College Sports Journal Spring Top 25 Week of 4/6/2021
It was pretty calm at the top of the Top 25 last week. Most teams didn’t play. But the middle, throw it in a blender. We have two weeks left before selection Sunday.
College Sports Journal Sagarin FCS Top 25–Apr. 3
Below are the Top 25 rankings based on the Sagarin rankings for the week ending April 3rd. These rankings are amongst the now 88 schools participating in the spring schedule. Joining Illinois State, who opted out the prior week, to opt out of the season after starting their season are Albany, Chattanooga, and Cal Poly.
College Sports Journal Missouri Valley Football Conference Football Preview Week of 4/3/2021
Last week was a lost week for over half the MVFC squads and this week looks to be same. Two games last week were postponed or cancelled due to COVID-19 reasons with the North Dakota at Youngstown State and North Dakota State at South Dakota games both called off last week. The UND-YSU game will.
CSJ Roundtable, Week of 4/3/21: Limping, Or Soaring, To The End of the Regular Season?
North Dakota State cancellation, Chattanooga opting out – lots happened this past week, and CSJ’s staff writers mulled over the impacts as the dust settled.
College Sports Journal Spring Top 25, Week of 3/28/2021
Another week, another round of upsets in the FCS. Jacksonville State and Chattanooga were both top 10 teams last week. Both lost. We nearly had a second straight week where our number one team lost, but Weber State got a 50 yard hail mary on the last play of the game to preserve the win. VMI has moved within one win of the Southern Conference title. Our eyes will be on them this weekend.
College Sports Journal Sagarin FCS Top 25–Mar. 28
Below are the Top 25 rankings based on the Sagarin rankings for the week ending March 28th. These rankings are amongst the now 91 schools participating in the spring schedule. NOTE: the Ivy League and Mid-Eastern (MEAC) conferences are not participating in the 2021 spring schedule. The Big Sky Conference was the big winner.
College Sports Journal Missouri Valley Football Conference Football Preview Week of 3/27/2021
This week with just four games, the biggest appears to be Southern Illinois at Missouri State with the winner staying in the MVFC title and FCS playoff race and the loser likely will be on the outside. Here are all the previews and my predictions for the MVFC games this week.
College Sports Journal Spring Top 25 Week of 3/21/2021
Our number one team from last week went down. North Dakota State dominated both sides of the trenches to beat North Dakota. Sam Houston continue to roll in the Southland. VMI and Chattanooga kept their unbeaten starts going by a combined 3 points. And in the CAA Rhode Island is 2-0 with two ranked wins, as everyone predicted (not exactly).
CSJ Roundtable, Week of 3/28/21: Halfway, Sort Of, Through the Spring Season
We’re about at about the midpoint of the spring season, and the writers at CSJ get together to take stock of the season so far.
College Sports Journal Sagarin FCS Top 25–Mar. 21
Below are the Top 25 rankings based on the Sagarin rankings for the week ending March 21st. These rankings are amongst the now 91 schools (Illinois State just announced it will forgo the rest of its spring schedule) participating in the spring schedule. NOTE: the Ivy League and Mid-Eastern (MEAC) conferences are not participating in.
College Sports Journal Missouri Valley Football Conference Football Preview Week of 3/21/2021
SIU now gets South Dakota State at home this week. The Jackrabbits had a nail bitter against winless Youngstown State at home last week. The Jacks led the Penguins 16-7 through three quarters of play but YSU came back with 10 straight points to take the lead. SDSU though managed to drive in the wanning seconds of the game to get into field goal position where K Cole Frahm kicked a 29-yard field goal with 31 seconds remaining to lift the Jacks to the victory.
College Sports Journal Sagarin FCS Top 25–Mar. 14
Below are the Top 25 rankings based on the Sagarin rankings for the week ending March 14th. These rankings are amongst the 92 schools participating in the spring schedule. NOTE: the Ivy League and Mid-Eastern (MEAC) conferences are not participating in the 2021 spring schedule. North Dakota State moves back into the top spot.
College Sports Journal Missouri Valley Football Conference Football Preview Week of 3/14/2021
This week the most intriguing match-up appears to the Northern Iowa at Southern Illinois as we have all MVFC games this week played on Saturday, March 13. The two schools both have a loss and getting their second loss as we will enter the mid-point of the spring schedule will likely result in the loser having to win out the rest of the season to get a playoff berth.
College Sports Journal Spring Top 25 Week of 3/7/2021
As chaotic as last week was, this week was as docile. The highest ranked team from last week’s College Sports Journal top 25 that lost was #13. We do have a new #1 team here at College Sports Journal this week.
CSJ Roundtable, Week of 3/7/21: FCS March Madness Actually Starts With March Mildness
Compared to the chaos of the final week of February, where we saw half the top 25 lose, the results of the first week in March could instead be called “March Mildness”.
