and dropping 4 fumbles and losing one of those, Wofford will need to clean up its execution before it hits SOCON play. Originally hoping to ease into SOCON play, Wofford faces off against a feisty ETSU next week who is fresh off its upset of WCU.

Power Ranking

  1. UTC
  2. The Citadel
  3. Samford
  4. Wofford
  5. Mercer
  6. ETSU
  7. VMI
  8. WCU
  9. Furman

Week 3 AGS GOTW | Northern Iowa at Eastern Washington

We are 3 weeks into the 2016 season and the AnyGivenSaturday community is 3-for-3 on picking some great games for the FCS Game of the Week. Each of these games has provided a close battle with last minute theatrics. This week’s game in Cheney, WA was decided in the last minute.

Eastern Washington’s second half theatrics were capped off by brilliantly executed fake FG for the game winning touchdown with 43 seconds left on the clock. The pass came from Eagle backup QB Reilly Hennessey (Reilly had already entered the game in relief of Gabe Gubrud, the starter for the first 3 games). Hennessey connected with Beau Byus, a fourth string tight end, who was wide open as the Panthers sold out to block what they thought would be a game winning field goal attempt. Northern Iowa still had one more chance to take back the win, but QB Aaron Bailey got pressured and lateraled the ball to an offensive lineman while trying to avoid the sack. The OL fumbled the ball and their chance was lost when EWU recovered.

Eastern Washington took their first lead of the game 30 seconds into the fourth quarter after digging themselves into a 24-7 halftime deficit.  The Eagles would hold onto that lead until the 4:13 mark when UNI kicker Matt Easley connected from 49 yards for his third successful FG attempt of the day.

Second Half Momentum:

Eastern Washington had a rough first half with 187 yards of offense, an interception and two series’ that ended with a turnover on downs. This led to a 17 point hole coming out of halftime, but the Eagles worked towards erasing it very quickly. Antoine Custer Jr. would take the opening kickoff of the third quarter 93 yards to the endzone to cut their deficit to 10 points. On the third series of the second half Hennessey replaced Gubrud and brought some new life to the EWU offense. That drive would end with a 37 yard TD pass to Kendrick Bourne which cut the Northern Iowa lead to 3. Hennessey finished the day with 21-29 for 226 yards and 3 TDs with all of those stats coming in the seconds half.

Where do they go from here?:

Northern Iowa heads into a bye week coming off of two straight losses. The Panthers have struggled to find an offensive identity in 2016 and if they do not make some changes before Southern Illinois comes to the UNI-Dome on October 1st then Coach Farley’s team could find themselves in the same familiar hole of fighting for their playoff lives early in the season.

Eastern Washington heads to Flagstaff, AZ to start the Big Sky slate against a Northern Arizona team that is looking to make some noise. It will be interesting to see who takes the field at QB to start the game for the Eagles. EWU is back in the driver’s seat for a playoff seed after a 2-1 start with wins over an FBS opponent, a Top 25 team and an OT loss to North Dakota State (who is #27 in the FBS AP Poll after defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes).

CAA : Week 3 Preview

Week three of college football is upon us, and the CAA has an exciting array of FCS, FBS, and conference match ups for the all CAA fans to enjoy.

 

Friday Sept 16th

Rhode Island at Harvard 7 pm EST, (ASN)

Harvard will open its season on Friday night when the Rhode Island Rams travel to Harvard Stadium. The Rams are coming off of two losses to begin the season one loss at FBS Kansas, and one loss at home to CAA conference opponent Albany. Rhode Island will have its hands full when it travels to Harvard who is favored to win this match up. Rhode Island will have to use their experience from the last two games to make some adjustments and hopefully use that to their advantage against a Harvard team that has yet to play a game this season.

 

Saturday Sept 17th

# 25 Towson at #20 Villanova 3:30 pm EST, (CSN)

Our First CAA matchup of the day will happen between two ranked opponents, when #25 Towson travels to 20th ranked Villanova. Both teams are coming into week three at 1-1 with each suffering and FBS loss, and each gaining and FCS win. In week two Towson survived a scare from the Red Flash of St Francis (PA) While Villanova hard a hard-fought win against the Mountain Hawks of Lehigh. Both teams will be looking to make adjustments on defense, while these two high scoring, fast offenses will surely put a strain on those units.

#10 James Madison at North Carolina 3:30 pm EST, (ACC Network)

After Two decisive victories in week one and week two, James Madison will face its toughest test yet when the Dukes Travel to Chapel Hill to take on the FBS Tar heels of North Carolina. The Tar Heels are coming into this match up at 1-1 with a loss against FBS Georgia, and a win against FBS Illinois. The Dukes defense will have their hands full covering UNC QB Mitch Trubisky who has averaged 67% completions and has thrown for 424 yards on the season.

Norfolk State at #15 William and Mary 6 pm EST, (Tribe Athletics TV)

Norfolk State will have its hands full when it travels to Williamsburg Virginia to take on the Tribe. Each team is coming into the game 1-1, with The tribe taking a loss at FBS North Carolina State, and the Spartans of Norfolk State taking a loss at CAA Richmond. The Tribe will hope to do what they do best on Saturday which is play their heavy hitting offense, and rush the ball as much as possible to overwhelm the Spartans offense. RB Kendall Anderson should see plenty of carries, while WR DeVonte Dedmon will be looking for another great game through the air as he had when he had seven receptions for 168 yards.

Fayetteville State at Elon 6 pm EST, (Phoenix All Access)

After a rough start to the season that saw the Phoenix drop their first two games, Elon will look to regroup at home against Division II Fayetteville State. Elon will need to use this game to fix some mistakes that they made in their first two games, and pull out a win in front of the home crowd to gain some momentum for the rest of the season.

Delaware at Wake Forest 6:30 pm EST, (ACC Network)

When Delaware travels to FBS Wake Forest on Saturday they will be going into Winston-Salem riding a 2-0 start. Delaware’s first win came against interstate rival Delaware state, while their second win came off of a win against Lafayette that was very close until Delaware pulled away in the third quarter. Delaware will need to play 60 minutes of mistake free football if they are going to pull off an upset against the Demon Deacons of Wake Forest. Wake forest is coming into the game with wins against FBS Tulane, and FBS Duke. They are currently sitting at first place in the ACC Coastal Division of the FBS.

New Hampshire at Dartmouth 7 pm EST, (Fox Sports Go)

In our 2nd Ivy league match up between CAA and Ivy League teams, New Hampshire helps Dartmouth kick off the 2016 season when the Wildcats travel to Hanover, NH to take on the Big Green. New Hampshire is entering the game 1-1 after a loss to FBS San Diego State University, and a win at home against Holy Cross. Dartmouth is entering the game after an outstanding season that saw them go 9-1, with their only loss coming from Ivy League rival Harvard. UNH will need to continue giving their young roster exposure, and continue to utilize the talents of RB Dalton Crossan, while their young QB Trevor Knight continues to improve.

Holy Cross at #19 Albany 7 pm EST

The Crusaders of Holy Cross will be looking to put their first loss of the season which came against UNH last week behind them; when they travel to Bob Ford Field to take on the Great Danes of Albany. Albany is riding high after their week one upset of FBS Buffalo, and their decisive win last week against conference opponent Rhode Island. Holy Cross will look to improve on some mistakes from week two that led to them blowing an early lead in the second half of the game. Look for Albany to capitalize on their momentum from their 2-0 start.