Despite off field troubles, Griz stay at #3

Posted on November 12, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
Even with all that's happened, the Griz have only one playoff-eligible team in front of them. On top of that, the EWU Eagles five spots to #20.

Here are the complete rankings from The Sports Network.
Team (First-place votes) Record Points Previous Rank
1. Northern Iowa Panthers (70) 10-0 2,474 1
2. North Dakota State Bison (23) 10-0 2,291 2
3. Montana Grizzlies (10) 10-0 2,269 3
4. McNeese State Cowboys (3) 10-0 2,260 4
5. Southern Illinois Salukis 9-1 2,084 5
6. Appalachian State Mountaineers 8-2 1,982 7
7. Richmond Spiders 8-2 1,845 9
8. Massachusetts Minutemen 8-2 1,841 8
9. Delaware Blue Hens 8-2 1,591 6
10. Delaware State Hornets 9-1 1,538 10
11. Yale Bulldogs 9-0 1,417 12
12. Eastern Kentucky Colonels 8-2 1,408 13
13. Wofford Terriers 8-3 1,366 15
14. James Madison Dukes 7-3 1,253 16
15. Eastern Washington Eagles 7-3 942 20
16. Georgia Southern Eagles 7-3 892 11
17. Youngstown State Penguins 7-4 742 21
18. Fordham Rams 8-2 672 22
19. Grambling State Tigers 8-2 653 17
20. New Hampshire Wildcats 6-4 568 14
21. Eastern Illinois Panthers 7-3 539 25
22. Hofstra Pride 7-3 380 18
23. Alabama A&M Bulldogs 8-2 307 NR
24. Elon Phoenix 6-4 223 19
25. Cal Poly Mustangs 6-4 188 24
Others receiving votes: Harvard 158, South Dakota State 140, Norfolk State 138, Dayton 124, The Citadel 97, Villanova 68, San Diego 63, Western Illinois 59, Liberty 53, Nicholls State 42, Colgate 36, Central Arkansas 30, Furman 23, Hampton 12, South Carolina State 11, Southern 9, Montana State 6, Sam Houston State 5, Albany 4, Prairie View 4, Missouri State 1.
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Montana Grizzlies move back to #3 in TSN rankings

Posted on November 5, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
With their win over Portland State, and UMass's loss to Rhode Island, the Griz moved up one spot to #3 in the latest rankings from The Sports Network. Because NDSU is ineligible for postseason play, there's only one playoff team ahead of them. If the playoff seedings were based on this, which they are not, the Griz would get home field advantage all the way to Chattanooga. Also, EWU move up four spots to #20.

Here are the complete rankings courtesy of The Sports Network.
Team (First-place votes) Record Points Previous Rank
1. Northern Iowa Panthers (61) 9-0 2,687 1
2. North Dakota State Bison (42) 9-0 2,540 2
3. Montana Grizzlies (7) 9-0 2,462 4
4. McNeese State Cowboys (2) 9-0 2,455 5
5. Southern Illinois Salukis 8-1 2,279 6
6. Delaware Blue Hens 8-1 2,187 7
7. Appalachian State Mountaineers 7-2 2,058 9
8. Massachusetts Minutemen 7-2 1,847 3
9. Richmond Spiders 7-2 1,799 11
10. Delaware State Hornets 8-1 1,547 13
11. Georgia Southern Eagles 7-2 1,514 17
12. Yale Bulldogs 8-0 1,414 15
13. Eastern Kentucky Colonels 7-2 1,378 16
14. New Hampshire Wildcats 6-3 1,222 8
15. Wofford Terriers 7-3 1,215 10
16. James Madison Dukes 6-3 1,140 12
17. Grambling State Tigers 8-1 1,083 18
18. Hofstra Pride 7-2 857 20
19. Elon Phoenix 6-3 736 14
20. Eastern Washington Eagles 6-3 585 24
21. Youngstown State Penguins 6-4 467 22
22. Fordham Rams 8-2 342 NR
23. Western Illinois Leathernecks 6-4 325 19
24. Cal Poly Mustangs 6-3 289 NR
25. Eastern Illinois Panthers 6-3 264 NR
Others receiving votes: Norfolk State 181, Alabama A&M 142, South Dakota State 94, Dayton 85, Villanova 82, Harvard 76, Jacksonville State 71, Northern Arizona 50, Holy Cross 39, Liberty 29, Jackson State 26, Nicholls State 22, Southern 20, Albany 19, San Diego 17, Colgate 12, South Carolina State 11, The Citadel 9, Central Arkansas 8, Furman 7, Gardner-Webb 7, Hampton 7, Sam Houston State 6, Austin Peay 4, Rhode Island 2, Iona 1, Northeastern 1.
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Griz bumped down to #4 in TSN poll

