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Jacksonville State, the No. 4 seed in this year’s playoffs, will play host to Davidson, the Pioneer League champion, in one of eight first-round games. It will be the first-ever meeting between the Gamecocks and Wildcats.
In a way it’s fitting during this strange season that two of the teams playing this weekend are in their season openers, while their opponents are coming off of two weeks off after winning their openers. It is a byproduct of this crazy Patriot League spring, and results in two fascinating games that are basically playoff games. And with no game film on Bucknell or Fordham, it feels like anything can happen.
It is uncharted waters for both teams, with plenty of questions to answer playing an unprecedented Patriot League spring football season. But many of the principal contributors in that 24-17 game more than a year ago in Bethlehem will be suiting up tomorrow.
Two games involving MEAC and SWAC teams remain on the schedule for this week.
The Southern Conference is playing an eight game conference only schedule this spring, meaning there are games every week with little room for error. Last week the two teams that everyone expects to battle it out for the conference title, Wofford and Furman, cruised to victory.
Only one of four games scheduled to kick off the 2021 spring season in the Ohio Valley Conference was actually played out last weekend, thanks to storms that hit a big part of the Mid-South. With any luck things will return to a semblance of normalcy as four games are slated to be played Sunday.
Louisiana at Appalachian StateWhen: Friday, Dec. 4th, 8:30 PM ESTWhere: Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone, N.C.TV/Streaming: ESPN/WatchESPN (subscription req’d) This was the game that before the season started was what I had predicted to be again for the Sun Belt Conference championship for the third straight season. The original Sun Belt Conference title game was slated for Dec. 4th.
Louisiana at UABWhen: Friday, Oct. 23rd 8:00 PM EDTWhere: Legion Field, Birmingham, Ala.TV/Streaming: CBS Sports Network/Watch CBS Sports Network This late non-conference game pits to preseason favorites in their respective conferences and both come into this game with one loss. And is a fitting game to be set in historic Legion Field in Birmingham (the last season.
The college football season continues to get underway as UAB travels to south Florida on Thursday to take on Miami.
South Alabama at Southern Miss When: Thursday, Sept. 3rd 9:00 PM EDTWhere: M.M. Roberts Stadium, Hattiesburg, Miss. TV/Streaming: CBS Sports Network/Watch CBS Sports Network Ironically, these two neighoring state schools have never played before this meeting. This will change as these two southern ‘South’ teams will kickoff the first all FBS game of the season..
This game between Austin Peay and Central Arkansas was supposed to kick off another exciting season of FCS football. These are two teams who won their conferences in 2019.
“The only thing that is fun about this game is winning it,” Army head coach Jeff Monken said this week.
Most games between head coaches in their first years at a school are ones where the opponents need to feel themselves out, thanks to unfamiliarity. That will not be the case this weekend, as Cecchini and Gilmore have more than two decades of awareness of one another and their tendencies. It should have the feel of a brotherly fight.
Both teams find themselves sitting tied atop the Patriot League standings, playing for first place, and unlike last year, there will be no shortage of passion on the field at Jack Coffey Field at 1:00 PM this Saturday.
In the end, the matchup this weekend will be a show-me type of game, one that might set the trajectory for both programs.
Friday typically only has a game or two in all of college football but on this opening weekend, there are two great Mountain West versus Power Five match-ups with Utah State visiting the ACC’s Wake Forest and the Rocky Mountain Showdown with Colorado State paying the Pac-12’s Colorado. Game 1 of the Night: Utah State.
The FBS Group of Five starts with a couple of heavy weights playing some Power Five squads that will go a long way towards which G5 team will be playing in a New Year’s Six Bowl game. This will be a preview of the two heavy hitter games that I will have my eyes on.
Its hard to replace a Walter Payton Award winner like Samford has to do with Devlin Hodges. Hodges finished his career at Samford by breaking Steve McNairs 24 year old passing record. A large part of that success was wide receiver Kelvin McKnight.
Colgate’s 2018 defense was one of the most suffocating defenses in recent memory. The Raiders allowed a total of three touchdowns in conference play, two of which were scored by Holy Cross in the first week of the season.
Temple and Memphis are meeting for the 20th time with the Owls holding a slim, 10-9 lead in the series. The Owls had won three straight until getting beaten in overtime at home last season, 75-72 on Jan. 13, 2018.
The Eagles key to winning this game is to win the turnover margin. The Eagles also lead the FCS in defensive touchdowns with six (and nearly had a seventh in the playoff win over Maine when CB Josh Lewis returned an interception as close as you can get without scoring to the one-yard line).
Hawai’i vs. Louisiana Tech (Hawai’i Bowl) When: Saturday, December 22, 19:30 PM EST Where: Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, HI TV/Streaming: ESPN, WatchESPN (subscription req’d) Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors (T-2nd, Mountain West West, 8-5, 5-3) Hawai’i is making its eighth SoFi Hawai‘i Bowl appearance and second in the last three years. This is their 12th overall bowl overall. Hawai‘i.
