Special to College Sports Journal   MISSOULA, MT. — Jacksonville State may have come up a play short of a dramatic upset at Auburn on Saturday, but on Monday, the Gamecocks earned enough respect to stay on top of the Any Given Saturday FCS Top-25 poll.   The Gamecocks received 47 of 80 first-place votes.

By John Feinstein Courtesy of The Washington Post College Sports Journal   BOSTON, Mass —As a coach in the Football Championship Subdivision, playing a level below college football’s powers, Gary Harrell knows there are going to be days when the job isn’t a lot of fun. Every fall, Howard, the school he graduated from and.

By Wesley Sinor Courtesy of AL.com College Sports Journal   AUBURN, Alabama — The Jacksonville State Gamecocks wanted to shock the world Saturday, and boy did they come close.   The Gamecocks, members of the Ohio Valley Conference, led Auburn 20-13 on the road with less than two minutes to play Saturday. But with the.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   CLEMSON, S.C. — For the better part of three quarters, Appalachian State more than held its own against a Clemson squad that may have been the most physically talented group the Mountaineers have played in their 86-year football history.   But a turnover-infested meltdown in the.

Special to College Sports Journal MISSOULA, MT. — Jacksonville State survived for a 23-20 victory over Chattanooga in its opening game of the 2015 season and was rewarded by vaulting to first place in the Any Given Saturday Football Championship Subdivision Top-25 poll.  Traditionally the most accurate poll in FCS since it was started over.

By JD Humberg Courtesy of The Oregonian College Sports Journal   PULLMAN, Wash. — Bruce Barnum said the words way back in April:   “I guarantee you we will win.”   Still, few expected it to happen quite so soon. Steven Long scored on a one-yard run with just over 2 minutes left in the.

By Lucas Clark Courtesy of the San Luis Obispo Tribune College Sports Journal   MISSOULA, Mont. — Freshman Alex Vega made a 49-yard field goal with four seconds remaining, and Cal Poly defeated Montana 20-19 in a nonconference football game Saturday night at Washington-Grizzly Stadium.   The Gilroy native had not attempted a kick all.

By Matt Zimmer Courtesy of the Sioux Falls Argus-Leader College Sports Journal   LAWRENCE, Kan. — For most of its existence as a football program, South Dakota State’s biggest wins came against regional foes, like in-state rivals at USD, and fellow Division II schools from North Dakota and Minnesota.   There have been some big ones,.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   BOONE, N.C. — There is always something a little extra special about the opening game of the college football season and Saturday at 3:30 p.m., when Appalachian State takes the field at Kidd Brewer Stadium for its first contest against Howard, there will be some added.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   PHILADELPHIA, PA. — Returning Walter Payton Award winner John Robertson of Villanova heads up the 2015 College Sports Journal Football Championship Subdivision Preseason All-American.   A total of 105 players, representing 58 teams and all 13 FCS conferences were named to the three teams. The Colonial.

By Chuck Burton Publisher/Managing Editor College Sports Journal   PHILADELPHIA, PA — Coastal Carolina is nuts.   The Sun Belt is crazy.   These will not be among the official statements you will be reading today in regards to Coastal Carolina’s whirlwind acceptance of their athletic program into the Sun Belt.   The Sun Belt.

By AJ Mazzolini Courtesy of the Missoulian College Sports Journal   MISSOULA, MT — It takes a lot to leave Joey Counts speechless.   The climactic touchdown in one of the biggest events in Missoula sporting history sure did the trick though.   The beleaguered running back carried Montana into the end zone and past.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   PHILADELPHIA, PA. — North Dakota State has become like one of those horror-film villains — think Freddie Kruger from Nightmare on Elm Street, Jason from Friday the 13th, or Michael Myers from Halloween.   Just when you think the Bison are dead, they come back to life.

By Chuck Burton Publisher/Managing Editor College Sports Journal   PHILADELPHIA, PA — For the second year in a row, ESPN will be ushering in the first FCS football game of the year on the flagship station.   And for the second year in a row, the matchup will be worth your time.   It’s hard.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   PHILADELPHIA, PA. — On my first trip to historic Franklin Field, on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania, I made a bit of a pilgrimage.   I walked inside of the 10-yard line to the area of the field where Chuck Bednarik had made the.