Posted on October 29, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
After what could be considered the Griz's most impressive win of the season, they were moved down spot in the latest FCS rankings by The Sports Network. Eastern Washington moved into the poll at #24.

Here are the complete rankings via The Sports Network.
Team (First-place votes) Record Points Previous Rank
1. Northern Iowa Panthers (59) 8-0 2,558 1
2. North Dakota State Bison (37) 8-0 2,456 2
3. Massachusetts Minutemen (6) 7-1 2,330 4
4. Montana Grizzlies (7) 8-0 2,300 3
5. McNeese State Cowboys (3) 8-0 2,272 5
6. Southern Illinois Salukis 7-1 2,069 7
7. Delaware Blue Hens 7-1 1,866 9
8. New Hampshire Wildcats 6-2 1,828 8
9. Appalachian State Mountaineers 6-2 1,689 10
10. Wofford Terriers 7-2 1,612 11
11. Richmond Spiders 6-2 1,454 14
12. James Madison Dukes 6-2 1,432 6
13. Delaware State Hornets 7-1 1,284 12
14. Elon Phoenix 6-2 1,215 16
15. Yale Bulldogs 7-0 1,179 13
16. Eastern Kentucky Colonels 7-2 1,068 17
17. Georgia Southern Eagles 6-2 850 22
18. Grambling State Tigers 7-1 789 21
19. Western Illinois Leathernecks 6-3 624 24
20. Hofstra Pride 6-2 518 15
21. Alabama A&M Bulldogs 7-1 404 NR
22. Youngstown State Penguins 5-4 292 20
23. Villanova Wildcats 5-3 253 NR
24. Eastern Washington Eagles 5-3 245 NR
25. Nicholls State Colonels 5-3 224 18
Others receiving votes: Eastern Illinois 208, Holy Cross 179, Cal Poly 147, Central Arkansas 127, Fordham 109, The Citadel 88, Norfolk State 87, Montana State 76, Dayton 59, San Diego 50, Harvard 47, Jacksonville State 36, South Dakota State 25, Hampton 19, Northern Arizona 15, Iona 11, Albany 9, Prairie View 5, Liberty 2, Winston-Salem State 2, Colgate 1.
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Griz remain at #3 in TSN poll, lose a lot of votes

Posted on October 22, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
The University of Montana Grizzlies still sit as the third ranked team in The Sports Network's I-AA rankings. While the Griz did not get bumped down in the rankings, they now have only 11 first-place votes after having 40 first-place votes last week. It looks like NDSU, who beat Minnesota this weekend, picked up most of those votes.

