Week 2 has come and gone, and although there were not a ton of marquis FCS match ups, there were some notable results that may come into play on decision day for the playoff committee. It will still be a couple of weeks before we really know who some of these teams are, but that won’t stop us from pretending we do.
How last year’s playoff teams did in Week 2:
North Dakota State (2-0): Beat Eastern Washington 50-44 in OT
Jacksonville State (1-1): Lost to LSU 34-13
Richmond (2-0): Beat Norfolk State 34-0
Charleston Southern (1-2): Lost to Florida State 52-8
Citadel (2-0): Beat Furman 19-14
Chattanooga (2-0): Beat Presbyterian 34-0
Fordham (1-1): Beat Elizabeth City State 83-21
New Hampshire (1-1): Beat Holy Cross 39-28
Colgate (0-1): Idle
Sam Houston (1-0): Idle
Southern Utah (1-1): Beat SE Louisiana 28-23
McNeese State (1-1): Lost to LA-Lafayette 30-22
JMU (2-0): Beat Central Connecticut State 56-21
Montana (2-0): Beat Northern Iowa 20-14
South Dakota State (1-1): Beat Drake 56-28
Northern Iowa (1-1): Lost to Montana 20-14
Eastern Illinois (1-1): Beat Miami OH 21-17
William & Mary (1-1): Beat Hampton 24-14
Duquesne (1-1): Beat Bucknell 30-19
Dayton (2-0): Beat Robert Morris 13-0
Western Illinois (2-0): Beat Northern Arizona 34-20
Portland State (1-1): Lost to San Jose State 66-35
Illinois State (2-0): Beat Northwestern 9-7
Coastal Carolina (2-0): Beat Florida A&M 49-10 (Coastal not eligible for FCS playoffs in 2016)
Other Notable Results:
Nicholls (0-1): Lost to Georgia 26-24
North Carolina A&T (2-0): Beat Kent State 39-36 4OT
North Dakota (0-2): Lost to Bowling Green 27-26
Here are the projections after Week 2
National Seeds:
1 Richmond* (CAA) – No let down for Danny Rocco’s squad this week, as they opened their home schedule with a dominating 34-0 win over Norfolk State. This team definitely passes the eye test two weeks in.
2 North Dakota State* (MVFC) – Another week, another OT win for NDSU. This was a big one though, taking out Big Sky favorite Eastern Washington in OT. Things won’t get any easier for the Bison, with a challenging MVFC schedule ahead. However, with this team it’s all about getting in form for the playoffs.
3 Illinois State – The Redbirds scored a big win over a Power 5 opponent in Northwestern this week. Illinois State looks like a contender. Their match up with NDSU on October 1 looks epic.
4 Jacksonville State* (OVC) – A loss to LSU in Death Valley brings no shame to Jax State. This team is still the one to beat in the OVC, and can contend for the National Championship.
5 JMU – Another dominating win for the Dukes, this time against Central Conn State. Liberty’s rival to the north looks to be doing just fine under a new regime.
6 Sam Houston State* (Southland) – Sometimes not playing pays dividends. SHSU was idle this week, but managed to move up a seed.
7 Chattanooga* (SoCon) – The Mocs have yet to give up a point, although they have only played Shorter and Presby. Nevertheless, Chattanooga looks like a solid bet for the playoffs right now out of the SoCon.
8 Montana* (Big Sky) – Another jump up into seeding, Montana moves into the picture after a big win against #3 Northern Iowa.
In:
Charleston Southern* (Big South)
Western Illinois
Northern Iowa
Eastern Washington
McNeese State
Youngstown State
South Dakota State
William & Mary
Citadel
Sacred Heart* (NEC)
Fordham* (Patriot)
Dayton* (Pioneer)
Portland State
Villanova
Eastern Illinois
Albany
*Conference Auto-Bid
Where is Liberty?
The Flames find themselves on the bubble after this week. It was an impressive performance against Jacksonville at home that put them there. The offense, defense, and specialty teams all had very solid outings in the 55-7 win. Until Liberty is given the benefit of the doubt by the committee though, I will continue to operate under the assumption that they won’t get in from the bubble. The Flames certainly have every opportunity to get into the playoffs in front of them with this schedule though. A road win against an FBS opponent this week in SMU would go a long ways toward that goal. Also working in Liberty’s favor, Charleston Southern’s program may be in a state of chaos. They are on their 3rd string QB now, they face an NCAA investigation, and have had numerous suspensions. If they crack under the pressure, Liberty stands to be the main beneficiary.
