ursus arctos horribilis
September 1st, 2021, 01:05 PM
9/1/2021
Tonight, Jacksonville State is opening the season in Montgomery for the third time in five seasons. The Gamecocks defeated Chattanooga in the 2017 FCS Kickoff and fell to NC A&T in the 2018 version of the event. Tonight's Montgomery Kickoff will feature Jacksonville State and UAB and will kick off Week 1 at 6:30 pm CT (ESPN).
2021 FCS INSIDER -- KEY LINKS
NCAA Statistics – Click Here (https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2fstats.ncaa.org%2frankings%2fch ange_sport_year_div&c=E,1,mRjnMdfJ923UgEz_6F_K71TPIgaYLBK4h14t4LGm20rq WWtqfAZgQSQTq6pntUD0a2pxmiKT48pAb9pE53zsA3uTxDpujS 57ux2QBVpU&typo=1) | Top-25 Polls -- Click Here (https://www.ncaa.com/rankings/football/fcs/fcs-coaches-poll) | Scoreboard -- Click Here (https://www.ncaa.com/scoreboard/football/fcs)
FCS Insider -- Click Here (https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2ffcsinsider.com%2f&c=E,1,3rB462R9KZ-aj2yNofuGFA9TqKQXYMRWX4Earw7riN3E_ztqOugup5gq2BwpL zt7KVV2pF5uyCpiAUfIkKrtUsBnLvSjTj6jHtoKYe9jgHKVuPp zXHxOEBrbksEt&typo=1) | Stats Perform -- Click Here (https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=http%3a%2f%2fwww.fcs.football%2ffcsfront.asp&c=E,1,RNp9OmJwGyQPTgnEngU_v5QjJKoipACVxOqXwmSKZRyR PeqAHQOwZzl7U5GVxWDiwWUhGytnkLPvjVLVgWta1mTlttk6oK UmwhlQhdFYHjWZGXR8cFBDG7EaRw,,&typo=1) | HERO Sports -- Click Here (https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2fherosports.com%2fcategory%2fco llege-football%2ffcs%2f&c=E,1,RCc8_tC95gi2TageeGldFZx1_AffWt8LvdZDJ5-vLbx7CSpI2r98jPXJkxrGsIvPuPexsxfl3iB5CLLsEx5otyGav hh87fPePZRbmbyDGzYYTi8Cp2mfP5A,&typo=1)
FCS ALL IN -- “FCS ALL IN” is a weekly news program dedicated to promoting all FCS 15 conferences. Content will be provided by each participating conference, and the program will be distributed via a YouTube channel (//YouTube.com/c/FCSALLIN) and launched each Saturday at 10 a.m. ET. In addition to providing an overview of FCS games, each episode will include interviews with special guests and national media correspondents.
#FearTheFCS -- This fall, there are 117 matchups between the FCS and FBS.
FCS in the NFL – There are more than two full teams worth of FCS players on NFL opening-day rosters. Approximately 110 former FCS players made teams’ 53-man rosters as of Aug. 31. Additional updates will be provided when practice rosters are established. North Dakota State has the most former players of any FCS team, with seven. (Sam Herder, HERO Sports)
Despite low draft numbers this spring (6) and last (6 in 2019), the number of FCS players on NFL rosters has not altered much --- with more than 210 FCS players on NFL Opening Day rosters in each of the past 3 seasons (that number includes 53-man rosters and practice squads). The Southland (1) and MVFC (5) were the only two FCS leagues represented in this year’s draft.
The 2021 season marks the debut of two new FCS conferences. The ASUN has three members this season: Eastern Kentucky, Jacksonville State, and Central Arkansas. The WAC has four post-season eligible teams in the fall: Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston, and SFA. The two leagues have agreed on a one-year scheduling alliance for this fall.
ASUN -- The ASUN Conference officially begins its first season of football on Wednesday, Sept. 1, when No. 8 Jacksonville State battles FBS and in-state foe UAB in the 2021 Montgomery Kickoff in Montgomery, Ala. No. 13 Central Arkansas and Eastern Kentucky open their seasons on the road this Saturday at Arkansas State and Western Carolina, respectively. UCA wide receiver Tyler Hudson and JSU defensive back Nicario Harper were named the first Preseason Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, respectively.
Multiple ASUN players have been recognized on Preseason Watch Lists headlined by the Walter Payton and Buck Buchanan Awards. Central Arkansas’ Tyler Hudson and Breylin Smith along with Jacksonville State’s Zerrick Cooper are on the Payton Award Watch List which is given to the top offensive player in FCS. For the top FCS defensive honor, the Buchanan Award, JSU’s Nicario Harper and DJ Coleman were named to the Watch List.