Here are the complete rankings, courtesy of The Sports Network.
Team (First-place votes) Record Points Previous Rank
1. Northern Iowa Panthers (56) 7-0 2,696 1
2. North Dakota State Bison (47) 7-0 2,621 2
3. Montana Grizzlies (11) 7-0 2,473 3
4. Massachusetts Minutemen (4) 6-1 2,411 4
5. McNeese State Cowboys (2) 7-0 2,335 6
6. James Madison Dukes 6-1 2,155 8
7. Southern Illinois Salukis 7-1 2,101 9
8. New Hampshire Wildcats 5-2 1,821 11
9. Delaware Blue Hens 6-1 1,679 14
10. Appalachian State Mountaineers 5-2 1,665 5
11. Wofford Terriers 6-2 1,533 7
12. Delaware State Hornets 6-1 1,340 15
13. Yale Bulldogs 6-0 1,240 16
14. Richmond Spiders 5-2 1,110 18
15. Hofstra Pride 6-1 1,057 10
16. Elon Phoenix 5-2 1,000 24
17. Eastern Kentucky Colonels 6-2 849 13
18. Nicholls State Colonels 5-2 849 13
19. Montana State Bobcats 5-2 813 20
20. Youngstown State Penguins 5-3 719 12
21. Grambling State Tigers 6-1 514 23
22. Georgia Southern Eagles 5-2 503 NR
23. Norfolk State Spartans 6-1 432 25
24. Western Illinois Leathernecks 5-3 288 17
25. The Citadel Bulldogs 5-2 282 NR
Others receiving votes: San Diego 250, Alabama A&M 211, Eastern Washington 147, Cal Poly 104, Eastern Illinois 96, Villanova 59, Holy Cross 56, Jacksonville State 40, Northern Arizona 38, Fordham 37, South Carolina State 33, Illinois State 30, Central Arkansas 23, Harvard 19, Hampton 12, South Dakota State 9, Sam Houston State 3, Austin Peay 2, Albany 1, Dayton 1.
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Griz drop to #3 in TSN Poll

Posted on October 15, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
The way the Griz were playing, it was going to happen sooner or later. The mighty have fallen...all the way to #3...in a poll that has no bearing on playoff seeding.

I'm glad it happened, not because it "takes the target off our back" but because we deserved it. The Griz have played awful. They're lucky to be undefeated as they play down to all the competition. You can't be a #1 team without an offense.

Oh, and the Cats dropped nine spots to 20 after their loss to EWU.

Here's the complete poll from The Sports Network:
Team (First-place votes) Record Points Previous Rank
1. Northern Iowa Panthers (35) 6-0 2,577 2
2. North Dakota State Bison (23) 6-0 2,443 3
3. Montana Grizzlies (40) 6-0 2,431 1
4. Massachusetts Minutemen (4) 5-1 2,280 4
5. Appalachian State Mountaineers (3) 5-1 2,231 5
6. McNeese State Cowboys (2) 6-0 2,154 6
7. Wofford Terriers (3) 6-1 2,113 8
8. James Madison Dukes 6-1 1,883 9
9. Southern Illinois Salukis 6-1 1,735 7
10. Hofstra Pride 6-0 1,700 10
11. New Hampshire Wildcats 4-2 1,468 13
12. Youngstown State Penguins 5-2 1,444 12
13. Nicholls State Colonels 5-1 1,326 14
14. Delaware Blue Hens 6-1 1,275 15
15. Delaware State Hornets 5-1 1,054 17
16. Yale Bulldogs 5-0 1,006 16
17. Western Illinois Leathernecks 5-2 935 19
18. Richmond Spiders 4-2 705 20
19. Cal Poly Mustangs 4-2 633 22
20. Montana State Bobcats 4-2 584 11
21. Eastern Kentucky Colonels 5-2 584 23
22. Eastern Washington Eagles 4-2 514 NR
23. Grambling State Tigers 5-1 319 25
24. Elon Phoenix 4-2 306 NR
25. Norfolk State Spartans 5-1 293 NR
Others receiving votes: Eastern Illinois 237, Hampton 204, Alabama A&M 175, The Citadel 166, San Diego 153, Georgia Southern 64, Villanova 44, Central Arkansas 21, Holy Cross 19, Fordham 15, South Carolina State 14, Jackson State 10, Furman 8, Lehigh 8, Northern Arizona 8, Southern 8, Jacksonville State 7, Illinois State 6, Lafayette 6, Harvard 3, Missouri State 2, Sam Houston State 1, South Dakota State 1.
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Griz stay at #1

Posted on October 8, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
Well, another close win over a ranked opponent didn't hurt the Griz as they remain at the top spot in  the TSN poll.  The Griz actually picked up three more first place votes. The entire top nine stayed the same and Montana State moved up to 11 from 13.

