No. 2 In The Nation
11/14/2011 1:31:00 PM | Football
The No. 2 ranking represents the Bearkats' highest standing in the national polls in Sam Houston's 24 seasons at the NCAA Division I FCS level.
Sam Houston had been ranked as high as No. 3 on three occasions (twice in 2004 and last week).
North Dakota State, the only other unbeaten FCS team coming into last weekend's games and No. 1 in the Sports Network Poll the previous two weeks, was upset by unranked Youngstown State 27-24 last Saturday.
Montana State, 9-1 for the year and No. 2 in the Sports Network Poll a week ago, now fills the No. 1 spot.
Georgia Southern (9-1) is third followed by Northern Iowa (8-2) and North Dakota State (9-1).
Lehigh (9-1), Montana (8-2), Towson (8-2), Appalachian State (7-3) and Old Dominion (9-2) stand sixth through 10th in this week's rankings.
Sam Houston is 10-0 for only the second time in program history. The 1956 Bearkat team went 10-0, winning both the Lone Star Conference championship and the Refrigerator Bowl title as an NAIA competitor.
Counting Sam Houston's victories in the final two games of the 2010 season, the Bearkats own a 12-game winning streak. That ties as a school record, matching a 12-game streak including the final two games of 1955 with the 1956 team's 10-0 record.
Sam Houston wraps up its regular season schedule this Saturday against NCAA Division I FCS independent Texas State in San Marcos. The game is a 3 p.m. kickoff.
The Bearkats earned the Southland Conference regular season with a 43-17 victory over Northwestern State. Sam Houston receives the Southland's automatic qualifier berth in the NCAA FCS playoffs.
| 1 | Montana State (76) | 9-1 | 3,805 |
| 2 | SAM HOUSTON (71) | 10-0 | 3,764 |
| 3 | Georgia Southern (8) | 9-1 | 3,557 |
| 4 | Northern Iowa | 8-2 | 3,297 |
| 5 | North Dakota State | 9-1 | 3,199 |
| 6 | Lehigh | 9-1 | 3,122 |
| 7 | Montana | 8-2 | 2,879 |
| 8 | Towson | 8-2 | 2,665 |
| 9 | Appalachian State | 7-3 | 2,580 |
| 10 | Old Dominion | 9-2 | 2,549 |
| 11 | Maine | 8-2 | 2,313 |
| 12 | New Hampshire | 7-3 | 2,012 |
| 13 | Wofford | 7-3 | 1,928 |
| 14 | Illinois State | 6-4 | 1,761 |
| 15 | Delaware | 6-4 | 1,421 |
| 16 | Liberty | 7-3 | 1,400 |
| 17 | Central Arkansas | 8-3 | 1,377 |
| 18 | Harvard | 8-1 | 1,310 |
| 19 | James Madison | 6-4 | 958 |
| 20 | Norfolk State | 9-2 | 855 |
| 21 | Jackson State | 8-2 | 766 |
| 22 | South Dakota | 6-4 | 472 |
| 23 | Tennessee Tech | 6-3 | 378 |
| 24 | Furman | 6-4 | 371 |
| 25 | Portland State | 7-3 | 367 |
Others receiving votes are Indiana State, North Dakota, Youngstown State, Jacksonville State, Stony Brook, Alabama State, San Diego, Bethune-Cookman, Duquesne, Drake, Eastern Kentucky, Brown, Chattanooga, William & Mary, Georgetown, Albanay, Stephen F. Austin, Bryant, Southern Utah, Murray State, Florida A&M, Grambling State, South Carolina State, South Dakota State, Alabama A&M, Samford, Eastern Washington, Elon, Cal Poly, Tennessee State, Jacksonville, Massachusetts