The ASUN Conference begins its first year of sponsoring football in 2021 after agreeing on a one-year scheduling alliance with the Western Athletic Conference that will allow for the seven institutions to be eligible for an automatic qualification into the 2021 NCAA FCS Playoffs. The alliance will feature Abilene Christian, Lamar University, Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin from the WAC and Central Arkansas, Eastern Kentucky and Jacksonville State from the ASUN. The seven institutions, termed the AQ7, will play a single round-robin with each institution having three home and three road contests.
BIG SKY -- All 13 teams from the Big Sky Conference will be in action this week, as league squads take on eight FBS foes with three of those being ranked in the AP Top 25. The last Big Sky team to upset a ranked FBS team was Eastern Washington in 2013 as the Eagles took down 25th-ranked Oregon State, 49-46, in Corvallis.
Northern Arizona hosts defending national champion Sam Houston on Thursday, Sept. 2, with kickoff slated for 7:00 p.m. MT in Flagstaff. The game will be the first Big Sky ESPN+ production for football. The last time a Big Sky team hosted the defending national champion to open the season was in 2015, when Montana welcomed North Dakota State to Missoula. The Griz won that game 38-35.
This week’s season openers for Northern Colorado, Sac State and Montana State will be the first action for the trio in almost two years. The last games for the three came in 2019 on Nov. 23 (UNC), Dec. 7 (Sac State) and Dec. 21 (MSU).
BIG SOUTH -- The 20th season of Big South Football kicks off Thursday night with Kennesaw State hosting Reinhardt. It is the 12th time the league is opening a season on a Thursday evening. The Big South enters Week 1 with an all-time season-opening record of 52-64. Of those 64 losses, 32 have been to FBS foes. Gardner-Webb owns the most season-opening victories in Big South football history with 11.
The Big South is playing three FBS programs this opening weekend (Gardner-Webb at Georgia Southern; Campbell at Liberty; Monmouth at Middle Tennessee), and 10 total in 2021 – tied for the most Bowl Subdivision opponents in league history (2010 and 2011). The conference has six FBS wins to its credit.
Hampton and new member North Carolina A&T are both playing their first games since the 2019 season, as neither program competed during the 2020-21 campaign due to the coronavirus pandemic.
CAA FOOTBALL -- CAA Football kicks off the 2021 season on Thursday night with a pair of conference matchups. Stony Brook hosts New Hampshire at 6 p.m. and 5th-ranked Delaware visits Maine at 7 p.m. Both games can be seen on FloFootball.com.
Eight CAA Football squads play non-conference foes on Saturday. CAA Football teams have posted a winning record against non-conference competition in seven of the past eight years. UAlbany visits #4/#3 North Dakota State and there are four in-state matchups as Towson faces Morgan State in the Battle of Baltimore, Rhode Island welcomes Bryant, Villanova heads to Lehigh and William & Mary meets Virginia. Elon, James Madison and Richmond also open at home.
James Madison entertains Morehead State in its season opener on Saturday night. The Dukes have won 17 straight games at Bridgeforth Stadium.
IVY LEAGUE -- Princeton was selected as the League favorite in the 2021 Ivy League Football Preseason Media Poll, which was voted on by a panel of 16 media members from across the league. The Tigers, who claimed a share of the Ivy crown in 2016 and won it outright in 2018, received eight first-place votes and accumulated 113 total points. Yale ranked second with a total of 104 points in the poll to go along with six first-place votes. The Bulldogs went 9-1 in 2019 on their way to claiming their 16th Ivy League title.
Princeton LB Jeremiah Tyler was tabbed to the Buck Buchanan Award watch list. In 2019, he led the league and was 25th in the nation with 14.5 tackles for a loss. His 62 total tackles ranked ninth in the Ivy League. Brown QB EJ Perry was named to the Walter Payton Award watch list. He led the nation in total offense with 367.8 yards per game as a sophomore in 2019. His 3678 yards of total offense marked an Ivy League record, topping Princeton’s Chad Kanoff’s record (3,553), which was set in 2017.
MEAC -- North Carolina Central kicked off its football season with a 23-14 victory over Alcorn State to capture the 2021 Cricket MEAC/SWAC Challenge championship trophy, as seen in primetime on ESPN. College GameDay Built by The Home Depot was on site to kick off the 2021 college football season.
Two MEAC teams play this week for the first time since 2019 after electing not to participate in the spring 2021 season. The Morgan State Bears open the season at home against Towson in the “Battle of Baltimore”, while the Spartans of Norfolk State hit the road to take on the University of Toledo.
Other MEAC teams in action this week are Howard University at Richmond, South Carolina State at Alabama A&M and Bowie State at Delaware State.
