September 28th, 2010 12:00am
Winston Salem State has some passionate fans, and boy have I been hearing from them. Most are upset about their team still not being in our Top 25 poll despite a 5-0 start and a pair of wins over D-I FCS teams. To an extent, I understand their frustration.
But inherent to fandom is bias and in some cases, an all out lack of reason. Example: One email suggested that the Rams are a national championship contender. Keep in mind that the Rams come from a conference (CIAA) that has just one playoff win ever amongst its active members.
So WSSU fans, just relax a little and let the season run its course. As I mentioned last week, respect will come slow. The Rams will have their shot against a good North Carolina-Pembroke team to prove themselves in a couple of weeks. And, if the success continues, WSSU just may make a postseason appearance this year. On the other hand, this whole season could come crashing back to earth with a couple of losses. We will find out over the next month or so if Winston-Salem State is for real.
News and Notes from Week Five
-What a crazy year it has been so far in the PSAC. Clarion and Shippensburg are both 0-4 while West Chester and East Stroudsburg are both 1-3. Keep in mind that Shippensburg won the league title last year while ESU was a playoff team.
-Northwest Missouri State seems to be the only one of the MIAA contenders that is interested in playing much defense. Central Missouri and Washburn combined for 100 points in their game last week, while Missouri Western's defense was gashed by Pittsburg State in a 42-25 win. I think the Bearcats will go unbeaten in the conference for a fifth straight year.
-West Virginia Wesleyan moved to 4-0 with a stunning (and controversial) 43-41 win over West Liberty last week. Keep in mind that the Bobcats were picked last in the WVIAC preseason poll while WLU was picked first. You just never know in college football.
-Watch out for Augustana. The Vikings could move to 5-0 for the first time in 68 years with a win over Concordia-St. Paul this week. The Vikings have a shutdown defense (just 229 yards per game allowed) and one of the nation's top receivers in Tyler Schulte (615 receiving yards and 10 touchdown receptions already). Augie narrowly missed the playoffs last year and at this point looks like a good bet to get there this season.
-UNC-Pembroke's 30-7 win over Carson-Newman was definitely an eye-opener, mainly because the Eagles were so badly overmatched. The rest of the teams in the SAC should be licking their chops as this looks like a major rebuilding year for the Eagles.
Saturday's Top Games
Missouri Western (4-0) at Northwest Missouri State (3-1)
Two Top 10 teams. Two of the nation's top quarterbacks. And just to add a bit more flavor, these two teams do not like each other. These factors should make for a great game.
Missouri Western can and will score points in this game. Senior quarterback Drew Newhart has been outstanding so far this season and is playing as well as any QB in the country.
That said, I'm not sold on the Griffon defense, and that's where the Bearcats will have an advantage in this game. MWSU gave up 358 rushing yards last week to Pittsburg State and the Griffons generally looked overmatched up front defensively. The Griffons will have to play perfect football to have a chance. Northwest Missouri State 37 Missouri Western 24.
Abilene Christian (4-0) at Texas A&M-Kingsville (4-0)
The Javelina defense is very, very good. TAMUK leads the nation in total defense, allowing a paltry 134 yards of total offense per game. Remember that this unit racked up seven sacks and held Northwest Missouri State to seven points in the season opener.
ACU is no slouch either on defense, and the Wildcats have a much better offense, especially when you consider that Javelina leading rusher Fred Winborn has been suspended from the team.
So this is the question with this game: Can the TAMUK defense do like it did against Northwest and take over the game? If it cannot, the Wildcats will win this football game. Abilene Christian 17 Texas A&M-Kingsville 13.
Mailbag
[Q] Why do we see so many games from weak conferences on the CBS (College Sports Network) game of the week?
Mike
[A] Division I television coverage is market driven, meaning that the top conferences and teams get the bulk of the coverage because the networks pay the leagues and schools for the right to broadcast their games. But at the D-II level, the national television air time is actually purchased by the NCAA, which necessitates somewhat equal coverage for all conferences.
Contact
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