College Sports Journal Sagarin FCS Top 25–Mar. 7
Below are the Top 25 rankings based on the Sagarin rankings for the week ending March 7th. These rankings are amongst the 92 schools participating in the spring schedule. The Missouri Valley Football Conference is well represented with the Top 4 teams in the rankings. In total, the MVFC has eight teams in the.
College Sports Journal Missouri Valley Football Conference Football Preview Week of 3/4–3/6 2021
This week we get a Thursday game that matches two of the three undefeated teams left in league play when South Dakota visits North Dakota as one of the highlight games of the week in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. All other games this week in the MVFC will be on Saturday, March 6. Last.
College Sports Journal Spring Top 25, Week of 3/1/2021
As expected there was a bunch of movement this week. The biggest shock is the one everyone has been talking about: North Dakota State not only lost, but lost big. It still remains to be seen how the Bison will wind up this Spring, but last week was their worst game in almost a decade.
CSJ Roundtable, Week of 2/27/21: What The Hell Did We Just Witness?
Like many other football fans across the nation of FCS, we watched North Dakota State’s 39 game winning streak come to an end in Carbondale, Illinois, but it wasn’t the only event this weekend that had us shaking our heads.
College Sports Journal Sagarin FCS Top 25–Feb. 28
Below are the Top 25 rankings based on the Sagarin rankings for the week ending February 28th. These rankings are amongst the 92 schools participating in the spring schedule. North Dakota State lost to Southern Illinois this week and moved down to the #2 spot in the rankings. South Dakota State moves up to.
CSJ FCS FOOTBALL FRIDAY, 2/26/2021: Our Thoughts And Picks For This Weekend
This week we welcome the SWAC, Big Sky, and Big South to the wonderful world of spring FCS football, to go with the Missouri Valley, SoCon and OVC, who started their spring conference slates last week, and Tarleton State, who spent their time crushing FBS New Mexico State 43-17.
College Sports Journal Missouri Valley Football Conference Football Preview Week of 2/27/21
After a short first week of the season with just three of the possible five games played, Week 2 of MVFC play hopes to play the full five games this week. The two games canceled last week (Illinois State at Missouri State and Western Illinois at South Dakota) were postponed to the final weekend of.
College Sports Journal Spring Top 25, Week of 2/21/2021
Here is this week’s College Sports Journal Top 25 as voted on by the staff.
CSJ Roundtable, Week of 2/20/21: Supreme South Dakota State, Surprising Tarleton State, And Looking To Week 2
This weekend saw the best-ever spring weekend of FCS football in history, with a near-full slate of thrilling Missouri Valley conference action, a back-and-forth affair in the OVC, the start of SoCon play, and even a good old-fashioned FCS over FBS upset. It’s like a typical FCS football weekend. Except it’s February 22nd.
College Sports Journal Sagarin FCS Top 25–Feb. 21
Below are the Top 25 rankings based on the Sagarin rankings for the week ending February 21st. These rankings are amongst the 92 schools participating in the spring schedule. Three-time defending champion North Dakota State stays in the top spot following its spring season opening win at home over Youngstown State. South Dakota State.
CSJ Spring 2021 Week 1 Roundtable: Can A Spring Season Be Pulled Off?
The CSJ writing staff answer the questions many of us have about the beginning of this unprecedented FCS season.
College Sports Journal Spring Preseason Top 25
The top 25 below has been compiled by vote from each member of the College Sports Journal FCS staff. Buckle up ladies and gentlemen, its going to be a weird spring season.
2021 CSJ Missouri Valley Football Conference Spring Football Preview
With a canceled 2020 FCS football fall season due to COVID-19 reasons, the sub-division will be playing instead in an unprecedented spring schedule.
College Sports Journal Sagarin FCS Top 25–Spring 2021 Preseason
Below are the Top 25 FCS preseason rankings based on the Sagarin rankings for the spring 2021 season. These rankings are amongst the 94 of the total of 127 schools participating in the spring schedule. Three-time defending champion North Dakota State is the preseason top spot with the team the Bison defeated in the last.
College Sports Journal Sagarin FCS Full Rankings –Preseason Spring 2021
This has been an unprecedented past 12 months for college football with the Division I ranks due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This past fall, we saw the FBS subdivision of Division I play through what right now looks like the peak of the pandemic of November and December. All FBS conferences did not start the.
North Dakota State Picked To Repeat In Spring Season; NDSU Aims for 10th-Straight Missouri Valley Football Crown
North Dakota State has been tabbed as the Missouri Valley Football Conference 2021 Spring preseason favorite in a poll conducted by league coaches.
Rethinking Division I Football: Making A Three Tiered System
How do we organize these programs in a way that is enticing for them, without breaking the proverbial bank while also creating a potentially better G5 product overall as well?
The FCS Should Now Try To Play A Modified Season in the Spring. Here’s How You Do It.
Playing a radically shortened season of six “regular-season” games would allow for most teams to only have a season that is marginally longer than what they would do for spring practices. And from those games, it is possible to come up with an FCS Championship.