MISSOURI VALLEY --Following Indiana State’s Week Zero game against Eastern Illinois, MVFC teams will face five FBS foes the first week of the season (Sept. 2-4). Due to the pandemic last season, only Missouri State faced an FBS opponent, falling to Oklahoma. That broke a 10-year streak in which the MVFC had recorded at least one FBS win (2010-19). MVFC schools have combined for 46 wins all-time against FBS opponents.
The 2021 season marks the fifth year of the Big Sky-MVFC Challenge Series. Last year’s series had no regular-season games, but the MVFC won both playoff meetings. The previous three seasons (2017-19) featured 26 total regular-season matchups. MVFC schools have a 16-10 overall edge in games played and have won the series each season (5-3 in 2017, 5-3 in 2018, 6-4 in 2019)
Michael Thomas had two key interceptions as Indiana State beat Eastern Illinois, 26-21, in a Week Zero win Aug. 28. Thomas’ second-half pick-six was the first Indiana State interception returned for a score since Rondell Green returned one 17 yards against Southern Illinois in 2017. His two interceptions were also the first time an Indiana State player recorded multiple interceptions since Anthony Tucker snagged two against Southern Illinois in 2017.
NORTHEAST -- All eight Northeast Conference members open their 2021 fall schedules in Week 1 with three of the eight teams playing at home (Sacred Heart, Central Connecticut, Merrimack).
NEC Preseason Favorite Sacred Heart, which returns 21 starters from the spring squad that finished No. 22 in the national top-25 polls, will host Patriot League member Bucknell for a 6:00 pm ET Saturday kickoff that can be seen live (for free) on the NEC On The Run app.
SHU RB Julius Chestnut, a consensus First Team All-American, totaled 187 scrimmage yards and three touchdown on 24 touches in the Pioneers’ last meeting with Bucknell (Sept. 7, 2019). The Pioneers have won the last two meetings in the all-time series. Long Island University and Saint Francis U will face FBS opponents for the first time in history. LIU visits Florida International (Thursday) while SFU travels to Eastern Michigan (Friday). Duquesne, which went 4-0 during the NEC regular season this past spring, will step up to the Power 5 level for the first time, visiting Texas Christian (Saturday). Wagner visits Buffalo (Thursday) for its NEC-leading 12th contest against an FBS member.
OHIO VALLEY -- This year marks the 74th season of OVC football. This year the League consists of seven football-playing schools who will play a six-game Conference schedule; additionally, some OVC schools will play other OVC opponents in designated matchups that will not count in the Conference standings (four games total). Since its beginning, 15 of the 18 total schools that have played football in the league have claimed at least one championship.
Eastern Illinois was the first OVC team to play this year, challenging Indiana State in Week Zero. OVC teams are now 1-3 all-time in Week Zero games (having played games in 2017, 2018, 2020 and 2021).
This year’s FCS Playoffs will include 24 teams and the field will be announced on Sunday, November 21. The OVC has placed multiple teams in the FCS Playoffs seven times in the past 11 years; OVC teams have 12 playoff wins since 2013, including five Quarterfinal appearances and one National Championship game appearance.
PATRIOT -- All seven Patriot League football teams will kick-off the 2021 season on Saturday, with four nationally televised games against FBS opponents. At noon, Colgate opens at Boston College (ACC Network), Holy Cross takes on Connecticut (CBS Sports Network) and Fordham travels to Nebraska (Big Ten Network). Lafayette opens its season at Air Force at 2 p.m. on Stadium. Lehigh kicks off its 2021 home slate against Villanova on ESPN+ at noon. Georgetown hosts Marist at Cooper Field on ESPN+ beginning at 12:30 p.m. Bucknell travels to Sacred Heart for a 6 p.m. matchup on NEC Front Row.
Former Bucknell linebacker Rick Mottram was selected as the Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association (FCS ADA) Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Mottram, the 2021 Spring Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year, is a three-time Academic All-Patriot League selection and finished his career with 170 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, six sacks, three interceptions and three fumble recoveries. He is currently working as a systems engineer at Lockheed Martin Space and will pursue his master’s degree in space systems engineering from Johns Hopkins University with the $5,000 post-graduate scholarship from receiving the honor.
Stan Dakosty was named the Fred ’50 and Marilyn Dunlap Football Head Coach at Colgate University in August. Dakosty becomes the 30th head coach in the 130 years of Colgate football and the third since 1995. Dakosty has been on the sidelines for the program’s most historic seasons, having a hand in seven of Colgate’s 10 Patriot League championships. As a student assistant under legendary coach Dick Biddle, he helped the Raiders make the Patriot League’s only appearance in the NCAA FCS championship game in 2003. Since arriving on the coaching staff in 2007, Dakosty has coached both sides of the ball but took over defensive backs in 2010. He was promoted to associate head coach in 2017, which came on the heels of Colgate’s fifth Patriot League title during that span. He has mentored 11 All-Patriot League defensive backs since 2014, including seven first team selections.
