Who should be #1?

[FCS_pwns_FBS]

Poll upcoming...

Not even sure I picked the right nine.

[GaSouthern]

JMU

[asumike83]

I like Eastern Washington.

[Go Lehigh TU owl]

I like EWU as well....

There's hardly a clear cut #1 this week....

[superman7515]

Not really sure this fits in with Ursus' desire to not reveal poll voting before the poll is released. We've got who should be #1, what is your top 5, etc. It's getting really close to that line where people are putting too much out there.

[Go Lehigh TU owl]

Not really sure this fits in with Ursus' desire to not reveal poll voting before the poll is released. We've got who should be #1, what is your top 5, etc. It's getting really close to that line where people are putting too much out there.

I think people have been good at grouping or selecting one or two teams to focus on. I think this constructive debate is productive.

[RichH2]

No definite #1. Go with JMU. E.Wash right there also. Can I vote twice . LOL

[GATA_Eagles]

I like Eastern Washington.

[Sader87]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpAh37DpWIg&feature=relmfu

Iran and Russia are #1!!!!!!

[Drblankstare]

I'll go with EW, but I don't think there is a bad choice on this list.

[coover]

Interesting poll ... of course things could change, but the top two at the time I write is Eastern Washington and Cal Poly, both of the Big Sky. The two do not have a conference game this year, but they will play an Out Of Conference game with each other. Interestingly enough, it is this OOC game that may decide the league championship, as if the two teams remain undefeated in league play, the winner of the OOC game will be declared the league winner.Confused? That is what can happen in a 13 team league with an 8 game league schedule.

[AppAlum2003]

I like Eastern Washington.

Too rainy this time of year... I'd visit Arizona

[Reign of Terrier]

Out of curiosity, who has Cal Poly played?

[hebmskebm]

Out of curiosity, who has Cal Poly played?

http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/_/id/13/cal-poly-mustangs

They don't have the strongest of schedules, but they're undefeated and have a FBS win.

[Reign of Terrier]

Looking at Cal poly, I think if they go 10-1 or 11-0 (I think the playoffs are a lock, and 9-2 is a good possibility) they will likely get a seed.

[malibudude]

Out of curiosity, who has Cal Poly played?

Six teams which have combined for 28 losses, including FBS Wyoming @ 1-5.

[bjtheflamesfan]

I went with GSU but I agree that any of the teams listed could make a very strong case for the top spot.

[paward]

I too have GSU as my number one team this week. The degree of separation for the top eight teams is not enough to see with the naked eye. It is a crap shoot. I picked GSU because IMHO that conference is better than the others today. Next week things could and will change. No need to get your panties in a Whad on this subject. The only number one that matters is the one in January. In the mean time it is irrelevant how all we Monday morning QBs think for now.

[Twentysix]

Sagarin says NDSU is #1

[Cocky]

Tenn State

[theasushow]

Sagarin says NDSU is #1

And Harvard at #3...

[tingly]

Massey's compilation has NDSU at #1 on 10 computers, Tennessee State on 5, Cal Poly on 2, and 1 each for Georgia Southern, San Houston State and James Madison.

The computer top 3 is easily NDSU, Eastern Washington and Cal Poly in some random order.

[heath]

Even with that loss,NDSU still is the favorite to win the FCS championship. But since everyone focuses on the polls,lets put JMU at #1 even though I'm not a huge MM fan.Drop NDSU to #3 and let them play with a chip on their shoulder-Like when they lost to YSU last season........and won

[Twentysix]

And Harvard at #3...

Georiga Southern is #3.

[theasushow]

Georiga Southern is #3.


you are correct, I must have overlooked them. Harvard is #4.

[ElCid]

you are correct, I must have overlooked them. Harvard is #4.

Which, and no offense to Harvard, makes Sagarin highly suspect. Glad I was not the only one to chuckle at this. I think most of the ratings are close, but this has always stumped me how Harvard or at least one of Ivy teams is always too high.

[theasushow]

Which, and no offense to Harvard, makes Sagarin highly suspect. Glad I was not the only one to chuckle at this. I think most of the ratings are close, but this has always stumped me how Harvard or at least one of Ivy teams is always too high.

Which is why having NDSU at #1 after a loss makes the credibility a little well...questionable.

[kalm]

Too rainy this time of year... I'd visit Arizona

That's Western Washington. We had our first real rain last night in over two months. Cheney is semi arid and on the edge of the Columbia Basin desert. You're welcome for the geography lesson.

