St. Augustine's Ties for 21st Place in the latest AFCA D-II Coaches Poll

St. Augustine's Ties for 21st Place in the latest AFCA D-II Coaches Poll

October 18, 2005

WACO, TEX.-- Three of the Top 10 teams lost in the eighth week of action, but Grand Valley State still holds onto the top spot in the American Football Coaches Association Division II Coaches’ Poll.

No. 1 Grand Valley State used a great defensive effort to hand then-No. 4 Saginaw Valley State a 31-10 loss. North Dakota is still ranked No. 2 after its 33-10 win over Minnesota-Duluth, while No. 3 Valdosta State downed West Alabama, 31-19. Bloomsburg jumped three spots to No. 4 after it stayed unbeaten with a 48-14 victory over Cheyney. Albany State beat Clark Atlanta, 45-12, and rounds out the Top 5.

East Stroudsburg is up three positions this week to No. 6 after beating Kutztown, 42-14. West Texas A&M continues its rise up the coaches’ poll, moving into the seventh spot after a 40-24 win at Abilene Christian. St. Cloud State jumped four spots to No. 8 after beating then-No. 5 South Dakota, 24-17, while Northwood moved up two positions to No. 9 after its victory over then-No. 19 Michigan Tech. Washburn beat Truman State, 21-14, and sits No. 10.

Saginaw Valley State falls seven spots to No. 11 after its loss to Grand Valley State, while South Dakota also fell seven spots to No. 12 following its loss to St. Cloud State. Arkansas Tech beat Ouachita Baptist, 49-35, and moved up one notch to No. 13. No. 14 North Alabama defeated Henderson State, 38-10, as it gets ready for a Top 25 matchup with No. 3 Valdosta State. No. 15 Shepherd beat Concord, 48-21, and remained one of only six undefeated teams in Division II.

No. 16 Presbyterian is up one spot this week after its 20-0 shutout of Lenoir-Rhyne, while No. 17 Tuskegee fell two spots after beating Fort Valley State, 27-14. Pittsburg State overran Southwest Baptist, 70-38, and is up two spots to No. 18. No. 19 Tarleton State beat Eastern New Mexico, 34-27, while No. 20 Northwest Missouri State was idle.

St. Augustine’s beat Livingstone, 20-14, and Texas A&M-Kingsville lost to Midwestern State, but both are tied at No. 21 this week. No. 23 Central Arkansas kept its hopes for a Gulf South Conference championship alive after beating Delta State, 41-31. Carson-Newman blanked Tusculum, 38-0, and dropped one spot to No. 24. Michigan Tech rounds out the Top 25 after its loss to No. 9 Northwood.

Conference Breakdown: The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic (Grand Valley St., Saginaw Valley St., Northwood, Michigan Tech) and Gulf South Conference (Valdosta St., Arkansas Tech, North Alabama, Central Arkansas) are tied with the most representatives in the AFCA Division II Coaches’ Poll with four each.

Other conferences represented include: Lone Star-3 (Texas A&M-Kingsville, West Texas A&M, Tarleton St.), MIAA-3 (Washburn, Pittsburg St., Northwest Missouri St.), North Central-3 (North Dakota, South Dakota, St. Cloud State), Pennsylvania State Athletic-2 (Bloomsburg, East Stroudsburg), South Atlantic-2 (Presbyterian, Carson-Newman), Southern Intercollegiate Athletic-2 (Albany St., Tuskegee), Central Intercollegiate Athletic-1 (St. Augustine’s), West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic-1 (Shepherd).

Head-to-Head
Two games featuring teams ranked in the AFCA Division II Coaches’ Poll highlight this weekend’s action.
For the second straight week, No. 1 Grand Valley State will play a Top 10 team. This week, the Lakers are on the road at No. 9 Northwood. Grand Valley State has a 10-3-1 record against the Timberwolves when they play in Midland, Mich.
The final Top 25 matchup of the coming weekend has No. 3 Valdosta State hosting No. 14 North Alabama. UNA holds a 13-10-1 all-time series advantage, but Valdosta State has won four of the last five meetings.

Poll Points
With their win over then-No. 4 Saginaw Valley State, No. 1 Grand Valley State is 41-3 in GLIAC action since 2001 ... Northwood linebacker Charleston Hughes earned GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week honors after he finished with 18 tackles and an interception in the Timberwolves’ 24-21 victory over Michigan Tech ... Valdosta State head coach Chris Hatcher will be inducted into the Division II Football Hall of Fame for his accomplishments as a player and a coach in a ceremony on December 9 in Florence, Alabama, preceding the Division II national championship game ... Tarleton State runningback Derrick Ross earned LSC South Division Co-Offensive Player of the Week honors after he rushed for 212 yards and four touchdowns in the Texans’ 34-27 road win over Eastern New Mexico. Ross topped the 1,000-yard mark for the season, and his efforts helped TSU to its first-ever win at Blackwater Draw.