Army’s season has been one enjoyable weekend after another, riding a eight game winning streak going into Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl against Houston on December 22nd.
The No. 20/23 Marquette University men’s basketball team (9-2, 0-0 BIG EAST) hosts No. 14/15 Buffalo (11-0, 0-0 MAC) Friday night for a top-20 matchup at 7:30 p.m. in Fiserv Forum.
The best way to describe the 2018 Memphis Tiger football team would be High Event. The Tigers scored 43.6 points per game on offense, but also allowed 31.5 points per game on defense. Every game was a party in the end zone.
Utah State (9-2) takes a pre-Christmas trip to Houston, Texas in a matchup against a Top 25 opponent. The Aggies are tied 1-1 in the all-time series against Houston, with the teams last playing during the 1969-70 season.
Was it a fluke, or was it a sign of things to come? That’s what Syracuse fans must be wondering after the Orange were upset 68-62 by Old Dominion last Saturday. Now they face Buffalo in a bigger challenge.
The Sun Devils will come into this game ready to play and looking for the win. They wont be happy to just be in a bowl because as their coach Herm Edwards once famously said, “you play to win the game.”
The Black Bears will need a much better offensive game against a tougher Eastern Washington team and they are going to have to match their defensive pressure to keep Eric Barriere uncomfortable and in the pocket.
Louisiana-Lafayette heads to the AutoNation Cure Bowl to face the Tulane Green Wave for what will be the second bowl game matchup with the New Orleans based school and third meeting in five years.
It’s becoming a habit for Aggie fans, trips to Atlanta in mid-December. That’s because North Carolina A&T is once again competing in the Celebration Bowl. In it’s four year history, this will be the third time the Aggies are the MEAC representative. The two other times they came to Atlanta, in 2015 and 2017, they won.
A rematch between Big Sky Conference teams will take place this Saturday when the Eastern Washington University football team hosts UC Davis in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs.
Kennesaw State’s dream season continues as they reach the FCS Playoff quarterfinals for the second straight year. Unlike last year, however, when the Owls had to make a trip to Huntsville, Texas to play Sam Houston State, this time out they will be hosting one of the perennial powers of the Missouri Valley Football Conference, South Dakota State.
(8) Colgate at (1) North Dakota State When: Saturday, December 8, 11:00 AM CST Where: Gate City Bank Field at the Fargo Dome TV/Streaming: ESPN, Watch ESPN Colgate Raiders (10-1) Hamilton, N.Y Patriot League Enrollment: 2,922 FCS Sagarin Rating: 105 (10 in FCS) How They Got Here: See the game report on how Colgate won its first playoff game against.
(7) Maine at (2) Weber State When: Friday, December 7, 8:00 PM Where: Stewart Stadium, Ogden, UT TV/Streaming: ESPN2, WatchESPN (subscription req’d) Maine Black Bears Orono, Maine Colonial Athletic Association Enrollment: 8,677 FCS Sagarin Rating: 25 How They Got Here: Maine got 4 first half touchdown passes from Chris Ferguson to lead 42-14 at the.
Virginia Commonwealth at Texas When: Wednesday, December 5, 8:00 PM Where: Frank Erwin Center, Austin, TX TV/Streaming: ESPNU, WatchESPN (subscription req’d) Virginia Commonwealth Rams (6-2, 0-0) Richmond, Virginia Atlantic 10 Conference Enrollment: 24,010 FCS Sagarin Rating: 85 (14 in CSJ High-Major Men’s Basketball Top 25) Scouting Report: It’s been exactly one year since VCU and Texas.
Army vs. Navy When: Saturday, December 8, 3:00 PM EST Where: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, PA. TV/Streaming: CBS / CBS Sports Streaming Navy Midshipmen (3-9, 2-6 AAC) Season Recap: After a shocking victory over the eventual AAC East champs Memphis in September, the Midshipmen had some early promise for the 2018 season that was dashed by their inability.
Furman at Elon When: Tuesday, December 4, 7:00 PM Where: Schar Center, Elon, NC TV/Streaming: CAA.TV Furman Paladins (8-0, 0-0) Greenville, South Carolina Southern Conference Enrollment: 2,746 FCS Sagarin Rating: 118 (21 in CSJ Mid-Major Men’s Basketball Top 25) Scouting Report: Newly ranked in the AP Top 25 thanks to their shocking upset of Villanova,.
Southeast Missouri State at (2) Weber State When: Saturday, December 1, 4:00 PM Where: Stewart Stadium, Ogden, UT TV/Streaming: ESPN College Extra, ESPN3 Southeast Missouri State Cape Girardeau, Missouri Ohio Valley Conference Enrollment: 10,041 FCS Sagarin Rating: 36 How They Got Here: FCS Playoffs: SEMO Turns Stony Brook Turnovers Into 28 Point Turnaround, Defeat Seawolves 28-14 CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo..