A Wacky Idea for a Wacky Year of 2020 for Division I Football
It has been a wacky 2020, hasn’t it? The year started out like most years. The Group of Five played four bowl games in this calendar year, as did the FCS national title game. All played with fans in the stands and played without any idea of what was to come. Cincinnati easily won the.
OPINION: Shutting Out FCS Schools from P5 Schedules? Here We Go Again
It seems like nationally, college football people really don’t seem to have any idea about the talent, passion, and tradition that goes on at FCS schools, or what makes them the ideal out-of-conference opponents.
OPINION: No, David Pollack. FCS Football Is Right Where It Should Be.
On July 21st, 2020, when David Pollack went on air to suggest that FCS football should permanently become spring football, I cringed.
2020 College Sports Journal FCS Preseason All-America Team Announced
Sixty student-athletes in the NCAA Division I Football’s Championship Subdivision have been named to the 2020 College Sports Journal Preseason FCS All-America Team.
2020 College Sports Journal FCS Preseason Top 25 Announced
Of our preseason poll last year, only 6 of the top 10 teams made the playoffs. 13 of the full 25 played past Thanksgiving. Its 2020, the year of complete chaos.
Hedberg’s Arrival Deepens Bison Lore
One aspect to the Bison’s recent domination has been the arrival of Randy Hedberg as the quarterback coach prior to the start of the 2014 season.
OPINION: Watch Out, North Dakota State: The Big 10 Is Coming For Your Trey Lance With Their Proposed One Time Transfer Rule
If the Big 10 and the Power 5 have their way, however, the Trey Lance’s of the world won’t be sticking around at FCS schools like North Dakota State for very long.
NDSU Out-Executed JMU to Win National Championship
As a JMU fan and alum, it was tough to sit inside a cold Toyota Stadium this past Saturday and watch my team lose. What was even tougher was knowing that JMU lost because North Dakota State simply executed better.
GREAT EIGHT!! North Dakota State wins its eighth Division I FCS National Title in a thrilling contest over James Madison, 28-20
FRISCO, Tex.— Top-seeded North Dakota State defeated the second-seeded James Madison 28-20 at Toyota Stadium to win the 2019 Division I FCS National Championship in front of 17,866 fans. With the win, NDSU completed its second consecutive undefeated campaign and continued its dominance by winning its eighth national title in the past nine seasons and third.
2019 STATS Perform Awards Banquet, Payton Award goes to NDSU QB Trey Lance & Buchanan Award goes to Montana LB Dante Olson
FRISCO, Tex.—North Dakota State redshirt freshman quarterback Trey Lance was recognized with the Walter Payton Award tonight presented by STATS Perform FCS Awards banquet tonight as the best offensive player of the year. “This is just a phenomenal, surreal moment, unexpected totally,” said Carlton Lance, who is Trey’s father, and accepted the award for his.
CSJ Photos and Press Conferences from Frisco, FCS Championship Eve 2020
Here are some photos taken as James Madison and North Dakota State had their press conferences ahead of tomorrow’s 2020 national title game. The weather was rainy the past two days and is expected to be dangerous tonight with heavy thunderstorms rolling through Frisco. The front will bring colder weather with highs tomorrow dipping into.
CSJ Photos from Frisco, 2020 FCS Championship Thursday
Here are some photos taken as the field crew prepares the Toyota Stadium field in Frisco, Texas to be ready for the championship for the 2020 Division I FCS National Title game. Both teams had a chance to take team photos and players and coaches had a chance to meet the media on the field..
The College Sports Journal 2020 FCS National Championship Roundtable: James Madison vs. North Dakota State, And Fearless Predictions
The FCS National Championship game will be played this weekend in Frisco, Texas and will be televised nationally on ABC. Prior to the game, the College Sports Journal crew – Chuck Burton, Ray Maloney, Ben Schleiger, Kent Schmidt and Jamie Williams – sat down for a Championship game round table to discuss the game.
An Outsiders Perspective of the FCS National Championship
What: FCS National Championship Where: Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas When: Sunday, January 11, 2020, at 12 p.m. TV Channel: ABC Unfortunately, not all of our teams can make the national championship game as only two teams are eligible. That means 116 teams (126 total, minus these two, minus the Ivy teams – 8) are.
North Dakota State’s Road to Frisco for the Eighth Time in Nine Years
This year, North Dakota State will play for its unprecedented eighth Division I title in football to close out a dominating decade of football when they face one of just three schools to win a national title this decade in James Madison. James Madison knocked the Bison off in the semifinal playoff round in 2016.
FCS Semifinal Round Playoffs: Lance, Watson Key Top Seeded North Dakota State to a 42-14 Win over Montana State
FARGO, N.D.—WR Christian Watson scored touchdowns on back-to-back touches early in the second quarter and top playoff seeded North Dakota State defeated fifth seeded Montana State 42-14 in a Division I FCS semifinal matchup for its 36th straight victory in front of 18,077 in attendance inside the Fargodome. QB Trey Lance found Watson behind the.