Editor’s note: This piece originally appeared on The Sports Network website on Jan. 20, 2010 in David Coulson’s regular, nationally-syndicated column on the Football Championship Subdivision and is reprinted in honor of Chuck Bednarik, the legendary Philadelphia Eagles and Penn Quakers football star, who passed away  March 21, 1915 at the age of 89.  .

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   BOONE, N.C. — So when can a loss really be considered a win?   In the case of Villanova’s season-opening, 27-26 double-overtime, football defeat at Syracuse last Friday night before 41,189 fans at the Carrier Dome, the Wildcats did everything but walk away with the “W.”.

By Chuck Burton Publisher/Managing Editor College Sports Journal BETHLEHEM, PA. — There are a lot of microphones, as well as media members, at the media days of the Big Ten, Big XII, Pac 12, SEC, and ACC.   Judging by that alone, you might get the impression that the only voices that matter in regards.

By Chuck Burton Publisher/Managing Editor College Sports Journal PHILADELPHIA, PA. — The NCAA has released its list of APR penalties, and it should be no surprise that it’s the lowest-resource institutions of the FCS that have been disproportinately hit the hardest.   Seven schools that compete in football championship subdivision, including six HBCUs, were hit.

By Chuck Burton Publisher/Managing Editor College Sports Journal PHILADELPHIA, PA. — “One, two, three – what are we fighting for?”   Readers of a certain age might recognize these lyrics from a Vietnam War protest song from Country Joe and the Fish.  (“Don’t ask me, I don’t give a damn/Next stop is Vietnam,” the song.

By Chuck Burton Publisher/Managing Editor College Sports Journal PHILADELPHIA, PA. — There’s been a lot of talk about the historic nature of the bid by Northwestern’s football players to be allowed to form a union for collective bargaining purposes.   The first-ever attempt at a college football players’ union passed the first, and easiest, bar.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   PHILADELPHIA, PA. — Have you ever wondered what a Football Championship Subdivision team would look like if you took the best 63 players and put them together on one squad?   That’s what College Sports Journal has done again this year as it honored the top.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   PHILADELPHIA, PA. — One a cold, snowy Saturday afternoon, trying to stay warm in the cozy confines of my home office, a simple quote from a member of the Football Championship Subdivision alumni club sparked some thinking.   The article I read on the Sports Illustrated.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal PHILADELPHIA, PA. — Just as he raced past defenders in opposing team secondaries all season, Eastern Washington wide receiver Cooper Kupp stayed far ahead of the field during the 2013 Football Championship Subdivision season. Kupp was chosen on Thursday as the winner of the third-annual College Sports.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   FRISCO, TX. — Though the Football Championship Subdivision settles its winner on the field, it isn’t every year that the best two teams end up playing in the NCAA Division I Football Championship game.   We are fortunate that North Dakota State and Towson have proven.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   CHENEY, WA. — If you went through the list of potential heroes before Saturday’s NCAA Division Football Championship semifinals, played in the snow and fog at Roos Field, Towson reserve quarterback Connor Frazier would have been far down the list.   But Frazier came off the.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   CHARLESTON, IL. — There will be an awards banquet somewhere in Philadelphia on Monday evening, where the 26th annual Walter Payton Award will be handed out.   That award is suppose to recognize the “best” player in the Football Championship Subdivision, though often-times in recent years.

By David Coulson Executive Editor College Sports Journal   CHARLESTON, IL. — There is a seismic shift occurring at the top of the Football Championship Subdivision as the NCAA Division I Football Championships enter the quarterfinal round this weekend.   The sun has set on former champions, six-time winner Georgia Southern and three-time winner Appalachian.

By Emory Hunt Special Report College Sports Journal   PHILADELPHIA, PA — Football Gameplan’s NCAA FCS Playoff Elite Eight Wraparound is presented by College Sports Journal.

By David Coulson Executive Director College Sports Journal   TOWSON, MD. — Coming into Saturday’s second-round NCAA Division I Football playoff game with Towson, Fordham knew it had to contain Terrance West, the best running back in the Football Championship Subdivision.   And considering that the Rams limited FCS’s leading rusher to 76 yards and.