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Northern Iowa, North Dakota State Remain 1-2 in The Sports Network FCS Top 25 Poll

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (Sports Network)--Northern Iowa tightened its hold on the top spot in the Sports Network FCS Top-25 poll when the new results were announced on Nov. 5.

The Panthers (9-0) received 61 of the 112 first-place votes cast, up two votes from the previous week. UNI clinched the automatic bid to the playoffs by winning a share of the Gateway Conference title last Saturday with its 38-17 victory over Missouri State.

Northern Iowa increased its lead over second-place North Dakota State from 102 points to 147 points (2,687 to 2,540).

North Dakota State (9-0) received 42 first-place votes, up from the 37 it earned the week before. The Bison defeated Illinois State 54-28. NDSU is scheduled to play at No. 24 Cal Poly at 6:05 p.m. (Central) Saturday, Nov. 10, in San Luis Obispo.

Montana (9-0) advanced one position to third in the poll after clinching a share of the Big Sky Conference crown and the auto bid with a 34-31 win over Portland State. The Grizzlies again received seven first-place votes.

McNeese State (9-0) drew two first-place ballots again and moved from fifth to fourth. The Cowboys throttled Stephen F. Austin 49-20 to earn the auto bid in the Southland Conference and closed the gap with Montana from 28 points to seven points (2,462 to 2,455).

On a Saturday filled with upsets, nine teams in the Top-25 suffered losses.

Massachusetts (7-2) had one of the largest falls, going from third to eighth with a 12-6 overtime defeat to unranked Rhode Island.

New Hampshire (6-3) dropped completely out of the top 10, slipping from eighth to 14th with its 31-13 loss to unranked Northeastern.

Both games were played in heavy winds and rain.

Southern Illinois (8-1) and Delaware (8-1) improved by one position with tough wins.

Southern Illinois made a fourth-quarter comeback to beat Western Illinois 10-9 and was rewarded with the No. 6 ranking, while Delaware held off James Madison 37-34 and moved up to No. 7 in games that featured ranked opponents.

Western Illinois (6-4) fell from 19th to 23rd and James Madison (6-3) dropped from 12th to 16th with the losses.

Two-time defending national champion Appalachian State jetted up two spots to No. 7 with a 45-24 victory over The Citadel that helped create a four-way logjam at the top of the Southern Conference standings.

The Mountaineers (7-2) share the SoCon lead with Georgia Southern, Wofford and Elon.

Georgia Southern (7-2) skyrocketed six places in the poll from 17th to 11th by beating Wofford 38-25. Wofford (7-3) fell from 10th to 15th with the loss.

Elon (6-3) tumbled five places from 14 to 19 with its 52-49 loss to unranked Furman.

Richmond (7-2) moved into the top 10 at No. 9 by coming from behind to beat Villanova 35-27. Villanova fell out of the Top-25 after being ranked 23rd last week.

With all of the upsets, Delaware State used another close win (23-20 over Winston-Salem State) to jump into the No. 10 spot. The Hornets (8-1) were ranked 13th last week and can clinch the auto bid in the MEAC on Saturday by beating Norfolk State.

Yale also benefited from the upsets. The Bulldogs (8-0) survived the bad weather to come back for a 17-7 win over Brown and were rewarded by moving from 15th to 12th in the poll.

Eastern Kentucky, which needs one win for the Ohio Valley Conference auto bid, had a week off. But the Colonels (7-2) moved up from No. 16 to No. 13.

Grambling clinched the West Division title and a spot in the SWAC championship game on Saturday with a 21-7 decision against Alabama State. The Tigers (8-1) crawled up one place to No. 17.

Hofstra used its 38-14 victory over William & Mary to climb from 20th to 18th and Eastern Washington took advantage of a 17-7 win against Northern Colorado to roll from 24th to 20th. Youngstown State (6-4) moved up one slot to 21st by waxing winless Indiana State 40-7.

Fordham moved into the poll for the first time since 2003 at No. 22 following a 24-21 victory over Holy Cross. The Rams (8-2) clinched the Patriot League title and an automatic playoff berth with that win.

Cal Poly and Eastern Illinois both returned back into the Top-25. Cal Poly (6-3) is 24th after edging Southern Utah 28-21 and Eastern Illinois (6-3), which came up 16 points short of the Top-25 last week, moved into the No. 25 position in an off week.

Alabama A&M (7-2) dropped from 21st out of the poll with a 43-40 overtime loss to Jackson State and Nicholls State (5-4) fell from 25th out with its 16-13 loss to Sam Houston State.

Sports Network's FCS College Football Poll

Team (First-place votes) Record Points Previous Rank
1. Northern Iowa Panthers (61) 9-0 2,687 1
2. North Dakota State Bison (42) 9-0 2,540 2
3. Montana Grizzlies (7) 9-0 2,462 4
4. McNeese State Cowboys (2) 9-0 2,455 5
5. Southern Illinois Salukis 8-1 2,279 6
6. Delaware Blue Hens 8-1 2,187 7
7. Appalachian State Mountaineers 7-2 2,058 9
8. Massachusetts Minutemen 7-2 1,847 3
9. Richmond Spiders 7-2 1,799 11
10. Delaware State Hornets 8-1 1,547 13
11. Georgia Southern Eagles 7-2 1,514 17
12. Yale Bulldogs 8-0 1,414 15
13. Eastern Kentucky Colonels 7-2 1,378 16
14. New Hampshire Wildcats 6-3 1,222 8
15. Wofford Terriers 7-3 1,215 10
16. James Madison Dukes 6-3 1,140 12
17. Grambling State Tigers 8-1 1,083 18
18. Hofstra Pride 7-2 857 20
19. Elon Phoenix 6-3 736 14
20. Eastern Washington Eagles 6-3 585 24
21. Youngstown State Penguins 6-4 467 22
22. Fordham Rams 8-2 342 NR
23. Western Illinois Leathernecks 6-4 325 19
24. Cal Poly Mustangs 6-3 289 NR
25. Eastern Illinois Panthers 6-3 264 NR

Others receiving votes: Norfolk State 181, Alabama A&M 142, South Dakota State 94, Dayton 85, Villanova 82, Harvard 76, Jacksonville State 71, Northern Arizona 50, Holy Cross 39, Liberty 29, Jackson State 26, Nicholls State 22, Southern 20, Albany 19, San Diego 17, Colgate 12, South Carolina State 11, The Citadel 9, Central Arkansas 8, Furman 7, Gardner-Webb 7, Hampton 7, Sam Houston State 6, Austin Peay 4, Rhode Island 2, Iona 1, Northeastern 1.

As of November 5, 2007, at 02:16 PM ET
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