Nicholls at (3) Eastern Washington When: Saturday, December 1, 5:00 PM Where: Roos Field, Cheney, WA TV/Streaming: ESPN College Extra, ESPN3 Nicholls Colonels Thibodaux, Louisiana Southland Conference Enrollment: 5,717 FCS Sagarin Rating: 18 How They Got Here: Nicholls State scored over 40 points for the fifth straight week – all wins – in a first round playoff.
James Madison at (8) Colgate When: Saturday, December 1, 1:00 PM Where: Crown Field at Kerr Stadium, Hamilton, NY TV/Streaming: ESPN College Extra, ESPN3 James Madison Dukes Harrisonburg, Virginia Colonial Athletic Association Enrollment: 19,000 FCS Sagarin Rating: 4 How They Got Here: James Madison used a suffocating defense and a good enough offense to defeat Delaware.
Jacksonville State at (8) Maine When: Saturday, December, 12:00 PM Where: Alfond Stadium, Orono, ME TV/Streaming: ESPN College Extra, ESPN3 Jacksonville State Gamecocks Jacksonville, Alabama Ohio Valley Conference Enrollment: 7,491 FCS Sagarin Rating: 12 How They Got Here: Jacksonville State fell behind 20-10 at the half, but rallied in the second half to defeat East Tennessee.
Wofford at Kennesaw State When: Saturday, December 1st, 2:00 PM Where: Fifth Third Bank Stadium, Kennesaw, GA TV/Streaming: ESPN College Extra, ESPN3 Wofford Terriers Spartanburg, South Carolina Southern Conference Enrollment: 1,650 FCS Sagarin Rating: 20 Last Round: FCS Playoffs: Wofford Stifles Elon At Home, 19-7 SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Wofford defeated Elon 19-7 at Gibbs Stadium on Saturday.
East Tennessee State at Jacksonville State When: Saturday, November 24, 6:30 PM Where: Burgess-Snow Field, Jacksonville, AL TV/Streaming: ESPN3 East Tennessee State Buccaneers Johnson City, Tennessee Southern Conference Enrollment: 11,323 FCS Sagarin Rating: 53 Season Recap: ETSU had just re-instated their dormant football program in 2015. Only three years later, the Buccaneers under first-year head coach Randy.
Lamar at Northern Iowa When: Saturday, November 24, 4:00 PM CST Where: UNI-Dome, Cedar Falls, Iowa TV/Streaming: ESPN3 Lamar Cardinals (7-4, 6-3 SLC) Beaumont, Texas Southland Conference Enrollment: 9,234 FCS Sagarin Rating: 186 (56 in FCS) Season Recap: Riding the back of one of the nation’s longest win streaks, Lamar has advanced to the NCAA FCS.
San Diego at Nicholls When: Saturday, November 24, 3:00 PM Where: John L Guidry Stadium, Thoibodaux, LA TV/Streaming: ESPN3 San Diego Toreros San Diego, California Pioneer Football League Enrollment: 5,774 FCS Sagarin Rating: 72 Season Recap: The Toreros, who are playing in their third consecutive FCS Playoffs, won the Pioneer Football League with a perfect 8-0 league.
Delaware at James Madison When: Saturday, November 24, 3:00 PM Where: Bridgeforth Stadium, Harrisonburg, VA TV/Streaming: ESPN3 Delaware Blue Hens Newark, Delaware Colonial Athletic Association Enrollment: 18,353 FCS Sagarin Rating: 22 Season Recap: Delaware’s season started with a thud, losing to Rhode Island. After four weeks they were 4-4 and had questions after a loss.
Incarnate Word at Montana State When: Saturday, November 24, 1:00 PM MST Where: Bobcat Stadium, Bozeman, MT TV/Streaming: ESPN3 Incarnate Word Cardinals (6-4, 6-2 Southland) San Antonio, Tex. Southland Conference Enrollment: 10,389 FCS Sagarin Rating: 173 (47 in FCS) Season Recap:In one season, UIW football Head Coach Eric Morris took the Cardinals from a 1-10 record (2017) to a 6-4.
Stony Brook at Southeast Missouri State When: Saturday, November 24, 2:00 PM Where: Houck Field, Cape Girardeau, MO TV/Streaming: ESPN3 Stony Brook Seawolves Stony Brook, New York Colonial Athletic Association Enrollment: 17,364 FCS Sagarin Rating: 14 Season Recap: The Seawolves had a 7-4 season where they ran a tough gauntlet of CAA competition and emerged with.
Elon at Wofford When: Saturday, November 24, 2:00 PM Where: Gibbs Stadium, Spartanburg, SC TV/Streaming: ESPN3 Elon Phoenix Elon, North Carolina Colonial Athletic Association Enrollment: 5,900 FCS Sagarin Rating: 23 Season Recap: Elon lost their season opening game against FBS South Florida, but then the Phoenix then won four straight games, including breaking James Madison’s.
