(STATS) – Archrivals Montana and Montana State aren’t fond of sharing with each other, but they had to give some elbow room in the STATS FCS Top 25 on Monday.
The two 4-1 teams both appeared in the Top 10 of the national media poll for the first time in nearly five years. Montana State moved up one spot to No. 6 and Montana 10 spots to No. 8 – their first tag-team of the Top 10 since Oct. 20, 2014, although in between both made separate appearances.
Each posted a rousing win in its Big Sky opener on Saturday. Montana State overcame a 21-0 deficit in the second quarter to power past Northern Arizona 49-31. Montana allowed a similar comeback to UC Davis last season, but this year, the Grizzlies never trailed against the then-No. 4 Aggies in winning 45-20.
The top three spots in the rankings didn’t change. North Dakota State, James Madison and South Dakota State have held 1, 2 and 3, respectively, since the preseason. NDSU and SDSU had byes this past weekend while James Madison routed then-No. 24 Elon 45-10.
A national panel of sports information and media relations directors, broadcasters, writers and other dignitaries select the STATS 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.
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STATS FCS Top 25 (Sept. 30)
1. North Dakota State (4-0), 3,968 points (152 first-place votes)
Previous Ranking: 1; Last Week’s Result Bye
2. James Madison (4-1), 3,786 (7)
Previous Ranking: 2; Last Week’s Result: 45-10 win over Elon
3. South Dakota State (3-1), 3,670
Previous Ranking: 3; Last Week’s Result: Bye
4. Weber State (2-2), 3,349
Previous Ranking: 5; Last Week’s Result: 29-17 win over Northern Iowa
5. Villanova (5-0), 3,178
Previous Ranking: 8; Last Week’s Result: 33-17 win over Maine
6. Montana State (4-1), 3,058
Previous Ranking: 7; Last Week’s Result: 49-31 win over Northern Arizona
7. Kennesaw State (4-1), 2,928
Previous Ranking: 6; Last Week’s Result: 31-7 win over Reinhardt
8. Montana (4-1), 2,594
Previous Ranking: 18; Last Week’s Result: 45-20 win over UC Davis
9. Towson (3-2), 2,370
Previous Ranking: 10; Last Week’s Result: 38-0 loss to Florida
10. Illinois State (3-1), 2,307
Previous Ranking: 14; Last Week’s Result: Bye
11. Central Arkansas (3-1), 2,096
Previous Ranking: 15; Last Week’s Result: Bye
12. UC Davis (2-3), 2,021
Previous Ranking: 4; Last Week’s Result: 45-20 loss to Montana
13. Northern Iowa (2-2), 1,962
Previous Ranking: 9; Last Week’s Result: 29-17 loss to Weber State
14. Furman (3-2), 1,943
Previous Ranking: 16; Last Week’s Result: 17-10 win over ETSU
15. North Carolina A&T (3-1), 1,754
Previous Ranking: 17; Last Week’s Result: 37-0 win over Delaware State
16. Nicholls (2-2), 1,505
Previous Ranking: 12 tie; Last Week’s Result: 24-3 loss to Texas State
17. Southeastern Louisiana (3-1), 1,393
Previous Ranking: 19; Last Week’s Result: 44-27 win over Northwestern State
18. Youngstown State (4-0), 1,253
Previous Ranking: 22; Last Week’s Result: 45-10 win over Robert Morris
19. Delaware (3-2), 1,167
Previous Ranking: 20; Last Week’s Result: 17-14 loss to Pittsburgh
20. Maine (2-3), 1,147
Previous Ranking: 12 tie; Last Week’s Result: 33-17 loss to Villanova
21. Jacksonville State (3-2), 892
Previous Ranking: 11; Last Week’s Result: 52-33 loss to Austin Peay
22. Eastern Washington (2-3), 731
Previous Ranking: 21; Last Week’s Result: 35-20 win over North Dakota
23. Southeast Missouri (2-2), 616
Previous Ranking: 23; Last Week’s Result: Bye
24. Stony Brook (4-1), 527
Previous Ranking: N/A; Last Week’s Result: 31-27 win over Rhode Island
25. Princeton (2-0), 483
Previous Ranking: N/R; Last Week’s Result: 56-23 win over Bucknell
Dropped Out: Elon (24), The Citadel (25)
Others Receiving Votes: Dartmouth 146, South Carolina State 113, Austin Peay 99, Sam Houston State 97, Houston Baptist 86, Elon 82, Indiana State 66, Yale 66, The Citadel 40, Sacramento State 32, Samford 30, Wofford 26, Tennessee Tech 24, Southern Illinois 23, Central Connecticut State 17, Idaho State 13, Eastern Kentucky 12, Alcorn State 2, North Dakota 2, Cal Poly 1
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