PFL -- The 2021 season marks the 29th year for the Pioneer Football League – the nation’s only non-scholarship, football-only NCAA Football Championship Subdivision conference. The league will feature 11 teams – tied for most in league history – each playing an eight-game schedule to determine the league champion and recipient of the automatic bid to the 2018 NCAA FCS Championship.
An exciting fall 2021 PFL campaign awaits with 11 league members scheduled to participate in the league’s 29th year. New members Presbyterian and St. Thomas join as full members eligible for the 2021 title along with the nine existing league members. Perennial title favorites Dayton and Marist return after opting out from the spring 2021 season. Davidson will seek to retain its newly earned championship with Morehead State, San Diego, and Valparaiso looking to challenge for that title after finishing just one loss behind the champion last spring. Butler, Drake and Stetson also will look to use their spring experience to make a move forward this fall.
SOUTHERN -- The 2021 Southern Conference football season kicks off this week with all nine programs in action. Four teams take the field Thursday, while the other five open the season Saturday.
The 2021 campaign is the 100th season of SoCon football. Founded in 1921, the SoCon has been celebrating 100 years in 2021 and will continue to do so throughout the season. The league is the fifth-oldest Division I conference.
Highlighting Thursday’s slate is a ranked battle between No. 18 Chattanooga and No. 25/20 Austin Peay. The Citadel visits in-state FBS foe Coastal Carolina, ranked No. 22 by the Associated Press, to open its season, while Samford hosts former Ohio Valley Conference foe Tennessee Tech and Mercer welcomes Point University, coached by former All-SoCon defensive back Julius Dixon, who helped Furman to the 1988 national title.
SOUTHLAND -- Preseason favorite Southeastern led the way with 16 total selections on the preseason all-conference teams, including nine on the first team.
Among SLU’s honorees was senior quarterback Cole Kelley, who returns after becoming the third quarterback in league history to take home the Walter Payton Award as the FCS offensive player of the year.
Fellow signal-caller Cameron Ward of UIW enters his sophomore season as the reigning Jerry Rice Award winner as the top freshman in the FCS. He is the first Southland student-athlete to earn the award.
SWAC -- The Southwestern Athletic Conference has announced additions to its 2021 SWAC Football television schedule which is highlighted by a record number of league games slated to be available on ESPN’s linear and digital platforms. The 2021 slate of ESPN games now features five additional games that have been slated to be carried live on ESPN+. Those matchups include McNeese State at Southern (Sept. 18), Alcorn State at Bethune-Cookman (Nov. 6), Florida A&M at Arkansas-Pine Bluff (Nov. 13), Texas Southern at Alabama State (Nov. 20), and Tuskegee at Alabama State (Nov. 25).
A total of five Southwestern Athletic Conference football student-athletes have been named to the 2021 Stats Perform FCS Preseason All-American Team. The list includes 2021 SWAC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year Jordan Lewis. Joining him on the team are SWAC Preseason selections Keonte Hampton, Tyrin Ralph, and Markquese Bell. Florida A&M wide receiver Xavier Smith was also tabbed as a member of the team.
WAC -- It’s a new era as football returns for the WAC for the first time since 2012, this time at the Football Championship Subdivision. Led by defending FCS national champion Sam Houston, the new incarnation of WAC football will also include Abilene Christian, Dixie State, Lamar, Stephen F. Austin and Tarleton. In 50 years at the FBS level, the WAC was home to the consensus 1984 national champion (Brigham Young), the winner of the 1990 Heisman Trophy (Ty Detmer, QB, Brigham Young) and the first pick of the 2002 NFL Draft (David Carr, QB, Fresno State).
The 2021 season kicks off this weekend with five games across the WAC. On Thursday, Lamar plays host to North American in a non-counting game while defending FCS champs and WAC preseason favorite Sam Houston opens up its title defense at Northern Arizona. On Saturday, Tarleton and Stephen F. Austin meet up for the first WAC football game since Dec. 1, 2012. Abilene Christian makes the trip to Dallas to take on SMU while Dixie State plays host to Sacramento State.
It’s no surprise that the defending national champions are prominently displayed in the preseason Top 25. The Bearkats are atop the AFCA Coaches Top 25, Stats Perform Top 25 and HERO Sports’ Top 25 and are third in the Athlon Sports preseason rankings. Stephen F. Austin is also on the radar, picking up votes in both the AFCA Top 25 and Stats Perform Top 25.
