Montana State remains the No. 1 team in the latest AFCA FCS Coaches Poll after beating then-No. 17 Northern Arizona 28-14, while South Dakota State and Tarleton remain No. 2 and No. 3.
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Montana stays at No. 4 after a dominant 62-22 win over then-No. 9 UC Davis, while Stephen F. Austin moves into the top five. Youngstown State also jumped three spots to No. 10 after beating then-No. 12 South Dakota 47-28.
The biggest fall belongs to Illinois State, which dropped from a tie for No. 4 to No. 11 after a 28-21 loss to Northern Iowa. Jackson State, Campbell and Southern Illinois are the three newcomers to the Top 25.
FCS Top 25 Coaches Poll
Montana State (25) – 5-0 – 625 points
South Dakota State – 4-1 – 590
Tarleton State – 4-0 – 568
Montana – 4-1 – 550
Stephen F. Austin – 5-0 – 521
Lehigh – 5-0 – 484
North Dakota – 4-1 – 467
Tennessee Tech – 4-0 – 429
Austin Peay – 4-1 – 420
Youngstown State – 3-2 – 386
Illinois State – 4-1 – 370
South Carolina State – 5-0 – 329
Lamar – 3-1 – 322
Idaho State – 4-0 – 311
UC Davis – 3-2 – 236
South Dakota – 3-2 – 223
Richmond – 4-1 – 196
West Florida – 3-1 – 193
Northern Arizona – 3-2 – 175
Colgate – 4-1 – 155
Mercer – 3-2 – 117
Harvard – 2-0 – 82
Jackson State – 4-0 – 72
Campbell – 4-1 – 71
Southern Illinois – 3-2 – 57
Dropped Out: Yale (18), Rhode Island (21), Villanova (22)
Others Receiving Votes: Elon (55), Yale (22), Alabama State (19), Prairie View A&M (17), Southeastern Louisiana (14), UT Rio Grande Valley (7), Furman (6), Monmouth (6), Chattanooga (5), Stony Brook (5), Cal Poly (4), Dartmouth (4), St. Thomas (4), Delaware State (3), Villanova (2), Bryant (1), Northern Iowa (1), UIW (1).
Three Teams Drop Out Of The FCS Top 25
Yale, Rhode Island and Villanova all dropped out of the Top 25 this week, opening the door for Jackson State, Campbell and Southern Illinois.
Rhode Island's exit is especially notable after entering Week 4 at No. 21 before losing 22-18 to North Carolina A&T. Yale also fell from No. 18 after a loss to Cornell, while Villanova dropped from No. 22 following its loss to Colgate.
Three teams falling out in one week is a significant amount of turnover and shows just how quickly the middle and bottom of the FCS Top 25 can change.
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