Kats At No. 2 In Selection Committee Rankings
11/3/2016 4:50:00 PM | Football
HUNTSVILLE, Texas – The NCAA Division I FCS selection committee unveiled its first look at its top teams this afternoon with the Sam Houston State Bearkats coming in at No. 2.
It is the first of three weekly Top 10 rankings, following a similar model being utilized at the FBS level, leading up to Selection Sunday on November 20.
Currently, the committee has Jacksonville State in the No. 1 spot while Eastern Washington checks in at No. 3 and North Dakota State at No. 4.
“This changes nothing for us,” Bearkat head coach K.C. Keeler said. “The goal for us all along has been to win every game we possibly can, win the Southland Conference and position ourselves to win a national championship. I like that the committee is giving us a glimpse at where we stand right now but there is still a lot of football yet to be played and our focus is on going out and competing and winning each week.”
The Bearkats, who are entering their third week holding the No. 1 spot in both the STATS FCS and NCAA Coaches' polls, currently sport the nation's top offense at 54.0 points and 592.0 yards per game.
“I am not going to change anything with the way I coach and the way I approach games,” Keeler said. “We still plan on winning football while doing everything we can on to keep our players safe and healthy, hopefully for an extended playoff run. It is a goal of ours to play every playoff game at home and we feel as though we have a good enough team to where if we take care of business, that is exactly where we will be.”
The Kats were not the only Southland Conference school in the top 10 with Central Arkansas checking in at No. 10. Charleston Southern (9), Chattanooga (8), Richmond (7), The Citadel (6) and James Madison (5) round out the remainder of the initial rankings from the selection committee.
Sam Houston State will look to add to their resume at home this weekend when they host McNeese. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. from Bowers Stadium with the game to be aired live on ESPN3.