Here are the complete rankings courtesy of The Sports Network.
Team (First-place votes) Record Points Previous Rank
1. Montana Grizzlies (55) 5-0 2,683 1
2. Northern Iowa Panthers (29) 5-0 2,659 2
3. North Dakota State Bison (24) 5-0 2,612 3
4. Massachusetts Minutemen (5) 4-1 2,487 4
5. Appalachian State Mountaineers (2) 5-1 2,356 5
6. McNeese State Cowboys (2) 5-0 2,260 6
7. Southern Illinois Salukis (1) 6-0 2,218 7
8. Wofford Terriers (3) 5-1 2,217 8
9. James Madison Dukes 5-1 1,917 9
10. Hofstra Pride 5-0 1,719 12
11. Montana State Bobcats 4-1 1,473 13
12. Youngstown State Penguins 4-2 1,434 10
13. New Hampshire Wildcats 3-2 1,433 15
14. Nicholls State Colonels 4-1 1,278 17
15. Delaware Blue Hens 5-1 1,244 11
16. Yale Bulldogs 4-0 1,039 18
17. Delaware State Hornets 4-1 923 20
18. Hampton Pirates 4-1 814 21
19. Western Illinois Leathernecks 4-2 775 22
20. Richmond Spiders 3-2 551 14
21. Georgia Southern Eagles 4-1 454 NR
22. Cal Poly Mustangs 3-2 442 24
23. Eastern Kentucky Colonels 4-2 259 NR
24. Eastern Illinois Panthers 3-3 252 16
25. Grambling State Tigers 4-1 228 NR
Others receiving votes: Alabama A&M 221, Lafayette 138, San Diego 127, Missouri State 105, Southern 99, Sam Houston State 97, Eastern Washington 95, Villanova 85, Norfolk State 78, Elon 76, The Citadel 62, Furman 32, Drake 23, Towson 23, South Carolina State 14, Illinois State 14, Lehigh 12, Central Arkansas 11, Holy Cross 11, Northern Arizona 11, Austin Peay 7, Fordham 5, Morehead State 4, Southeastern Louisiana 3, Tennessee Tech 2, South Dakota State 2, Portland State 2, UC Davis 1.
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Griz still sit at #1 in FCS poll, actually gain votes

Posted on October 1, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
Despite a very depressing and weak win at home against a now 0-4 Weber State team, the Griz team hung in at #1 and somehow gained more first place votes. Last week the Griz received 46 first place votes, this week: 52. They were helped out by a UMass loss. That loss? To 14th ranked (FBS) Boston College. It wasn't even a bad loss either. UMass hung in there with the final score being 24-14.

Here are the complete rankings from The Sports Network.
Team (First-place votes) Record Points Previous Rank
1. Montana Grizzlies (52) 4-0 2,573 1
2. Northern Iowa Panthers (23) 5-0 2,564 3
3. North Dakota State Bison (19) 4-0 2,496 4
4. Massachusetts Minutemen (11) 4-1 2,422 2
5. Appalachian State Mountaineers (2) 4-1 2,294 5
6. McNeese State Cowboys (7) 4-0 2,236 6
7. Southern Illinois Salukis (2) 5-0 2,115 7
8. Wofford Terriers (3) 4-1 2,084 8
9. James Madison Dukes 4-1 1,878 9
10. Youngstown State Penguins 4-1 1,811 10
11. Delaware Blue Hens 5-0 1,693 12
12. Hofstra Pride 4-0 1,376 14
13. Montana State Bobcats 3-1 1,229 18
14. Richmond Spiders 3-1 1,041 25
15. New Hampshire Wildcats 2-2 895 11
16. Eastern Illinois Panthers 3-2 894 19
17. Nicholls State Colonels 3-1 785 23
18. Yale Bulldogs 3-0 746 22
19. Sam Houston State Bearkats 2-2 744 15
20. Delaware State Hornets 3-1 652 NR
21. Hampton Pirates 3-1 587 13
22. Western Illinois Leathernecks 3-2 566 17
23. Illinois State Redbirds 2-3 339 16
24. Cal Poly Mustangs 3-2 289 NR
25. Southern Jaguars 5-0 279 NR
Others receiving votes: The Citadel 261, Eastern Washington 180, Georgia Southern 118, Lehigh 109, Furman 86, South Carolina State 75, Grambling 65, Alabama A&M 57, Lafayette 54, San Diego 52, Elon 47, Eastern Kentucky 31, Portland State 26, Princeton 19, Villanova 17, Drake 16, Gardner-Webb 10, Tennessee Tech 7, Norfolk State 5, South Dakota State 5, Towson 5, Missouri State 3, Northwestern State 3, UC Davis 3, Alabama State 2, Morgan State 1, Northern Arizona 1.
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Griz move to #1