American Football Coaches Association Division II Coaches’ Poll
October 18, 2005

Rank School (1st votes) Rec. Pts. Prev. Last Week Next Game
1. Grand Valley St. (Mich.) (15) 7-0 615 1 D. No. 4 Saginaw Valley St. (Mich.), 31-10 Oct. 22 at No. 9 Northwood (Mich.)
2. North Dakota (10) 8-0 610 2 D. Minnesota-Duluth, 33-10 Oct. 22 at Minnesota St.-Mankato
3. Valdosta St. (Ga.) 7-1 570 3 D. West Alabama, 31-19 Oct. 20 vs. No. 14 North Alabama
4. Bloomsburg (Pa.) 8-0 541 7 D. Cheyney (Pa.), 48-14 Oct. 22 at Mansfield (Pa.)
5. Albany St. (Ga.) 5-1 467 8 D. Clark Atlanta (Ga.), 45-12 Oct. 22 vs. Benedict (S.C.)
6. East Stroudsburg (Pa.) 6-1 453 9 D. Kutztown (Pa.), 42-14 Oct. 22 at West Chester (Pa.)
7. West Texas A&M 8-0 449 10 D. Abilene Christian (Tex.), 40-24 Oct. 22 vs. Angelo St. (Tex.)
8. St. Cloud State (Minn.) 7-1 428 12 D. No. 5 South Dakota, 24-17 Oct. 22 at Nebraska-Omaha
9. Northwood (Mich.) 7-1 421 11 D. No. 19 Michigan Tech, 24-21 Oct. 22 vs. No. 1 Grand Valley St. (Mich.)
10. Washburn (Kan.) 7-1 382 13 D. Truman St. (Mo.), 21-14 Oct. 22 at Emporia St. (Kan.)
11. Saginaw Valley St. (Mich.) 6-1 372 4 Lost to No. 1 Grand Valley St. (Mich.), 31-10 Oct. 22 at Northern Michigan
12. South Dakota 7-1 341 5 Lost to No. 12 St. Cloud State (Minn.), 24-17 Oct. 22 vs. Upper Iowa
13. Arkansas Tech 6-1 318 14 D. Ouachita Baptist (Ark.), 49-35 Oct. 22 at Arkansas-Monticello
14. North Alabama 6-1 287 17t D. Henderson St. (Ark.), 38-10 Oct. 20 at No. 3 Valdosta St. (Ga.)
15. Shepherd (W.Va.) 8-0 280 16 D. Concord (W.Va.), 48-21 Oct. 22 at West Virginia Wesleyan
16. Presbyterian (S.C.) 7-1 276 17t D. Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.), 20-0 Oct. 22 vs. Mars Hill (N.C.)
17. Tuskegee (Ala.) 6-1 271 15 D. Fort Valley St. (Ga.), 27-14 Oct. 22 at Lane (Tenn.)
18. Pittsburg St. (Kan.) 6-2 206 20 D. Southwest Baptist (Mo.), 70-38 Oct. 22 at Truman St. (Mo.)
19. Tarleton St. (Tex.) 6-1 173 22 D. Eastern New Mexico, 34-27 Oct. 22 vs. Abilene Christian (Tex.)
20. Northwest Missouri St. 5-2 170 21 Idle Oct. 22 vs. Central Missouri St.
21t. St. Augustine’s (N.C.) 8-0 97 24 D. Livingstone (N.C.), 20-14 Oct. 22 vs. Fayetteville St. (N.C.)
21t. Texas A&M-Kingsville 5-2 97 6 Lost to Midwestern St. (Tex.), 41-14 Oct. 22 vs. Eastern New Mexico
23. Central Arkansas 6-2 72 25 D. Delta St. (Miss.), 41-31 Oct. 22 at Ouachita Baptist (Ark.)
24. Carson-Newman (Tenn.) 5-2 71 23 D. Tusculum (Tenn.), 38-0 Oct. 22 vs. Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.)
25. Michigan Tech 5-2 40 19 Lost to No. 11 Northwood (Mich.), 24-21 Oct. 22 vs. Ferris St. (Mich.)

Dropped Out (last week’s rating): none

Others Receiving Votes: Angelo St. (Tex.), 23; West Chester (Pa.), 23; Nebraska-Omaha, 21; North Carolina Central, 15; Edinboro (Pa.), 13; Nebraska-Kearney, 13; Missouri Western St., 4; Delta St. (Miss.), 2; Fort Valley St. (Ga.), 2; Minnesota-Duluth, 1; Winona St. (Minn.), 1.

For more information on the AFCA and its programs, log on to the AFCA’s website at www.afca.com.

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