[AppAlum2003]

That's Western Washington. We had our first real rain last night in over two months. Cheney is semi arid and on the edge of the Columbia Basin desert. You're welcome for the geography lesson.

Hey! I didn't sign up for no learnin'

[kalm]

Hey! I didn't sign up for no learnin'
:)

[Tribal]

Hey! I didn't sign up for no learnin'

That's why you picked Appy State. xpeacex

[HensRock]

What's wrong with having NDSU ranked #1 after a loss?
Name an FCS team that you would favor over them on a neutral field.

[kalm]

What's wrong with having NDSU ranked #1 after a loss?
Name an FCS team that you would favor over them on a neutral field.

I actually agree with this.

[MSUBobcat]

What's wrong with having NDSU ranked #1 after a loss?
Name an FCS team that you would favor over them on a neutral field.

Because no team STAYS #1 after a loss. Obviously there is a chink in the armor that other teams can try to exploit. I guess at a minimum you'd have to favor ISU-b on a neutral site b/c they beat NDSU in their own barn. I know..... any given Saturday, and all that jazz.... but if they don't fall, then I say the Bobcats stay top 5 for losing by 3 to a top 6 team for spotting them a bunch of points just as NDSU did.xrolleyesx

[LakesBison]

NDSU defense gave up 3 points. Lost starting RB, WR, 2 FB's , FS in the game, O Coord called a pass play like a dumbass when we were in FG range to tie, QB had worst game of his life and NDSU still only lost by 3..

Yes, NDSU is still #1.


and yes Montana State should be #5 EWU #2ish, JMU #3, Poly 4?

[kalm]

How serious are the injuries?

[FargoBison]

How serious are the injuries?

At least one fullback will be back next week....Crockett our RB has a hip pointer...Starting WR Zach Vraa has a separated shoulder so he is out a few weeks...Free safety has a lacerated kidney so he will be out for a while.

[woffordgrad94]

Right now I'd have to go with Eastern Washington. They are unbeaten in the Big Sky, are coming off a win against a very good Montana State team, have beaten an FBS (which is always a feather in the cap, even if it was Idaho), and their only loss is a narrow one to a Pac-12 team.

[skinny_uncle]

Sagarin says NDSU is #1
He also has Ill State and UNI ranked ahead of SIU despite the results of the last two weeks.

[Hammerhead]

I picked EWU although I think NDSU will head in the right direction after they did last season.

[EdubAlum]

I actually agree with this.

same. NDSU still looks scary tuff this year. Even if i hate their fans:)

[Vitojr130]

I voted NDSU simply because the team that showed up Saturday didn't field the same QB as I have watched over the past few years... NDSU's defense was strong as ever holding ISU's offense to only 3 points. The game simply came down to an unfocused QB. I have a feeling this game will have the same effect as YSU last year and serve as a wake-up call. I still think NDSU is still the #1 even with this blemish on their record.

That being said, ISU-b showed that on any given Saturday, teams can play with NDSU.

[slostang]

I feel that Cal Poly is a top ten team and possibly a top five, but I do not think they are #1. They are a young team and getting better each week as their young players gain experience. If we can win the next two weeks it will set up a huge game November 3rd against EWU.

[AppMAN04]

JMU

[seantaylor]

GSU. Home field is huge.

[darell1976]

Cal Poly should be #1.

[kalm]

I feel that Cal Poly is a top ten team and possibly a top five, but I do not think they are #1. They are a young team and getting better each week as their young players gain experience. If we can win the next two weeks it will set up a huge game November 3rd against EWU.

You picked a good one to travel to. By that time it could even be a 1 vs. 2.

[WileECoyote06]

Georgia Southern.

[JMU2004]

If #1 loses, you don't stay #1. Rankings clearly don't always reflect the best team.

I bet NDSU is still top 3.

[JMU2K_DukeDawg]

I am surprised nobody is talking about South Dakota St. They are undefeated in FCS play with only a loss @Kansas (I know - Kansas sucks). I have the jackrabbits at #5 on my poll this week. Top five:

1. Cal Poly
2. JMU
3. NDSU
4. EWU
5. SDSU

[Vitojr130]

I am surprised nobody is talking about South Dakota St. They are undefeated in FCS play with only a loss @Kansas (I know - Kansas sucks). I have the jackrabbits at #5 on my poll this week. Top five:

1. Cal Poly
2. JMU
3. NDSU
4. EWU
5. SDSU

I like your top 4 and believe that any of them could be interchanged for #1 no questions asked. I'm not quite convinced that SDSU should be #5. I'm thinking ISU-r should be there instead of SDSU.