Posted on September 24, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
After trailing Appalachian State for the last two years, the Griz have finally slipped into first with the Mountaineers' loss to Wofford. They fell all the way to fifth as the Griz received 46 first-place votes.
Team (First-place votes) Record Points Previous Rank
1. Montana Grizzlies (46) 3-0 2,396 2
2. Massachusetts Minutemen (18) 4-0 2,345 3
3. Northern Iowa Panthers (12) 4-0 2,272 4
4. North Dakota State Bison (14) 3-0 2,269 5
5. Appalachian State Mountaineers (8) 3-1 2,108 1
6. McNeese State Cowboys (2) 3-0 1,951 6
7. Southern Illinois Salukis (1) 4-0 1,833 7
8. Wofford Terriers (2) 3-1 1,821 13
9. James Madison Dukes 3-1 1,651 8
10. Youngstown State Penguins 3-1 1,616 9
11. New Hampshire Wildcats 2-1 1,522 10
12. Delaware Blue Hens 4-0 1,486 11
13. Hampton Pirates 3-0 1,170 12
14. Hofstra Pride 3-0 1,086 15
15. Sam Houston State Bearkats 2-1 872 17
16. Illinois State Redbirds 2-2 815 14
17. Western Illinois Leathernecks 3-1 782 19
18. Montana State Bobcats 2-1 772 18
19. Eastern Illinois Panthers 2-2 567 20
20. Furman Paladins 1-2 538 16
21. Eastern Washington Eagles 3-0 415 25
22. Yale Bulldogs 2-0 369 21
23. Nicholls State Colonels 3-1 336 NR
24. Elon Phoenix 2-1 263 NR
25. Richmond Spiders 2-1 171 NR
Others receiving votes: Cal Poly 166, Delaware State 119, The Citadel 111, Villanova 107, South Carolina State 55, Southern 42, Northern Arizona 41, Grambling 39, Lafayette 37, Alabama A&M 36, Lehigh 31, Holy Cross 30, Missouri State 27, San Diego 22, Alabama State 19, Eastern Kentucky 17, Georgia Southern 14, Gardner-Webb 9, UC Davis 9, Drake 8, Tennessee State 6, South Dakota State 5, Stony Brook 4, Chattanooga 3, Harvard 2, Dayton 1, Jackson State 1, Norfolk State 1, Northwestern State 1, Towson 1.
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Griz football back to #2 in rankings

Posted on September 11, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
I'm not sure how thumping a D-II school impresses anyone but the Griz's 49-0 victory over Fort Lewis was enough to push the Griz back up to #2 in The Sports Network's FCS Top 25.

