Top 25 Upsets – Let’s take this division by division. Our New Kids On The Block are the D2 teams so starting with them the 12th-ranked Tuskegee Golden Tigers got spanked by the unranked Albany (GA) State Golden Rams 34-6. *** The #22 Delta State Statesmen continued to be dream-wreckers for the 17th-ranked Valdosta State Blazers, who lost at home to the Statesmen in a 27-23 instant classic.***In addition to Tuskegee, other ranked teams in D2 losing to unranked opponents were the 15th-ranked UNC-Pembroke Braves, who fell on the road to the Wingate Bulldogs 28-23 and the #19 Winona State Warriors who lost at the St Cloud Huskies 31-26. *************In the NAIA the biggest upset among the ranked teams came when the #16 Cumberlands Patriots got beaten by the unranked and previously winless Georgetown (KY) Tigers by a score of 58-40! The only other Top 25 upset in NAIA was a milder one – the 7th-ranked Ottawa (KS) Braves fell to the 9th-ranked McPherson Bulldogs 56-24.*********In D3 the only upset among the ranked teams was the 15th-ranked Cal Lutheran Kingsmen’s road loss to the unranked Pacific Lutheran Lutes 35-21.
Crop-Man Forever – St Xavier Cougars’ outstanding quarterback, Anthony “Crop-Man” Kropp was 19 of 21 for 263 yards and 6 touchdowns as SXU trounced the Olivet Nazarene Tigers 56-17. Kropp’s teammate, “M Squared” himself, wide receiver Mike Maher, had 230 all-purpose yards and 3 touchdowns, 1 off a punt return. The defense proved just as super-powered as Kropp and Maher, recording 11 tackles for loss, 6 sacks, 3 interceptions and a fumble. To read Crop-Man: Origins (with a teaser about M Squared) click here: https://glitternight.com/2010/07/22/saint-xavier-cougars-quarterback-anthony-kropp-joins-new-superhero-team/
The Lambuth Eagles Rule The World Again! – Last Saturday the NAIA’s Lambuth Eagles defeated Division 1AA’s Georgia State Panthers (I’m such a rebel for continuing to say 1A and 1AA) and yesterday they upset Division 2’s 13th-ranked West Alabama Tigers in a 14-13 nail-biter. Rumor has it Lambuth is targeting 1A’s Michigan Wolverines next! (I’m kidding!)
Comeback Cougars – The St Francis (IN) Cougars, ranked 11th in the NAIA poll (and 1 of 14 teams called Cougars in the Top 25) trailed the St Ambrose Fighting Bees 20-9 going into the 4th quarter, but then scored 22 unanswered points to emerge with a 31-20 win.
How Long Has This Been Going On? – This week’s award for the Marathon Game goes to the D3 matchup between the LaGrange Panthers and the Maryville (TN) Scots. The Scots won 20-17 in 3 Overtimes.
Point Of Pride – Division 3’s UW – Stevens Point Pointers upset Division 2’s Missouri S&T Miners by a score of 29-10. The Pointers were led by Mike Griffin, who rushed for 138 yards and by stellar play on the defensive side of the ball.
We Went To A Football Game And A Baseball Game Broke Out – This week’s game that fits this category was the 7-3 game between the Midland Lutheran Warriors who won out over the Concordia (NE) Bulldogs in a textbook example of a defensive struggle.
We Went To A Football Game And A Basketball Game Broke Out – The 20th-ranked William Penn Statesmen beat out the Quincy Hawks 67-58. Statesmen fullback Shawn Davis ran for 166 yards and 4 touchdowns in the game.
Team To Keep A Closer Eye On – The #17 Benedictine Ravens defeated the Central Methodist Eagles 38-14. The Ravens are 3-0 under the leadership of senior QB Ryan Kelly and you can look for them to move up in the rankings.
“Our Division Can Beat Up Your Division” Dept – Let’s take a look at how this week’s games between NAIA and NCAA Division 3 teams went. Winners on the NAIA side were: the 19th-ranked Azusa Pacific Cougars, who defeated the Whittier Poets 46-21; the Southern Virginia Knights beat the Ferrum Panthers in their own house 20-17 and the Malone Pioneers, who crushed the Anna Maria Amcats 69-0. D3’s winners were: the Willamette Bearcats, who defeated the Southern Oregon Raiders 42-24; the top-ranked Whitewater Warhawks beat the Campbellsville Tigers 37-7; the Emory and Henry Wasps over the UVA-Wise Highland Cavaliers 20-10 and the Huntingdon Hawks who manhandled the Faulkner Eagles 42-10.
Under The Radar Instant Classics – If you’re as into college football as I am, these are some games you may want to catch in archived video or audio form. You can check the scores in my Saturday Scoreboard but to avoid spoiling the outcomes for people who will be checking them out I’m leaving out the scores in this section: the Millersville Marauders hosting the Gannon Golden Knights; the JC Smith Golden Bulls hosting the Brevard Tornadoes; the Upper Iowa Peacocks taking on the MSU-Moorhead Dragons; the Lincoln Blue Tigers hosting the Panhandle State Aggies; the South Dakota Mines Hardrockers at the VCS Vikings; the Jamestown Jimmies hosting the Black Hills State Yellowjackets; the Newport News Apprentice School Builders hosting the Greensboro Pride; and the Christopher Newport Captains at the Frostburg State Bobcats.