Mike Kern
Associate Commissioner
Tonight, Jacksonville State is opening the season in Montgomery for the third time in five seasons. The Gamecocks defeated Chattanooga in the 2017 FCS Kickoff and fell to NC A&T in the 2018 version of the event. Tonight's Montgomery Kickoff will feature Jacksonville State and UAB and will kick off Week 1 at 6:30 pm CT (ESPN).
2021 FCS INSIDER -- KEY LINKS
NCAA Statistics – Click Here (https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2fstats.ncaa.org%2frankings%2fch ange_sport_year_div&c=E,1,mRjnMdfJ923UgEz_6F_K71TPIgaYLBK4h14t4LGm20rq WWtqfAZgQSQTq6pntUD0a2pxmiKT48pAb9pE53zsA3uTxDpujS 57ux2QBVpU&typo=1) | Top-25 Polls -- Click Here (https://www.ncaa.com/rankings/football/fcs/fcs-coaches-poll) | Scoreboard -- Click Here (https://www.ncaa.com/scoreboard/football/fcs)
FCS Insider -- Click Here (https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2ffcsinsider.com%2f&c=E,1,3rB462R9KZ-aj2yNofuGFA9TqKQXYMRWX4Earw7riN3E_ztqOugup5gq2BwpL zt7KVV2pF5uyCpiAUfIkKrtUsBnLvSjTj6jHtoKYe9jgHKVuPp zXHxOEBrbksEt&typo=1) | Stats Perform -- Click Here (https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=http%3a%2f%2fwww.fcs.football%2ffcsfront.asp&c=E,1,RNp9OmJwGyQPTgnEngU_v5QjJKoipACVxOqXwmSKZRyR PeqAHQOwZzl7U5GVxWDiwWUhGytnkLPvjVLVgWta1mTlttk6oK UmwhlQhdFYHjWZGXR8cFBDG7EaRw,,&typo=1) | HERO Sports -- Click Here (https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2fherosports.com%2fcategory%2fco llege-football%2ffcs%2f&c=E,1,RCc8_tC95gi2TageeGldFZx1_AffWt8LvdZDJ5-vLbx7CSpI2r98jPXJkxrGsIvPuPexsxfl3iB5CLLsEx5otyGav hh87fPePZRbmbyDGzYYTi8Cp2mfP5A,&typo=1)
FCS ALL IN -- “FCS ALL IN” is a weekly news program dedicated to promoting all FCS 15 conferences. Content will be provided by each participating conference, and the program will be distributed via a YouTube channel (//YouTube.com/c/FCSALLIN) and launched each Saturday at 10 a.m. ET. In addition to providing an overview of FCS games, each episode will include interviews with special guests and national media correspondents.
#FearTheFCS -- This fall, there are 117 matchups between the FCS and FBS.
FCS in the NFL – There are more than two full teams worth of FCS players on NFL opening-day rosters. Approximately 110 former FCS players made teams’ 53-man rosters as of Aug. 31. Additional updates will be provided when practice rosters are established. North Dakota State has the most former players of any FCS team, with seven. (Sam Herder, HERO Sports)
Despite low draft numbers this spring (6) and last (6 in 2019), the number of FCS players on NFL rosters has not altered much --- with more than 210 FCS players on NFL Opening Day rosters in each of the past 3 seasons (that number includes 53-man rosters and practice squads). The Southland (1) and MVFC (5) were the only two FCS leagues represented in this year’s draft.
The 2021 season marks the debut of two new FCS conferences. The ASUN has three members this season: Eastern Kentucky, Jacksonville State, and Central Arkansas. The WAC has four post-season eligible teams in the fall: Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston, and SFA. The two leagues have agreed on a one-year scheduling alliance for this fall.
ASUN -- The ASUN Conference officially begins its first season of football on Wednesday, Sept. 1, when No. 8 Jacksonville State battles FBS and in-state foe UAB in the 2021 Montgomery Kickoff in Montgomery, Ala. No. 13 Central Arkansas and Eastern Kentucky open their seasons on the road this Saturday at Arkansas State and Western Carolina, respectively. UCA wide receiver Tyler Hudson and JSU defensive back Nicario Harper were named the first Preseason Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, respectively.
Multiple ASUN players have been recognized on Preseason Watch Lists headlined by the Walter Payton and Buck Buchanan Awards. Central Arkansas’ Tyler Hudson and Breylin Smith along with Jacksonville State’s Zerrick Cooper are on the Payton Award Watch List which is given to the top offensive player in FCS. For the top FCS defensive honor, the Buchanan Award, JSU’s Nicario Harper and DJ Coleman were named to the Watch List.