[tingly]

The top 5 for the computer portion of NCAA's GPI are Cal Poly, Tennessee St., SDSU, E. Washington, Illinois St., and #6-10 are No. Arizona, Montana St./Tennessee-Martin tie, NDSU, Georgia Southern. JMU is 13th.

[Ivytalk]

EWU for now. Ask me again next week!xsmiley_wix

[Bisonoline]

Have to go with EW for just this week.

[Bisonator]

#1 EWU
#2 JMU
#3 NDSU
#4 MSU
#5 CAL-POLY
#6 GSU

[TheEagleWay]

Looks like the poll results gives a pretty good top 5.

1) Eastern Washington
2) James Madison
3) Georgia Southern
4) Cal Poly
5) North Dakota State

[Jacked_Rabbit]

I like your top 4 and believe that any of them could be interchanged for #1 no questions asked. I'm not quite convinced that SDSU should be #5. I'm thinking ISU-r should be there instead of SDSU.

I'm not saying SDSU should be a top 5 team, but I'd like to know why you think Illinois State should be ranked higher than them? They have a 3 pt. win over USD and a loss, at home, to SIU on their resume... Brutal. Congrats on the comeback win against YSU last week, but I think we are starting to quickly find out that YSU was highly over-rated!

[HensRock]

Have to go with EW for just this week.

I don't understand this mentality. Not picking on you Bisonoline. There seem to be a lot of people that think because #1 gets a loss, they can't possibly still be #1. Or they can't put them #1 "this week", but they have every intention of moving them back into #1 next week. If we are rating how teams did THIS WEEK, then maybe Sam Houston should be #1 this week, because they won 41-0. I don't think that's what we're doing here.

I still think NDSU would probably win (better than 50% chance) if matched against any other FCS team. That's why I voted them #1.
I think anyone who feels the same should vote them #1 also. My .02.

[FCS_pwns_FBS]

I don't understand this mentality. Not picking on you Bisonoline. There seem to be a lot of people that think because #1 gets a loss, they can't possibly still be #1. Or they can't put them #1 "this week", but they have every intention of moving them back into #1 next week. If we are rating how teams did THIS WEEK, then maybe Sam Houston should be #1 this week, because they won 41-0. I don't think that's what we're doing here.

I still think NDSU would probably win (better than 50% chance) if matched against any other FCS team. That's why I voted them #1.
I think anyone who feels the same should vote them #1 also. My .02.

It's called considering the overall body of work and putting more emphasis on recent games than games more distantly in the past.

NDSU lost at home with a good home field advantage to an unranked team. I realize they did the exact same thing last year and still won the NC but at this point in the season the weight being put on what happened last year is not all that great.

Similarly, GSU is not my #1 this week but between being #2 in total defense, not losing at home, and the lone loss being in week 2 on the road with a different QB, I have them above NDSU for now.

[Vitojr130]

I'm not saying SDSU should be a top 5 team, but I'd like to know why you think Illinois State should be ranked higher than them? They have a 3 pt. win over USD and a loss, at home, to SIU on their resume... Brutal. Congrats on the comeback win against YSU last week, but I think we are starting to quickly find out that YSU was highly over-rated!

And I'm not saying they should be significantly higher... I can see SDSU being top 10, but not top 5 quite yet. I'm leaning heavily on ISU-r's FBS win when putting them ahead of SDSU. I know they got shutout against SIU, but I think they just had an off week and after this weekend, I'm very familiar with off weeks. Also, I don't think YSU is overrated. They are a very good team, but are in a very challenging conference.



I don't understand this mentality. Not picking on you Bisonoline. There seem to be a lot of people that think because #1 gets a loss, they can't possibly still be #1. Or they can't put them #1 "this week", but they have every intention of moving them back into #1 next week. If we are rating how teams did THIS WEEK, then maybe Sam Houston should be #1 this week, because they won 41-0. I don't think that's what we're doing here.

I still think NDSU would probably win (better than 50% chance) if matched against any other FCS team. That's why I voted them #1.
I think anyone who feels the same should vote them #1 also. My .02.

Agreed.

[HensRock]

It's called considering the overall body of work and putting more emphasis on recent games than games more distantly in the past.

NDSU lost at home with a good home field advantage to an unranked team. I realize they did the exact same thing last year and still won the NC but at this point in the season the weight being put on what happened last year is not all that great.

Similarly, GSU is not my #1 this week but between being #2 in total defense, not losing at home, and the lone loss being in week 2 on the road with a different QB, I have them above NDSU for now.

