South Carolina State, which won its second straight Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Championship finished the season No.8 in The Sports Network's Football Championship Subdivision final poll.
South Carolina State (10-2) fell one slot to No. 8 with its 20-13 loss to Appalachian State in the first round of the playoffs.
The Bulldogs, 10-2 overall and 8-0 in the MEAC, also held down the No. 1 spot in the SBN Top 10 poll and three other polls that rank HBCUs, throughout the 2009 season.
The polls Coach Buddy Pough's team held this year are The Sports Network, FCS Coaches and Any Given Saturday, which the Bulldogs were ranked No.7 the highest position an SC State team has achieved in Division I-AA or FCS.
Villanova was crowned the No. 1 team in The Sports Network's Football three days after winning its first NCAA Division I football championship.
The Wildcats coming off Friday's 23-21 victory over Montana in the national championship contest in Chattanooga, TN., received all 101 first-place votes to finish with 2,525 points.
Montana (14-1), which saw its dreams of a perfect season ruined by Villanova, moved up one place to No. 2 in the final poll. Appalachian State (11-3), which lost 24-17 to Montana in the semifinals, jumped from fifth to third. William & Mary (11-3), a 14-13 loser to Villanova in the semifinals, saw a similar jump, moving from sixth to fourth. Richmond (11-2), the 2008 national champion, slipped from fourth to fifth with its 35-31 loss to Appalachian State in the quarterfinals.
Coming in at No. 11 was South Dakota State (8-4), followed by McNeese State (9-3), Eastern Washington (8-4), Holy Cross (9-3), Prairie View (9-1), Jacksonville State (8-3), Weber State (7-5), Northern Iowa (7-4), Eastern Illinois (8-4) and Penn (8-2).
Final 2009 Sports Network's FCS College Football Poll
|
Team (First-place votes)
|
Record
|
Points
|
Previous Rank
|
|
1. Villanova Wildcats (101)
|
14-1
|
2,525
|
2
|
|
2. Montana Grizzlies
|
14-1
|
2,415
|
3
|
|
3. Appalachian State Mountaineers
|
11-3
|
2,385
|
5
|
|
4. William & Mary Tribe
|
11-3
|
2,225
|
6
|
|
5. Richmond Spiders
|
11-2
|
2,092
|
4
|
|
6. Southern Illinois Salukis
|
11-2
|
2,037
|
1
|
|
7. New Hampshire Wildcats
|
10-3
|
1,815
|
10
|
|
8. South Carolina State Bulldogs
|
10-2
|
1,685
|
7
|
|
9. Elon Phoenix
|
9-3
|
1,672
|
9
|
|
10. Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks
|
10-3
|
1,577
|
12
|
|
11. South Dakota State Jackrabbits
|
8-4
|
1,431
|
11
|
|
12. McNeese State Cowboys
|
9-3
|
1,391
|
8
|
|
13. Eastern Washington Eagles
|
8-4
|
1,150
|
13
|
|
14. Holy Cross Crusaders
|
9-3
|
1,111
|
17
|
|
15. Prairie View A&M Panthers
|
9-1
|
976
|
18
|
|
16. Jacksonville State Gamecocks
|
8-3
|
931
|
14
|
|
17. Weber State Wildcats
|
7-5
|
914
|
15
|
|
18. Northern Iowa Panthers
|
7-4
|
854
|
16
|
|
19. Eastern Illinois Panthers
|
8-4
|
736
|
19
|
|
20. Penn Quakers
|
8-2
|
590
|
21
|
|
21. Colgate Raiders
|
9-2
|
524
|
20
|
|
22. Liberty Flames
|
8-3
|
482
|
22
|
|
23. Florida A&M Rattlers
|
8-3
|
366
|
23
|
|
24. Lafayette Leopards
|
8-3
|
223
|
24
|
|
25. Texas State Bobcats
|
7-4
|
155
|
25
|
|
Others receiving votes: James Madison 129, Montana State 112, Delaware 89, Harvard 64, Butler 49, Eastern Kentucky 34, Central Connecticut State 29, UC Davis 28, Furman 26, Illinois State 24, Northern Arizona 21, Grambling 11, Youngstown State 8, Norfolk State 7, Stony Brook 4, Alabama A&M 3, Old Dominion 3, Central Arkansas 2, Chattanooga 1.
|
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