The ASUN Conference begins its first year of sponsoring football in 2021 after agreeing on a one-year scheduling alliance with the Western Athletic Conference that will allow for the seven institutions to be eligible for an automatic qualification into the 2021 NCAA FCS Playoffs. The alliance will feature Abilene Christian, Lamar University, Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin from the WAC and Central Arkansas, Eastern Kentucky and Jacksonville State from the ASUN. The seven institutions, termed the AQ7, will play a single round-robin with each institution having three home and three road contests.
BIG SKY -- All 13 teams from the Big Sky Conference will be in action this week, as league squads take on eight FBS foes with three of those being ranked in the AP Top 25. The last Big Sky team to upset a ranked FBS team was Eastern Washington in 2013 as the Eagles took down 25th-ranked Oregon State, 49-46, in Corvallis.
Northern Arizona hosts defending national champion Sam Houston on Thursday, Sept. 2, with kickoff slated for 7:00 p.m. MT in Flagstaff. The game will be the first Big Sky ESPN+ production for football. The last time a Big Sky team hosted the defending national champion to open the season was in 2015, when Montana welcomed North Dakota State to Missoula. The Griz won that game 38-35.
This week’s season openers for Northern Colorado, Sac State and Montana State will be the first action for the trio in almost two years. The last games for the three came in 2019 on Nov. 23 (UNC), Dec. 7 (Sac State) and Dec. 21 (MSU).
BIG SOUTH -- The 20th season of Big South Football kicks off Thursday night with Kennesaw State hosting Reinhardt. It is the 12th time the league is opening a season on a Thursday evening. The Big South enters Week 1 with an all-time season-opening record of 52-64. Of those 64 losses, 32 have been to FBS foes. Gardner-Webb owns the most season-opening victories in Big South football history with 11.
The Big South is playing three FBS programs this opening weekend (Gardner-Webb at Georgia Southern; Campbell at Liberty; Monmouth at Middle Tennessee), and 10 total in 2021 – tied for the most Bowl Subdivision opponents in league history (2010 and 2011). The conference has six FBS wins to its credit.
Hampton and new member North Carolina A&T are both playing their first games since the 2019 season, as neither program competed during the 2020-21 campaign due to the coronavirus pandemic.
CAA FOOTBALL -- CAA Football kicks off the 2021 season on Thursday night with a pair of conference matchups. Stony Brook hosts New Hampshire at 6 p.m. and 5th-ranked Delaware visits Maine at 7 p.m. Both games can be seen on FloFootball.com.
Eight CAA Football squads play non-conference foes on Saturday. CAA Football teams have posted a winning record against non-conference competition in seven of the past eight years. UAlbany visits #4/#3 North Dakota State and there are four in-state matchups as Towson faces Morgan State in the Battle of Baltimore, Rhode Island welcomes Bryant, Villanova heads to Lehigh and William & Mary meets Virginia. Elon, James Madison and Richmond also open at home.
James Madison entertains Morehead State in its season opener on Saturday night. The Dukes have won 17 straight games at Bridgeforth Stadium.
IVY LEAGUE -- Princeton was selected as the League favorite in the 2021 Ivy League Football Preseason Media Poll, which was voted on by a panel of 16 media members from across the league. The Tigers, who claimed a share of the Ivy crown in 2016 and won it outright in 2018, received eight first-place votes and accumulated 113 total points. Yale ranked second with a total of 104 points in the poll to go along with six first-place votes. The Bulldogs went 9-1 in 2019 on their way to claiming their 16th Ivy League title.
Princeton LB Jeremiah Tyler was tabbed to the Buck Buchanan Award watch list. In 2019, he led the league and was 25th in the nation with 14.5 tackles for a loss. His 62 total tackles ranked ninth in the Ivy League. Brown QB EJ Perry was named to the Walter Payton Award watch list. He led the nation in total offense with 367.8 yards per game as a sophomore in 2019. His 3678 yards of total offense marked an Ivy League record, topping Princeton’s Chad Kanoff’s record (3,553), which was set in 2017.
MEAC -- North Carolina Central kicked off its football season with a 23-14 victory over Alcorn State to capture the 2021 Cricket MEAC/SWAC Challenge championship trophy, as seen in primetime on ESPN. College GameDay Built by The Home Depot was on site to kick off the 2021 college football season.
Two MEAC teams play this week for the first time since 2019 after electing not to participate in the spring 2021 season. The Morgan State Bears open the season at home against Towson in the “Battle of Baltimore”, while the Spartans of Norfolk State hit the road to take on the University of Toledo.
Other MEAC teams in action this week are Howard University at Richmond, South Carolina State at Alabama A&M and Bowie State at Delaware State.