Team (First-place votes) Record Points Previous Rank
1. Appalachian State Mountaineers (77) 2-0 1,925 1
2. Montana Grizzlies 2-0 1,849 3
3. Massachusetts Minutemen 2-0 1,726 2
4. Northern Iowa Panthers 2-0 1,630 8
5. North Dakota State Bison 1-0 1,625 4
6. Youngstown State Penguins 1-1 1,411 6
7. Southern Illinois Salukis 2-0 1,386 11
8. McNeese State Cowboys 1-0 1,374 7
9. James Madison Dukes 1-1 1,366 10
10. Delaware Blue Hens 2-0 1,051 13
11. Wofford Terriers 2-0 1,044 14
12. New Hampshire Wildcats 0-1 1,030 5
13. Hampton Pirates 1-0 826 15
14. Eastern Illinois Panthers 1-1 749 12
15. Furman Paladins 1-1 725 9
16. Sam Houston State Bearkats 2-0 709 16
17. Illinois State Redbirds 1-1 556 17
18. Nicholls State Colonels 2-0 475 25
19. Hofstra Pride 1-0 394 NR
20. Montana State Bobcats 0-1 356 21
21. Yale Bulldogs 0-0 280 23
22. Western Illinois Leathernecks 1-1 273 24
23. Towson Tigers 2-0 260 NR
24. Delaware State Hornets 2-0 214 NR
25. Lafayette Leopards 2-0 134 NR
Others receiving votes: Cal Poly 131, Northwestern State 96, Princeton 82, Richmond 81, Texas State 74, Alabama A&M 70, Drake 69, The Citadel 65, Missouri State 65, Tennessee-Martin 60, Portland State 58, Georgia Southern 50, South Carolina State 46, Eastern Washington 35, Eastern Kentucky 34, Southern 34, Northern Arizona 31, South Dakota State 29, Villanova 24, Alabama State 23, Liberty 23, San Diego 20, Austin Peay 14, Holy Corss 12, Maine 12, Stony Brook 10, Norfolk State 9, Grambling 7, Central Arkansas 6, Harvard 6, Colgate 4, Prairie View 4, Rhode Island 2, Tennessee State 2.
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Griz drop to #3 in TSN poll

Posted on September 4, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
The Griz could've been more impressive in their 37-17 victory over Southern Utah and that was reflected, if only a little bit, in the latest Sports Network FCS Top 25.

Here's the complete poll:

Team (First-place votes) Record Points Previous Rank
1. Appalachian State Mountaineers (88) 1-0 2,200 1
2. Massachusetts Minutemen 1-0 2,077 3
3. Montana Grizzlies 1-0 2,075 2
4. North Dakota State Bison 0-0 1,826 4
5. New Hampshire Wildcats 0-0 1,815 6
6. Youngstown State Penguins 0-1 1,611 5
7. McNeese State Cowboys 1-0 1,607 10
8. Northern Iowa Panthers 1-0 1,550 9
9. Furman Paladins 1-0 1,440 11
10. James Madison Dukes 0-1 1,343 8
11. Southern Illinois Salukis 1-0 1,282 12
12. Eastern Illinois Panthers 1-0 984 17
13. Delaware Blue Hens 1-0 979 19
14. Wofford Terriers 1-0 902 14
15. Hampton Pirates 0-0 864 16
16. Sam Houston State Bearkats 1-0 593 18
17. Illinois State Redbirds 0-1 592 7
18. Portland State Vikings 0-1 528 13
19. Texas State Bobcats 1-0 449 NR
20. Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks 0-1 398 22
21. Montana State Bobcats 0-1 395 21
22. Cal Poly Mustangs 0-1 373 15
23. Yale Bulldogs 0-0 275 24
24. Western Illinois Leathernecks 1-0 264 NR
25. Nicholls State Colonels 1-0 256 NR
Others receiving votes: Towson 232, Delaware State 192, South Dakota State 136, Lafayette 117, Northern Arizona 87, South Carolina State 69, Drake 72, Princeton 69, Alabama A&M 65, San Diego 64, Liberty 44, Northwestern State 44, Georgia Southern 39, Lehigh 39, Maine 35, Central Arkansas 34, Eastern Washington 34, The Citadel 29, Colgate 24, Southern 18, Harvard 17, Holy Cross 16, Eastern Kentucky 11, Gardner-Webb 6, Missouri State 6, Stephen F. Austin 6, Richmond 4, Winston-Salem State 4, Coastal Carolina 2, Mississippi Valley State 1.
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AGS announces 2007 FCS Preseason Poll

Posted on May 21, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
Any Given Saturday released its preseason poll and after the offseason, Appalachian State still sits at the #1 spot. They've lost a lot of starters but you're the best until somebody beats you. The Griz come in second having gathered 16 first-place votes.

