FBS Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 340 kb)
FCS Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 308 kb)
FCS Game of the Week:
This is what an actual defensive battle looks like. #12 Towson visited #5 James Madison, and the two best defenses in the CAA squared off for an epic showdown.
Early on, only two Cameron Starke field goals marred the scoreboard as the Dukes took a 6-0 lead. D.J. Stoven hit from 40 with 11 seconds to go in the first half to cut the lead to 6-3. The third quarter was scoreless before Towson finally grabbed the lead with just 3:21 to play on a 7-yard Grant Enders TD run. That drive went 92 yards and ate up 7:24 as a tiring Dukes defense finally started allowing some space; even at that, the drive turned on a fourth-and-one at Towson’s own 18. Rob Ambrose rolled the dice and called for a QB sneak, and Enders picked up the first down.
But James Madison came back. In under two minutes, Justin Thorpe had marched the Dukes downfield, and with 1:24 to go he scored on a nine-yard run to regain the lead. Dean Marlowe then picked off an Enders pass to kill Towson’s hope for a last-minute miracle, and the Dukes walked off with a 13-10 win.
This wasn’t a case of ineffective offense. Terrance West had 112 yards rushing for Towson, and Enders wasn’t horribly ineffective passing the ball, going 20-32 for 147; he was picked off twice, and both were pretty good plays on the part of the JMU defense. For the Dukes, Dae’Quan Scott had 95 yards on the ground, and Thorpe was 11-19 for 116 without turning the ball over. The key to the game was that both defenses forced long yardage on third down, and that resulted in Towson only managing 5-16 on conversions, while the Dukes were only 2-12.
The win leaves Madison in charge of the CAA race, since co-leaders Old Dominion are ineligible for the title after announcing their departure to Conference USA.
Blammo:
Top-ranked North Dakota State absolutely savaged #3 Youngstown State, 49-7. Remember, Youngstown State totally clowned Pittsburgh earlier in the year, and Pitt’s starting to look like they’re not completely incompetent. The Bison scored on interception returns, on the ground, in the air, on special teams; pretty much any way it’s possible to score seven points, they did it. This is a complete team that has dismantled almost everyone they’ve faced this year, and I just don’t know if anyone’s got the chops. Maybe Montana State. Maybe.
Still Perfect:
Last week there were eleven unbeatens; after North Dakota State throttled Youngstown State, there are now only ten. Alabama A&M, Lehigh, Montana State, and Tennessee State are all 6-0, while Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo, McNeese State, North Dakota State, Old Dominion, and Wofford are 5-0. Harvard, at 4-0, rounds out the list.
Still Imperfect:
Sixteen teams entered Saturday with no wins. Three teams were guaranteed to get off the list due to matchups with two winless teams; not a single one of the other 10 winless squads managed to earn a victory. This week, 0-6 Georgia State visits 0-5 Rhode Island, so we’ll reduce thirteen to twelve. The remaining winless are 0-6 Austin Peay, Bryant, Missouri State, and Weber State; 0-5 Central Connecticut State, Davidson, Gardner-Webb, Grambling State, Savannah State, and Valparaiso; and 0-4 Hampton.
The New Top 25:
Some other items of interest:
Nail-Biters:
at Alcorn State 20, Southern 17
Done Been Trucked:
at Portland State 77, Idaho State 10
at Alabama State 45, Texas Southern 0
Defense Is an Optional Package:
at Tennessee-Martin 51, Eastern Illinois 37
at Liberty 42, Gardner-Webb 35
No Offense… But No Offense:
at Saint Francis (PA) 10, Robert Morris (PA) 3
Wagner 12, at Sacred Heart 3
at Holy Cross 13, Bucknell 6