MISSOURI VALLEY --Following Indiana State’s Week Zero game against Eastern Illinois, MVFC teams will face five FBS foes the first week of the season (Sept. 2-4). Due to the pandemic last season, only Missouri State faced an FBS opponent, falling to Oklahoma. That broke a 10-year streak in which the MVFC had recorded at least one FBS win (2010-19). MVFC schools have combined for 46 wins all-time against FBS opponents.
The 2021 season marks the fifth year of the Big Sky-MVFC Challenge Series. Last year’s series had no regular-season games, but the MVFC won both playoff meetings. The previous three seasons (2017-19) featured 26 total regular-season matchups. MVFC schools have a 16-10 overall edge in games played and have won the series each season (5-3 in 2017, 5-3 in 2018, 6-4 in 2019)
Michael Thomas had two key interceptions as Indiana State beat Eastern Illinois, 26-21, in a Week Zero win Aug. 28. Thomas’ second-half pick-six was the first Indiana State interception returned for a score since Rondell Green returned one 17 yards against Southern Illinois in 2017. His two interceptions were also the first time an Indiana State player recorded multiple interceptions since Anthony Tucker snagged two against Southern Illinois in 2017.
NORTHEAST -- All eight Northeast Conference members open their 2021 fall schedules in Week 1 with three of the eight teams playing at home (Sacred Heart, Central Connecticut, Merrimack).
NEC Preseason Favorite Sacred Heart, which returns 21 starters from the spring squad that finished No. 22 in the national top-25 polls, will host Patriot League member Bucknell for a 6:00 pm ET Saturday kickoff that can be seen live (for free) on the NEC On The Run app.
SHU RB Julius Chestnut, a consensus First Team All-American, totaled 187 scrimmage yards and three touchdown on 24 touches in the Pioneers’ last meeting with Bucknell (Sept. 7, 2019). The Pioneers have won the last two meetings in the all-time series. Long Island University and Saint Francis U will face FBS opponents for the first time in history. LIU visits Florida International (Thursday) while SFU travels to Eastern Michigan (Friday). Duquesne, which went 4-0 during the NEC regular season this past spring, will step up to the Power 5 level for the first time, visiting Texas Christian (Saturday). Wagner visits Buffalo (Thursday) for its NEC-leading 12th contest against an FBS member.
OHIO VALLEY -- This year marks the 74th season of OVC football. This year the League consists of seven football-playing schools who will play a six-game Conference schedule; additionally, some OVC schools will play other OVC opponents in designated matchups that will not count in the Conference standings (four games total). Since its beginning, 15 of the 18 total schools that have played football in the league have claimed at least one championship.
Eastern Illinois was the first OVC team to play this year, challenging Indiana State in Week Zero. OVC teams are now 1-3 all-time in Week Zero games (having played games in 2017, 2018, 2020 and 2021).
This year’s FCS Playoffs will include 24 teams and the field will be announced on Sunday, November 21. The OVC has placed multiple teams in the FCS Playoffs seven times in the past 11 years; OVC teams have 12 playoff wins since 2013, including five Quarterfinal appearances and one National Championship game appearance.
PATRIOT -- All seven Patriot League football teams will kick-off the 2021 season on Saturday, with four nationally televised games against FBS opponents. At noon, Colgate opens at Boston College (ACC Network), Holy Cross takes on Connecticut (CBS Sports Network) and Fordham travels to Nebraska (Big Ten Network). Lafayette opens its season at Air Force at 2 p.m. on Stadium. Lehigh kicks off its 2021 home slate against Villanova on ESPN+ at noon. Georgetown hosts Marist at Cooper Field on ESPN+ beginning at 12:30 p.m. Bucknell travels to Sacred Heart for a 6 p.m. matchup on NEC Front Row.
Former Bucknell linebacker Rick Mottram was selected as the Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association (FCS ADA) Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Mottram, the 2021 Spring Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year, is a three-time Academic All-Patriot League selection and finished his career with 170 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, six sacks, three interceptions and three fumble recoveries. He is currently working as a systems engineer at Lockheed Martin Space and will pursue his master’s degree in space systems engineering from Johns Hopkins University with the $5,000 post-graduate scholarship from receiving the honor.
Stan Dakosty was named the Fred ’50 and Marilyn Dunlap Football Head Coach at Colgate University in August. Dakosty becomes the 30th head coach in the 130 years of Colgate football and the third since 1995. Dakosty has been on the sidelines for the program’s most historic seasons, having a hand in seven of Colgate’s 10 Patriot League championships. As a student assistant under legendary coach Dick Biddle, he helped the Raiders make the Patriot League’s only appearance in the NCAA FCS championship game in 2003. Since arriving on the coaching staff in 2007, Dakosty has coached both sides of the ball but took over defensive backs in 2010. He was promoted to associate head coach in 2017, which came on the heels of Colgate’s fifth Patriot League title during that span. He has mentored 11 All-Patriot League defensive backs since 2014, including seven first team selections.
