In Case You Missed It – Week 7
For a while there, Eastern Washington wide receiver Cooper Kupp had us all convinced.
He had convinced us that any offensive award in the FCS come season’s end might as well already be in a trophy case in Cheney. It seemed like a sure thing after the junior pass catcher exploded out of the gate with offensive statistics so gaudy Jerry Rice would be jealous.
But that’s not the case anymore.
And it’s not for a lack of production on Kupp’s part. The receiver accounted for four touchdowns Saturday in his team’s 45-28 victory over Idaho State, hauling in 14 receptions for 161 yards and two touchdowns with a passing score and a punt return for a touchdown as well.
No, it’s not because Kupp has lost it. Instead, it has more to do with the players coming from behind and catching up in terms of production.
The thing Kupp and Fordham running back Chase Edmonds have in common is an award. Both previous winners of the Jerry Rice Award that was given to the nation’s most outstanding freshman in the FCS, the two appear to have their eyes set on the overall offensive player of the year prize. Edmonds has delivered back-to-back weeks with four rushing touchdowns, and has nine total scores in that two-week span. He leads the nation with 15 rushing touchdowns.
Then there’s Lamar tailback Kade Harrington. Starting this season from relative obscurity in terms of being a nationally known commodity, Harrington might be the best offensive player in the country at the moment. Even though his Cardinals were taken down by Northwestern State, 48-35, on Saturday, his 36 carries for 282 yards and five touchdowns did not go unnoticed, especially one week after he set the Southland Conference record with 347 yards on the ground.
Harrington is the only running back with more rushing yards this season than Edmonds. At 1,115 and 1,046 yards respectively, the two are the only backs who have already eclipsed the 1,000-yard milestone.
Rarely is parity a bad thing for those of us fans who enjoy the competition. The race for the best offensive player in the FCS is no longer a runaway, but rather a crowded one once again.
In case you missed the action, here are some stats from across Week 7 in the FCS you should know:
Validation is a beautiful feeling, isn’t it? Portland State sure thinks so. After losing to North Dakota just a few weeks back, the Vikings have justified their top-25 ranking by knocking off FBS member North Texas and nationally ranked Montana State in back to back weeks. But Portland State isn’t just winning – the Vikings are dominating the competition offensively.
In the last two weeks, Portland State has racked up a combined 125 points, and has outscored its opponents 125-47 after a 59-42 victory over the Bobcats Saturday. Poll climber, anyone?
Speaking of strong offensive performances, The Citadel has put up 83 points over the last two weeks which has helped the Bulldogs remain perfect in Southern Conference play. Another ground game outburst Saturday (424 yards, five touchdowns) helped the team take down Samford, 44-25, to get to 3-0 against league competition.
Dartmouth quarterback Dalyn Williams threw his first interception of the season Saturday, but it didn’t matter much for the Big Green, who remained unbeaten (5-0) after notching a 34-7 win over Central Connecticut State. Williams passed for 249 yards and three touchdowns, and added 60 yards on the ground for good measure.
Kennesaw State picked up its first-ever win in Big South play as the Owls took down Gardner-Webb, 12-7, thanks to the foot of kicker Justin Thompson. Thompson booted four field goals to give his team the advantage, while Kennesaw’s defense limited the Runnin’ Bulldogs to just 200 total offensive yards in the contest.
Matt White was the hero for Monmouth after the kicker hit a game-tying 35-yard field goal at the end of regulation against Liberty, then in overtime sent the game-winning kick sailing through the uprights from 37 yards out as the Hawks downed the Flames, 20-17.
South Carolina State thumped Howard, 49-10, on Saturday thanks to a flurry of unconventional touchdowns. The Bulldogs’ defense returned two interceptions for scores, and Lynard Jamison took a 91-yard punt return to the house. Chris Pauling and Darius Leonard were responsible for the defensive touchdowns.
The James Madison Dukes are probably wondering what it’s going to take to get to the top of the national polls. JMU continued its dominant run by taking down Elon 51-0 Saturday to remain unbeaten at 7-0. Cardon Johnson and Khalid Abdullah each rushed for a pair of scores as the Dukes totaled 604 offensive yards in the win.
It was the first shutout for James Madison since October of 2008. But if a casual observer saw the scores from this weekend’s action he or she might be inclined to think shutouts are a pretty common occurrence. There were six of them in Week 7 alone, highlighted by the Dukes’ slaughter of Elon.
Southern Utah, Harvard (which extended its win streak to 19 games dating back to 2013), Villanova, San Diego and Mercer all held their opponents scoreless over the weekend.
Stephen F. Austin was able to defeat Southeastern Louisiana on Saturday, 28-27, thanks to a last-minute score by Zach Conque and a go-ahead extra point by Mason Juhl. The Lumberjacks went 72 yards on their final drive in 16 plays, and converted a whopping five third-down attempts that kept them alive.
Finally (because everyone already knows about North Dakota State’s loss to South Dakota which means it doesn’t need to be analyzed here), Grambling State pulled an overtime 35-34 victory out of nowhere Saturday against Alcorn State.
The Tigers blocked a Braves extra point attempt in the overtime session to keep the deficit at six, then GSU sophomore Martez Carter scored the game-tying touchdown AND kicked the game-winning extra point to help maintain a perfect 5-0 mark for his Tigers against Southwestern Athletic Conference competition.