FCS Rankings 2015: Week 13 Coaches Poll Standings Revealed
The FCS Coaches Poll was released Monday, and after a weekend that saw the top contenders all win, there unsurprisingly weren't too many shake-ups atop the rankings.
Below, we'll take a look at the Week 13 poll and break down some of the weekend's biggest results.
Rankings
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
| 1. | Jacksonville State (24) | 9-1 | 648 |
| 2. | McNeese State (2) | 9-0 | 616 |
| 3. | North Dakota State | 8-2 | 592 |
| 4. | Coastal Carolina | 9-1 | 559 |
| 5. | South Dakota State | 8-2 | 544 |
| 6. | Illinois State | 8-2 | 531 |
| 7. | William & Mary | 8-2 | 486 |
| 8. | Charleston Southern | 9-1 | 464 |
| 9. | Chattanooga | 8-2 | 440 |
| 10. | James Madison | 8-2 | 408 |
| 11. | Portland State | 8-2 | 368 |
| 12. | Sam Houston State | 7-3 | 327 |
| 13. | North Carolina A&T | 9-1 | 312 |
| 14. | Fordham | 9-2 | 295 |
| 15. | Northern Iowa | 6-4 | 256 |
| 16. | Richmond | 7-3 | 229 |
| 17. | Montana | 6-4 | 188 |
| 18. | Southern Utah | 7-3 | 185 |
| 19. | Eastern Washington | 6-4 | 184 |
| 20. | Northern Arizona | 7-3 | 138 |
| 21. | Harvard | 8-1 | 114 |
| 22. | Bethune-Cookman | 8-2 | 111 |
| 23. | Dartmouth | 8-1 | 93 |
| 24. | The Citadel | 7-3 | 92 |
| 25. | Central Arkansas | 7-3 | 70 |
Analysis
Jacksonville State and the nation's eighth-ranked rushing offense (277.4 rushing yards per game) continued to roll through its FCS schedule Saturday, stomping Southeast Missouri State 56-28. Troymaine Pope (17 rushes for 137 yards and two touchdowns) and Christian LeMay (six rushes for 124 yards and two scores) led the way for the Ohio Valley Conference champions, who are a win over Murray State away from finishing the season as the nation's top-ranked team.
"Offensively, that's the best day we've had in a while," head coach John Grass said, per . "I'm excited for our guys. They came out and played well, took care of business and beat a good football team. I'm excited to be sitting in the position that we're in. Now we just have to finish it out."
McNeese State had the week off, giving schools like North Dakota State and Coastal Carolina the chance to prove they deserve to be the No. 2 team in the nation. Neither could quite make the jump.
And nothing on Saturday came easy for the Bison, who had to fight tooth and nail to earn a 27-24 win over Youngstown State after trailing 24-10 heading into the fourth quarter. It's been an up-and-down year at Youngstown State for head coach Bo Pelini, who had a complete meltdown toward the end of the game after disagreeing with several calls.
But he was flagged twice for unsportsmanlike conduct, basically killing any chances of a comeback for his team with under a minute remaining. It also led to the following exchange on the television broadcast, per Omaha.com:
"I've never seen anything like this in my life," said one commentator.
"Nebraska fans have," replied his broadcast partner, who then cited various instances when Pelini was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct during his tenure as the Cornhuskers head coach.
Whether Pelini had a case against the officials or not, his behavior down the stretch cost his team the chance to win a crucial game on the final drive. That makes the result a major disappointment on numerous levels for the program.
Coastal Carolina won with a bit less controversy, smashing Kennesaw State 45-13. That kept it in the Top Four of the rankings this week after South Dakota State needed a fourth-quarter comeback of its own to get past South Dakota 30-23.
With the season coming down to the wire and playoff seeds still up for grabs, the remaining games on the schedule for several programs will have huge implications. And then the real fun begins.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