I agree that more recent games should carry more weight (but not all). And if you think GSU is better then NDSU, that is certainly your perogative to vote it that way. What I don't understand is this apparent moving NDSU down "this week" as if implying they are going to move them back up next week. If you already feel (as I do) that they are the best team in FCS despite losing this week, then you should have no issue with voting them number one.

I think the thing that is driving this is the "Sliding Slots" technique in which voters have some preconceived notion that if a team loses, they must slide down X number of spots in the poll - or if they lose to a ranked opponent slide down 1, unranked; down 3 etc. It's the myopic look at last week that I don't agree with. Using a sliding slot technique you put ALL weight on the most recent game to drive your decision instead of using the complete body of work.

[Jacked_Rabbit]

And I'm not saying they should be significantly higher... I can see SDSU being top 10, but not top 5 quite yet. I'm leaning heavily on ISU-r's FBS win when putting them ahead of SDSU. I know they got shutout against SIU, but I think they just had an off week and after this weekend, I'm very familiar with off weeks. Also, I don't think YSU is overrated. They are a very good team, but are in a very challenging conference.

Thanks for clarifying - all logical points. We can simply agree to disagree, which is fine. And when I said YSU is overrated, I simply meant that they are not the #3 team in the Nation.

[Vitojr130]

Thanks for clarifying - all logical points. We can simply agree to disagree, which is fine. And when I said YSU is overrated, I simply meant that they are not the #3 team in the Nation.

Oh for sure. YSU has shown that they don't deserve a top ranking quite yet. I think I'm going to have to put them in the 10-15 range at this time.

[Jacked_Rabbit]

Regarding the topic of this thread, I voted NDSU #1 in my poll this week. I still firmly believe they are the best team in the FCS and expected them to eventually lose a game in the MVFC Meat Grinder. Anyone that read my posts knows that I preached all week that they were going to come out flat in the Indiana State game, and that's exactly what happened. I just expected them to wake back up in the 2nd half!

[seantaylor]

How in the world would anyone think NDSU is the best team while losing to an unranked team at home? Does not compute.

[frozennorth]

How in the world would anyone think NDSU is the best team while losing to an unranked team at home? Does not compute.

i dunno, how'd that turn out last year?

[seantaylor]

i dunno, how'd that turn out last year?

Doesn't matter. A team that cant rep their crib is going to have bid problems more than not

[frozennorth]

Doesn't matter. A team that cant rep their crib is going to have bid problems more than not

if you say so.

[WileECoyote06]

How in the world would anyone think NDSU is the best team while losing to an unranked team at home? Does not compute.

I agree with this. . . and yes they should have been penalized. I can see a loss on the road; but at home to an unranked team? This weeks results will balance out over the course of the season, and the cream always rises to the top. It makes no sense to penalize Montana State for taking a loss at home to a ranked team; but to ignore NDSU's on-field result. At this point, you are who your record and your wins and losses say you are.

[Bison06]

How in the world would anyone think NDSU is the best team while losing to an unranked team at home? Does not compute.

I don't understand your logic. Did you watch the NDSU v. ISU-B game or are you just going off of the box score?

I haven't seen all of the teams in the top 10, but I have seen a lot of them and NDSU is still the best team in the country IMO. One week should not have a large impact on how a team is viewed, teams can have an off week, just not in the playoffs when it counts.

You could have said the exact same thing last year after a near identical situation took place. Was NDSU the best team in the country before the YSU loss last year? Yes. Were they the best team in the country after the YSU loss? Yes, they proved that on the field. They just weren't the best team in the country on the day they played YSU last year and now ISU-B this year. You need only to look to the name of this website to understand what happened.

[ngineer]

I think this will change 3 or 4 times yet before we even get to the playoffs. Tremendous parity this year.

[Grizalltheway]

I think this will change 3 or 4 times yet before we even get to the playoffs. Tremendous parity this year.

No doubt about that. Makes me wish the Griz would quit stepping on their dicks game after game, as I think they have enough talent to make a decent run through what should be a wide open playoff field.

[Professor Chaos]

I think this will change 3 or 4 times yet before we even get to the playoffs. Tremendous parity this year.
I don't think that's much different from every year. Every year some team emerges to be what looks like a juggernaut only to be humbled. Last year at this time it was GSoU. Last week at this time it was NDSU. Two weeks from now it may be EWU. But no matter how good an FCS team looks at any given time, there's always going to be a bevy of contenders ready and capable of knocking them off. If only the FBS would be able to figure that out.