The Tampa Spartans moved up 3 notches to take over the top spot but the Nova Southeastern University Sharks (logo at right) made an enormous jump, from 17th all the way up to 8th. The Lynn University Fighting Knights, however, made the most astonishing leap of the week , moving from 27th last week to 12th this week.
The complete rankings: 1. Tampa Spartans *** 2. St Mary’s University Rattlers *** 3. Tusculum Pioneers *** 4. Central Missouri Mules *** Continue reading
Filed under College Baseball
The Rocky Mountain College Battlin’ Bears have jumped back into the NAIA Top 25 for the 5th time this year. The up and down team moves back into the rankings at number 24 this week. The St Xavier Cougars remain in the top spot for the 7th straight week. In fact all of the Top 6 retained their relative position from last week’s poll. And now a look at the latest polls in the divisions of college football covered by Balladeer’s Blog:
NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) – 1. SXU COUGARS … 2. MARIAN KNIGHTS … 3. CC FIGHTING SAINTS (defending champs) … 4. GEORGETOWN (KY) TIGERS … 5. MNU PIONEERS … 6. MORNINGSIDE MUSTANGS … 7. MVC VIKINGS … 8. WILLIAM PENN STATESMEN … 9. Continue reading
Filed under college football
The Saint Xavier University Cougars remain at number 1 in the NAIA football poll for the 5th straight week, but to get some helmet variety in here I went with a pic of the 2nd ranked Marian University Knights. The Knights are enjoying another week at their highest ranking in team history and continue to make me look like a gridiron Nostradamus. Back in 2010 during the preseason I predicted that the Knights were about to take off in a big way. Marian then had a stellar season and won their first round playoff game, then this season came out blazing since Week 1 just to show last year was no fluke. The Menlo Oaks, meanwhile, move back into the Top 25 one week after falling out. The Chabot College Gladiators (love that name!) moved up to 10th in the NCFA Poll. And now the rankings in the divisions of college football covered by Balladeer’s Blog.
NAIA – 1. SXU COUGARS … 2. MARIAN KNIGHTS … 3. CC FIGHTING SAINTS (defending champs) … 4. MISSOURI VALLEY COLLEGE VIKINGS … 5. GEORGETOWN (KY) TIGERS … 6. ST FRANCIS (IN) COUGARS … 7. MIDAMERICA NAZARENE PIONEERS … 8. MORNINGSIDE MUSTANGS … 9. BENEDICTINE RAVENS … 10. AZUSA PACIFIC COUGARS (1st Top Ten ranking since 2006) … 11. WILLIAM PENN STATESMEN … 12. ST FRANCIS (IL) FIGHTING SAINTS (Upset former #4 William Penn) … 13. DAKOTA WESLEYAN TIGERS … 14. ST AMBROSE UNIVERSITY FIGHTING BEES … 15. SOUTHERN NAZARENE UNIVERSITY CRIMSON STORM (Love that name!) … 16. OTTAWA (KS) BRAVES … 17. BETHEL (TN) WILDCATS … 18. VCS VIKINGS … 19. DOANE TIGERS … 20. CUMBERLAND BULLDOGS (Up 5 spots from last week) … 21. ROCKY MOUNTAIN COLLEGE BATTLIN’ BEARS … 22. BETHANY SWEDES (Down 8 spots from last week) … T23. EASTERN OREGON MOUNTAINEERS … T23. NORTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA STATE RANGERS … 25. MENLO OAKS
NCAA D3- 1. WHITEWATER WARHAWKS (defending champs) … 2. MT UNION PURPLE RAIDERS (Warhawks and Purple Raiders have played each other in the last 6 D3 title games in a row, splitting 3 each) … 3. ST THOMAS TOMMIES … 4. MHBU CRUSADERS Continue reading
Filed under college football
Well, the new polls are out for the divisions of college football that Balladeer’s Blog covers. I’ll have the entire Top 25 lists in a moment, but first, since this is the last poll for September let’s take a closer look at our number 1 teams at present.
NAIA – The unanimous number 1 team continues to be the Saint Xavier University Cougars. Coach Mike Feminis, AKA Coach Fem, knows football even better than he knows B-Movies, all of which makes him one of my favorite coaches in college sports. This past weekend the Cougars completely dismantled the Trinity International Trojans by a score of 49-14. The Menlo Oaks, making a name for themselves this year by consistently defeating NCAA Division 3 teams, make their first appearance in the 2011 Top 25, as do the Evangel Crusaders and the VCS Vikings.
NCAA DIVISION 3 – The Whitewater Warhawks maintain their stranglehold on the top spot, with the Mt Union Purple Raiders naturally right behind them at number 2. For newbies to D3 football, the Warhawks and Purple Raiders are the Yankees and Red Sox of the sport and have played each other in the D3 national championship game for the past 6 years in a row. Each team has won 3 during that run. Will it be “Purple Bowl VII” this December 16th, or will another team manage to rise up in the playoffs and actually beat one of these two powerhouses?