Here is the complete poll:
Any Given Saturday Poll Preseason Top 25
(First place votes in parenthesis)
1. Appalachian State (97)
2. Montana (16)
3. North Dakota State
4. Youngstown State
5. Massachusetts (1)
6. Northern Iowa (1)
7. New Hampshire
8. James Madison
9. Furman
10. Cal Poly
11. Illinois State
12. McNeese State
13. Southern Illinois
14. Portland State
15. Hampton
16. Wofford
17. Tennessee-Martin
18. Delaware
19. Eastern Illinois
20. Sam Houston State
21. Montana State
22. South Dakota State
23. Lehigh
24. Coastal Carolina
25. Yale

Others receiving votes (minimum of 5 votes): Towson (61), UC Davis (59), Lafayette (40), Princeton (39), Maine (33), Harvard (26), San Diego (26), South Carolina State (22), Georgia Southern (17), Eastern Kentucky (14), Northern Arizona (14), Richmond (12), Central Arkansas (10), Liberty (10), Northwestern State (8), Western Illinois (8), Delaware State (7), Northeastern (7), Albany (6), Colgate (6), Texas State (6), The Citadel (6), Alabama A&M (5), Jacksonville State (5).

BIGGEST RISING TEAM FROM 2006: Northern Iowa, Wofford (tie)
BIGGEST FALLING TEAM FROM 2006: Montana State
It's really a shame that App. State/UM game never came together. An early season, 1 vs 2 Ohio State/Texas-esque game would've been great and who knows, maybe it would've gotten some TV exposure.
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Griz stay at #2 after going Ohio State on UNC.

Posted on November 13, 2006 by Colin O'Keefe
The Montana Grizzlies remain in the second slot on this week's Sports Network I-AA college football poll after they used the University of Northern Colorado as a practice squad to get their offense rolling. It was pretty much the same scenario as the Ohio State's rout of Northwestern, except with less defense.

It kind of worries me that the Bears managed to toss up 21 points on our stingy D. Even so, at least we didn't have to sneak by them for a shot at the BSC crown.

Next week's Brawl of the Wild will be a showdown between the #2 and #15 I-AA teams as Montana State jumped up three spots during their idle week; this is probably something a team full of George Costanzas would aspire to do as often as possible.

One reason for the bizarre jump is NDSU's absolute demolition of Cal Poly. The Bison romped the Mustangs by a score of 51-14. This is the same Mustang team the Griz needed a last second field goal to beat.  The Bison sit at #4 and received eight first-place votes. Yeah, it really is a shame they're postseason ineligible. Not.

About that field goal: I just saw the replay of that this week and that kick barely made it inside the left upright. Because I watched the game from the student section I really had no idea it was that close. After the kick Dan Carpenter was jubilant. I think in that scenario I probably would've just passed out from relief if I was that close to greatly disappointing so many intoxicated Montanans.

Anyway, complete rankings -- as usual -- after the jump.
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After close win, Griz still dug in at #2.

Posted on November 6, 2006 by Colin O'Keefe
Saturday's Griz-Cal Poly game lived up to all expectations. It was a defensive battle between #2 and #6 and had the game been I-A, Corso and the gang would've been there and it would've been an Instant Classic.

The best Griz game of the year ended on a Favre-like drive -- one of the the vintage ones where he doesn't throw a pick halfway through -- by Josh Swogger to set up 21 yard game winning kick by Dan Carpenter. This means the Griz hang in at #2 in the latest Sports Network I-AA Football Poll and this game goes down as another one Skip Bayless would've hated.

The win also means everything is in order for a Brawl of the Wild with BSC title implications. It's just like the Michigan-Ohio State game, except with the S and the C switched. The Griz have Northern Colorado coming up and the Cats just beat them, barely. Can you say settling for a moral victory?

Ms. U moved up on spot to #18 after their sixth straight win.

Complete rankings after the jump.
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Griz hang in at #2 after seventh straight win.

