By Rich Adragna

Delaware (2-0, 3-0)—The Blue Hens continued their resurgence with a 38-9 victory over Rhode Island on Saturday.  Star rusher Omar Cuff rushed for only 56 yards and a score, but that didn’t matter because QB Joe Flacco threw for 337 yards and three touchdowns—all of which came in a 14 minute span.  The Blue Hen defense also came through, holding the Rams to only 266 yards of total offense, recovered a fumble in the end zone and had two interceptions.  Delaware will look to stay unbeaten when they head to Towson to face the Tigers.

Massachusetts (1-0, 3-0)—UMass continued their defense of the CAA crown by crushing the Towson Tigers 36-13.  Liam Coen threw for 196 yards and two touchdowns and Michael Omar scored the final touchdown of the game.  Yet it was Sean Smalls who stole the show Saturday.  Smalls intercepted a pass and returned it for 90 yards for a Minutemen touchdown.  UMass will be on the road for another conference battle with Maine this Saturday.

James Madison (1-0, 2-1)—The Dukes ran wild all over Virginia Military Institute Saturday with a 45-17 rout.  While Rodney Landers was less than stellar that day, the rushing game bailed him out with four touchdowns, including one from WR L.C. Baker, who also scored a receiving touchdown at the end of the first half.  Antoinne Bolton scored two of those rushing touchdowns.  The Dukes will continue their homestand against Coastal Carolina this weekend.

Villanova (1-0, 2-1)—The Wildcats came out victorious in a wild overtime showdown with Maine 24-17.  Matt Dicken was the hero of the day for Villanova as he scored both the game-tying and game-winning touchdowns for the Wildcats.  The defense also held Maine to 2 yards on their possession and forced three incomplete passes to seal the win.  Villanova will venture outside the conference this weekend for a showdown with the Ivy League Penn Quakers.

Richmond (1-0, 1-1)—The Spiders were idle last week, and will end their road trip this Saturday against Bucknell.

New Hampshire (0-1, 1-1)—The Wildcats’ luck against FBS teams continued as they worked their way to victory over Marshall 48-35.  Senior QB Ricky Santos had a field day against the Thundering Herd, going 23-of-33 with 289 yards and three TDs in the air and ran 13 times for 45 yards and a score.  RB Chris Ward also helped New Hampshire’s cause, by rushing for 99 yards and scoring a touchdown with just over a minute remaining in the game to put the game out of reach.   The Wildcats will head home to prepare for Dartmouth.

Maine (0-1, 1-2)—Heartbreak was in store in for the Black Bears as they let a victory slip away and lost overtime to Villanova 24-17.  Jhamal Fluellen ran for 170 yards and two touchdown for Maine, but it wasn’t enough to prevent disaster from happening as they missed a chance to put the game away when a field goal try went wide right.  Recovery will not come easy for the Black Bears as they head up to Amherst to do battle with the UMass Minutemen.

Northeastern (0-1, 1-2)—Talk about a way to bounce back.  After being beaten up in the first two games of their season, the Huskies provided a blow-out of their own, crushing Northwestern State 42-14.  Junior QB Anthony Orio threw and ran for two touchdowns each, while Maurice Murray pounded the Demons defense for 175 yards and a touchdown of his own.  Northeastern will look to build on that performance as they travel out West for a match-up with the Aggies of California-Davis.

Rhode Island (0-1, 0-3)—Last week, the Rams’ woes carried on as they were beaten by Delaware 38-9.  It was a bad day for the offense, as QB Derek Cassidy threw for only 40 yards (the Rams accumulated only 79 total yards in the air), was picked off twice and sacked twice.  RB Joe Casey rushed for 97 yards, but it was Joe Bellini who scored Rhode Island’s only touchdown of the day.  The Rams will play host to a hot Hofstra squad this week.   

William & Mary (0-1, 2-1)—Dramatics and high-scoring offenses were in store in Williamsburg as the Tribe pulled away from Liberty in double overtime 48-41.  Tribe QB Jake Phillips went 20-of-28 with 335 yards and three TDs, and scored the go-ahead touchdown in the second overtime period on a one-yard run.  The defense then held their ground to give William & Mary the victory.  This Saturday, the Tribe will head to Blacksburg, Va., to take on 17th-ranked Virginia Tech.

Towson (0-1, 2-1)—The Tigers’ hot start came to a screeching halt last week against UMass as they were soundly beaten 36-13.  The exclamation point of their bad day was UMass’ Sean Smalls returning a Sean Schaefer pick 90 yards the other way for a touchdown.  This was one of Schaefer’s three interceptions, and he was sacked four times.  Paul Perry was the lone bright spot for the Tigers with 11 receptions for 131 yards.  Rebounding will not be easy for Towson as they will play host to top-ranked Delaware.

Sports Network’s FCS College Football Poll
1.    Appalachian State
2.     Montana
3.     Massachusetts
4.    Northern Iowa
5.     North Dakota State
6.    McNeese State
7.    Southern Illinois
8.    James Madison
9.    Youngstown State
10.     New Hampshire
11.    Delaware
12.    Hampton
13.    Wofford
14.    Illinois State
15.    Pride
16.    Furman
17.    Sam Houston State
18.    Montana State
19.    Western Illinois
20.    Eastern Illinois
21.    Yale
22.    Lafayette
23.    Alabama A&M
24.    Cal Poly
25.    Eastern Washington

CCA and AFCA’s FCS Coaches Top-25 Poll
1.    Appalachian State
2.    Montana
3.    Massachusetts
4.    North Dakota State
5.    Northern Iowa
6.    Southern Illinois
7.     Youngstown State
8.    McNeese State
9.     James Madison
10.     New Hampshire
11.    Delaware
12.    Wofford
13.    Hampton
14.    Illinois State
15.    Sam Houston State
16.    Pride
17.    Furman
18.    Montana State
19.    Western Illinois
20.     Nicholls State
21.    Yale
22.    Eastern Illinois
23.    Lafayette
24.    Cal Poly
25.    Alabama A&M