When FCS national champion Sam Houston departed the Southland Conference this past summer, the Bearkats knew one of the nation’s better teams would remain there.
Look no further than the Stats Perform FCS Top 25, where on Monday Southeastern Louisiana moved up two spots to No. 6 – the Lions’ highest ranking since they were third in 2014.
Southeastern coach Frank Scelfo called the Lions’ 23-20 win over McNeese on Saturday night the kind of effort that helps a team become championship-level. The Lions (7-1, 5-0) can become that for the third time in the Southland if they win at No. 22 UIW this weekend.
The Lions, who boast the nation’s second-ranked offense behind Walter Payton Award-winning quarterback Cole Kelley, are unbeaten against FCS opponents, with only a 45-42 loss at Louisiana Tech.
Including the Southland showdown, there are five games between ranked teams this weekend. Sam Houston (7-0) and North Dakota State (8-0) enter the important week at No. 1 and 2, respectively, in the national media poll, with No. 21 Princeton (7-0) the only other unbeaten FCS team.
A national media panel selects the Stats Perform FCS Top 25. A first-place vote is worth 25 points, a second-place vote 24 points, all the way down to one point for a 25th-place vote.
Stats Perform FCS Top 25 (Nov. 1)
1. Sam Houston (7-0, 5-0 AQ7), 1,240 points (40 first-place votes)
Previous Ranking: 1; Week 9 Result: 45-27 win at Tarleton
2. North Dakota State (8-0, 5-0 Missouri Valley), 1,208 (10)
Previous Ranking: 2; Week 9 Result: 44-2 win overIndiana State
3. James Madison (7-1, 5-1 CAA), 1,133
Previous Ranking: 5; Week 9 Result: 45-21 win over Elon
4. Montana State (7-1, 5-0 Big Sky), 1,082
Previous Ranking: 6; Week 9 Result: Open week
5. Eastern Washington (7-1, 4-1 Big Sky), 1,013
Previous Ranking: 7; Week 9 Result: Open week
6. Southeastern Louisiana (7-1, 5-0 Southland), 970
Previous Ranking: 8; Week 9 Result: 23-20 win over McNeese
7. Southern Illinois (6-2, 4-1 Missouri Valley), 893
Previous Ranking: 3; Week 9 Result: 23-16 loss at then-No. 16 Northern Iowa
8. UC Davis (7-1, 4-1 Big Sky), 854
Previous Ranking: 9; Week 9 Result: Open week
9. South Dakota State (6-2, 3-2 Missouri Valley), 811
Previous Ranking: 10; Week 9 Result: 47-16 win at Youngstown State
10. Villanova (6-2, 4-1 CAA), 745
Previous Ranking: 4; Week 9 Result: 31-18 loss to William & Mary
11. Montana (6-2, 3-2 Big Sky), 721
Previous Ranking: 11; Week 9 Result: 20-19 win over Southern Utah
12. Kennesaw State (7-1, 4-0 Big South), 698
Previous Ranking: 12; Week 9 Result: 34-30 win over Gardner-Webb
13. Northern Iowa (5-3, 3-2 Missouri Valley), 693
Previous Ranking: 16; Week 9 Result: 23-16 win over then-No. 3 Southern Illinois
14. ETSU (7-1, 4-1 Southern), 616
Previous Ranking: 13 (tie); Week 9 Result: Open week
15. UT Martin (7-1, 3-0 Ohio Valley), 599
Previous Ranking: 13(tie); Week 9 Result: 17-16 win over Austin Peay
16. Sacramento State (6-2, 5-0 Big Sky), 517
Previous Ranking: 15; Week 9 Result: 27-24 win at Northern Colorado
17. Missouri State (5-3, 4-2 Missouri Valley), 396
Previous Ranking: 17; Week 9 Result: 32-28 win over North Dakota
18. VMI (6-2, 4-1 Southern), 331
Previous Ranking: 18; Week 9 Result: 46-45 win over Samford
19. Jackson State (7-1, 5-0 SWAC), 292
Previous Ranking: 20; Week 9 Result: 28-19 win at Mississippi Valley State
20.(tie) Princeton (7-0, 4-0 Ivy), 277
Previous Ranking: 19; Week 9 Result: 34-16 win at Cornell
20.(tie) William & Mary (6-2, 4-1 CAA), 277
Previous Ranking: Not Ranked; Week 9 Result: 31-18 win at then-No. 4 Villanova
22. UIW (6-2, 4-1 Southland), 229
Previous Ranking: 22; Week 9 Result: 48-21 win over Houston Baptist
23. South Dakota (5-3, 3-2 Missouri Valley), 213
Previous Ranking: 21; Week 9 Result: Open week
24. Weber State (4-4, 3-2 Big Sky), 177
Previous Ranking: 23; Week 9 Result: 40-17 win at Idaho State
25. Eastern Kentucky (6-2, 3-0 AQ7), 139
Previous Ranking: 25; Week 9 Result: 42-10 win over Lamar
Dropped Out: Rhode Island (24)
Others Receiving Votes (schools listed on two or more ballots): Prairie View A&M 34, Chattanooga 20, Mercer 14, Florida A&M 12, Dartmouth 10, Rhode Island 9, Stephen F. Austin 8, Harvard 7, Monmouth 2
Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Voters – Stats Perform: Craig Haley, Gary Reasons. ASUN: Patrick McCoy, Mike Parris. Big Sky Conference: Doug Kelly, Tyson Rodgers, Larry Weir. Big South Conference: Brian Cleary, Matt Harmon, Mark Simpson. CAA Football: Scott Klatzkin, Greg Madia, Rob Washburn. Ivy League: Rick Bender, Craig Larson. Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference: Bill Hamilton, Maurice Williams. Missouri Valley Football Conference: Dom Izzo, Mike Kern, Randy Reinhardt. Northeast Conference: Tad Maury, Ralph Ventre. Ohio Valley Conference: Neal Bradley, Kyle Schwartz. Patriot League: Eric Malanowski, Ryan Sakamoto. Pioneer Football League: Cody Bush, Jack Cronin. Southern Conference: David Fox, Jeff Hartsell, Phil Perry. Southland Conference: Zack Carlton, Josh Yonis. Southwestern Athletic Conference: Ronnie Johnson, Travis Jarome, Andrew Roberts. Western Athletic Conference: Josh Criswell, Chris Thompson. National Representatives: Josh Buchanan, Riley Corcoran, Sam Herder, Emory Hunt, Brett Huston, Kyle Kensing, Brandon Lawrence, Jon Passman, Lawrence Smith, Phil Sokol, Reggie Thomas, Jamie Williams.