Posted on October 30, 2006 by Colin O'Keefe
The Montana Grizzlies continued undefeated run through Big Sky play with an excellent defensive display against Idaho State. This kept the Griz at #2 in the Sports Network I-AA Football Poll.

From the stands, the game looked very sloppy but the stats showed otherwise for the defense as they held the Bengals, who are averaging a league-best 404 yards per game, to only 92. The defense needed to bail out the defense and the special teams as they prevented another team from getting past the end of the student section when they needed to drive the length of the field for the win.

In other Big Sky news: Montana State needed a late interception return for a touchdown to rally past Weber State. With the win, the Cats jumped up five spots to #19 in the poll. Portland State dropped four spots to #25.

Next weeks opponent, Cal Poly, moved up three spots to #6 after beating San Diego State. Appalachian remained at #1, receiving 96 first-place votes after beating #8 Paladins 40-7.

Complete rankings after the jump.


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Griz stay at #2 in I-AA poll.

Posted on October 23, 2006 by Colin O'Keefe
After their win over Weber State, the Griz earned two more first place votes for a total of four and stayed at #2 in the Sports Network I-AA College Football Poll.

Upcoming Griz opponent Cal Poly fell four spots to #9 after their 29-28 loss to South Dakota State. #1 Appalachian State needed two OTs to beat Georgia Southern.

Montana State re-entered the poll at #24 coming off their 42-35 win over Idaho State. Arizona transfer Michael Jefferson was very impressive in the win.

Here's a well-done recap of this weeks I-AA happenings.

Complete rankings after the jump. Rankings courtesy of Sportsnetwork.com
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Grizzlies creep up to #2 in rankings.

Posted on October 17, 2006 by Colin O'Keefe
After their very dicey 24-21 victory over NAU, the Griz moved up one spot to #2 in the I-AA Sports Network Division I-AA football poll. This comes after previously 13th ranked James Madison upset former #1 New Hampshire 42-23.

The Griz received two first place votes, fewer than #11 Hampton who received three. In all, eight different schools got at least one first place vote with #3 receiving the most (11) without actually being ranked #1. That title goes to Appalachian State.

Big Sky notables: Portland State moved up two spots to #23 and Montana State is still unranked but they received the second most votes of those not in the rankings. It's looking more and more like this year's Cat/Griz game could have major BSC implications(more on this in Cat-Griz's week 6 rundown). Complete rankings after the jump.

Here are the recaps from Saturday's games:
Here's a great quote from that Kaimin article:
The 23,626 fans in attendance was the sixth-largest crowd in Washington-Grizzly Stadium’s history. NAU senior quarterback Jason Murrietta said playing in Missoula is never easy and it was particularly hard on that last drive.

“I think it was really difficult especially in that drive to get things going at a faster pace,” Murrietta said. “The crowd is a huge factor.”
When I was walking out of Wash-Griz after the game I heard not only that extremely loud bell, but a lot of people griping about Hauck going for it on the NAU 11 with 1:13 left to play instead of kicking a field goal that would've put the Griz up 6.

I totally agree with Hauck on this call, you go for the win right there and then. If you kick a field goal, there isn't that much of a difference between 3 and 6 points; a touchdown wins it and with that little time left a big TD play was all that was going to save them anyway. You take the three point lead and the crowd. After the turnover on downs the student section didn't let NAU get past the 30. Even if the Griz D had allowed a field goal, there is no way they would have beat us in OT, not at home.
Team (first-place votes)
Record
Points
LW
1. Appalachian State (88)
6-1
2,693
2
2. Montana (2)
5-1
2,498
3
3. Illinois State (11)
5-1
2,401
5
4. Cal Poly (1)
5-1
2,371
4
5. Youngstown State (1)
6-1
2,172
6
6. Massachusetts
5-1
2,034
8
7. New Hampshire (1)
5-1
2,023
1
8. James Madison
5-1
1,991
13
9. North Dakota State (2)
6-0
1,981
9
10. Richmond
5-1
1,720
10
11. Hampton (3)
7-0
1,645
12
12. Furman
5-2
1,558