PFL -- The 2021 season marks the 29th year for the Pioneer Football League – the nation’s only non-scholarship, football-only NCAA Football Championship Subdivision conference. The league will feature 11 teams – tied for most in league history – each playing an eight-game schedule to determine the league champion and recipient of the automatic bid to the 2018 NCAA FCS Championship.
An exciting fall 2021 PFL campaign awaits with 11 league members scheduled to participate in the league’s 29th year. New members Presbyterian and St. Thomas join as full members eligible for the 2021 title along with the nine existing league members. Perennial title favorites Dayton and Marist return after opting out from the spring 2021 season. Davidson will seek to retain its newly earned championship with Morehead State, San Diego, and Valparaiso looking to challenge for that title after finishing just one loss behind the champion last spring. Butler, Drake and Stetson also will look to use their spring experience to make a move forward this fall.
SOUTHERN -- The 2021 Southern Conference football season kicks off this week with all nine programs in action. Four teams take the field Thursday, while the other five open the season Saturday.
The 2021 campaign is the 100th season of SoCon football. Founded in 1921, the SoCon has been celebrating 100 years in 2021 and will continue to do so throughout the season. The league is the fifth-oldest Division I conference.
Highlighting Thursday’s slate is a ranked battle between No. 18 Chattanooga and No. 25/20 Austin Peay. The Citadel visits in-state FBS foe Coastal Carolina, ranked No. 22 by the Associated Press, to open its season, while Samford hosts former Ohio Valley Conference foe Tennessee Tech and Mercer welcomes Point University, coached by former All-SoCon defensive back Julius Dixon, who helped Furman to the 1988 national title.
SOUTHLAND -- Preseason favorite Southeastern led the way with 16 total selections on the preseason all-conference teams, including nine on the first team.
Among SLU’s honorees was senior quarterback Cole Kelley, who returns after becoming the third quarterback in league history to take home the Walter Payton Award as the FCS offensive player of the year.
Fellow signal-caller Cameron Ward of UIW enters his sophomore season as the reigning Jerry Rice Award winner as the top freshman in the FCS. He is the first Southland student-athlete to earn the award.
SWAC -- The Southwestern Athletic Conference has announced additions to its 2021 SWAC Football television schedule which is highlighted by a record number of league games slated to be available on ESPN’s linear and digital platforms. The 2021 slate of ESPN games now features five additional games that have been slated to be carried live on ESPN+. Those matchups include McNeese State at Southern (Sept. 18), Alcorn State at Bethune-Cookman (Nov. 6), Florida A&M at Arkansas-Pine Bluff (Nov. 13), Texas Southern at Alabama State (Nov. 20), and Tuskegee at Alabama State (Nov. 25).
A total of five Southwestern Athletic Conference football student-athletes have been named to the 2021 Stats Perform FCS Preseason All-American Team. The list includes 2021 SWAC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year Jordan Lewis. Joining him on the team are SWAC Preseason selections Keonte Hampton, Tyrin Ralph, and Markquese Bell. Florida A&M wide receiver Xavier Smith was also tabbed as a member of the team.
WAC -- It’s a new era as football returns for the WAC for the first time since 2012, this time at the Football Championship Subdivision. Led by defending FCS national champion Sam Houston, the new incarnation of WAC football will also include Abilene Christian, Dixie State, Lamar, Stephen F. Austin and Tarleton. In 50 years at the FBS level, the WAC was home to the consensus 1984 national champion (Brigham Young), the winner of the 1990 Heisman Trophy (Ty Detmer, QB, Brigham Young) and the first pick of the 2002 NFL Draft (David Carr, QB, Fresno State).
The 2021 season kicks off this weekend with five games across the WAC. On Thursday, Lamar plays host to North American in a non-counting game while defending FCS champs and WAC preseason favorite Sam Houston opens up its title defense at Northern Arizona. On Saturday, Tarleton and Stephen F. Austin meet up for the first WAC football game since Dec. 1, 2012. Abilene Christian makes the trip to Dallas to take on SMU while Dixie State plays host to Sacramento State.
It’s no surprise that the defending national champions are prominently displayed in the preseason Top 25. The Bearkats are atop the AFCA Coaches Top 25, Stats Perform Top 25 and HERO Sports’ Top 25 and are third in the Athlon Sports preseason rankings. Stephen F. Austin is also on the radar, picking up votes in both the AFCA Top 25 and Stats Perform Top 25.
Mike Kern
Associate Commissioner