IdaGriz01
Well-known member
Once again, just under a third (8) of the ranked team lost, four of them to unranked opponents. Thus, just as happened last week, there’s bound to be a lot of movement in the next poll. At least we now have a good track record: Everyone except the Ivies have played seven or eight games.
Guess, Team (Record), [Current Rank]
#1 SHSU (6-0) [1]
#2 NDSU (7-0) [3]
#3 Southern Illinois (6-1) [4]
#4 Villanova (6-1) [5]
#5 James Madison (6-1) [7]
#6 Montana State (7-1) [8]
#7 Eastern Washington (7-1) [2]
#8 SE Louisiana (6-1) [9]
#9 UC Davis (7-1) [10]
#10 SDSU (5-2) [6]
#11 Montana (5-2) [11]
#12 Kennesaw State (6-1) [12]
#13 UT Martin (6-1) [13]
#14 ETSU (7-1) [14]
#15 Sacramento State (5-2) [19]
#16 Northern Iowa (4-3) [20]
#17 VMI (5-2) [21]
#18 William & Mary (5-2) NR
#19 Princeton (6-0) [22]
#20 Missouri State (4-3) [17]
#21 South Dakota (5-3) [15]
#22 Jackson State (6-1) [24]
#23 Incarnate Word (5-2) [16]
#24 Rhode Island (5-2) [18]
#25 Eastern Kentucky (5-2) NR
Out
Delaware (3-4) [23]
Dartmouth (5-1) [25]
The first quandary is, of course, what to do with Eastern Washington. They lost to an unranked opponent, which would normally result in a drop of six or seven spots. However, the pollsters (many of them, anyway) will know that it was on a missed PAT. Some will also recall that Weber was ranked, not that long ago. So … I gave the Eags a break and only moved them down five. But it could go either way: one lower or one higher than my guess.
South Dakota State lost to a ranked opponent, so they shouldn’t move down a lot. Still, they could drop one more than my guess, which would allow the Griz to nudge up one. I honestly do not expect that to happen.
The real interest comes with the block #15 thru #18, all of whom lost. The immediate result, of course, is that a bunch of teams – including Sacramento State – will move up. The losers will all drop, but by varying amounts based on who they lost to and by how much.
I expect the pollsters to be kind to Missouri State, which played NDSU pretty tough before losing on the road. South Dakota and Incarnate Word both lost to unranked opponents that have losing records. I think the pollsters will hit them pretty hard, although not enough to knock them out of the top-25. Rhode Island lost to a high-ranked opponent and would normally not get dropped too far. However, Villanova absolutely pounded them (44-0, in case you missed it). I have seen teams get dropped all the way out of the top-25 after a blowout like that. Still, the Rhodie’s impressive (5-2) record should prevent that.
Even though Delaware lost to a ranked opponent, I expect they will drop out … both because they started near the bottom of the rankings and because they now have a losing record. Dartmouth lost to an unranked opponent and was barely hanging on, so they’re gone too.
Those drops-outs opened up two spots, and required replacements. One was relatively easy: The highest “Other” vote getter that didn’t lose yesterday was Eastern Kentucky. They were idle this weekend, but their nice 5-2 record should slide them onto the list. But what about another? As I looked over the possibilities, I noticed that William & Mary was third in the CAA, just behind highly ranked Villanova and James Madison. They won handily yesterday, and I figured their (5-2) record should get them a pretty good spot.
Guess, Team (Record), [Current Rank]
#1 SHSU (6-0) [1]
#2 NDSU (7-0) [3]
#3 Southern Illinois (6-1) [4]
#4 Villanova (6-1) [5]
#5 James Madison (6-1) [7]
#6 Montana State (7-1) [8]
#7 Eastern Washington (7-1) [2]
#8 SE Louisiana (6-1) [9]
#9 UC Davis (7-1) [10]
#10 SDSU (5-2) [6]
#11 Montana (5-2) [11]
#12 Kennesaw State (6-1) [12]
#13 UT Martin (6-1) [13]
#14 ETSU (7-1) [14]
#15 Sacramento State (5-2) [19]
#16 Northern Iowa (4-3) [20]
#17 VMI (5-2) [21]
#18 William & Mary (5-2) NR
#19 Princeton (6-0) [22]
#20 Missouri State (4-3) [17]
#21 South Dakota (5-3) [15]
#22 Jackson State (6-1) [24]
#23 Incarnate Word (5-2) [16]
#24 Rhode Island (5-2) [18]
#25 Eastern Kentucky (5-2) NR
Out
Delaware (3-4) [23]
Dartmouth (5-1) [25]
The first quandary is, of course, what to do with Eastern Washington. They lost to an unranked opponent, which would normally result in a drop of six or seven spots. However, the pollsters (many of them, anyway) will know that it was on a missed PAT. Some will also recall that Weber was ranked, not that long ago. So … I gave the Eags a break and only moved them down five. But it could go either way: one lower or one higher than my guess.
South Dakota State lost to a ranked opponent, so they shouldn’t move down a lot. Still, they could drop one more than my guess, which would allow the Griz to nudge up one. I honestly do not expect that to happen.
The real interest comes with the block #15 thru #18, all of whom lost. The immediate result, of course, is that a bunch of teams – including Sacramento State – will move up. The losers will all drop, but by varying amounts based on who they lost to and by how much.
I expect the pollsters to be kind to Missouri State, which played NDSU pretty tough before losing on the road. South Dakota and Incarnate Word both lost to unranked opponents that have losing records. I think the pollsters will hit them pretty hard, although not enough to knock them out of the top-25. Rhode Island lost to a high-ranked opponent and would normally not get dropped too far. However, Villanova absolutely pounded them (44-0, in case you missed it). I have seen teams get dropped all the way out of the top-25 after a blowout like that. Still, the Rhodie’s impressive (5-2) record should prevent that.
Even though Delaware lost to a ranked opponent, I expect they will drop out … both because they started near the bottom of the rankings and because they now have a losing record. Dartmouth lost to an unranked opponent and was barely hanging on, so they’re gone too.
Those drops-outs opened up two spots, and required replacements. One was relatively easy: The highest “Other” vote getter that didn’t lose yesterday was Eastern Kentucky. They were idle this weekend, but their nice 5-2 record should slide them onto the list. But what about another? As I looked over the possibilities, I noticed that William & Mary was third in the CAA, just behind highly ranked Villanova and James Madison. They won handily yesterday, and I figured their (5-2) record should get them a pretty good spot.