NCAA DIVISION 2 – The Northwest Missouri Bearcats, after a cruel and heart- breaking offseason, are getting it done on the field and are number 1 for the 2nd week in a row. This week the Bearcats prepare for the Fall Classic against the Pittsburg (KS) State Gorillas coming up on Saturday. At 2, 3 and 5 in Division 2 are 3/5’s of the pitifully few remaining teams in the Gulf South Conference, formerly the SEC of D2 football. In second place are Terry Bowden’s North Alabama Lions, in the 3 spot are the Lions’ GSC rivals, the Delta State Statesemen and the VSU Blazers are at number 5.
NJCAA – The Navarro College Bulldogs, the defending champions of NJCAA football, retain the top spot. The ‘dogs from Corsicana, TX have rarely been challenged so far this season outside of opening night, when they needed overtime to win the rematch with the Butler (KS) Grizzlies, the team they defeated for the title on December 5th. The Blinn College Buccaneers, where Cam Newton played college ball before transferring to Auburn, clung to the 2 spot, with the Arizona Western College Matadors and the Iowa Western Reivers hanging around the Top 5.
SCFA – The Saddleback Gauchos are the new number 1 in the SCFA poll, after the former number one, and the defending champs, the Mt San Antonio College Mounties, were upset by the Riverside Tigers on Saturday. The 4th place Tigers garnered 2 number 1 votes after bringing down Mt SAC and 3 more went to the 2nd place team, the El Camino Warriors. The Mounties themselves fell to number 5, just behind the team that unseated them, and coming in at the 3 spot are the Fullerton Hornets. Mt SAC is the only team in the Top 5 with a Continue reading
Filed under college football
The Saint Xavier Cougars and Coach Fem maintain their number one ranking in the NAIA poll and there’s a new number one in D2. In fact, three of D2’s Top 5 lost over the weekend and no less than 23 teams in the NAIA Top 25 shifted positions! The top two in the NAIA were the only teams who did not change. The Marian Knights continue to make me look like a gridiron Nostradamus by moving up to number three, the highest football ranking in their institution’s history. Meanwhile, the William Penn Statesmen are just DARING people to try leaving them out of the playoffs this year, rising to the five spot. All this and the Saint Ambrose University Fighting Bees cracked the NAIA Top 25 themselves! And now, let’s look at the Top 6 in each of the divisions Balladeer’s Blog covers:
NAIA – 1. SXU COUGARS … 2. ST FRANCIS (IN) COUGARS … 3. MARIAN KNIGHTS … 4. CC FIGHTING SAINTS … 5. WILLIAM PENN UNIVERSITY STATESMEN … 6. MISSOURI VALLEY COLLEGE VIKINGS
D3 – 1. WHITEWATER WARHAWKS (defending D3 champs) … 2. MT UNION PURPLE RAIDERS (Warhawks and Purple Raiders have played each other in the last six D3 championship games IN A ROW) … 3. ST THOMAS TOMMIES … 4. MHBU CRUSADERS … 5. BETHEL (MN) ROYALS … 6. LINFIELD WILDCATS
D2 – 1. NORTHWEST MISSOURI BEARCATS … 2. NORTH ALABAMA LIONS … 3. DELTA STATE STATESMEN … 4. SHEPHERD RAMS … 5. VALDOSTA STATE BLAZERS … 6. BLOOMSBURG HUSKIES
NJCAA – 1. NAVARRO COLLEGE BULLDOGS (defending champions) … 2. BLINN BUCCANEERS … 3. ARIZONA WESTERN COLLEGE MATADORS … 4. EAST MS LIONS … 5. IOWA WESTERN REIVERS … 6. SNOW COLLEGE BADGERS
SCFA – 1. MT SAN ANTONIO COLLEGE MOUNTIES (defending champions) … 2. SADDLEBACK GAUCHOS … Continue reading
Filed under college football
Congratulations to Coach Mike Feminis and his Saint Xavier University Cougars (logo at left) who are now ranked number 1 in the latest NAIA Top 25 poll. This is the first time in school history that the SXU football team is first in the nation and two teams called Fighting Saints played a role in this milestone. The CC Fighting Saints, the previous number 1, were upset by the unranked Eastern Oregon Mountaineers on Saturday (see my usual Sunday look at Noteworthy College Football Results) and the Cougars themselves defeated the other Fighting Saints team, St Francis (IL) (not to be confused with St Francis, Indiana, whose teams are called Cougars just like SXU) Just be glad the University of Sioux Falls moved up to D2 after last season or all of the Top 3 teams would be called Cougars. Speaking of USF, the Morningside Mustangs no doubt don’t miss them at ALL as they are at number 3 and hoping to win their first Great Plains Athletic Conference title in years. The 4th ranked Marian Knights continue to prove that last season was no fluke AND that I was 100% right in my prediction last year that they Continue reading
Filed under college football
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