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Three-time national champion North Dakota State hosted ESPN’s “College GameDay” for the second straight year, but the top ranked Bison aren’t the only Missouri Valley team getting attention. The league has six teams ranked in the FCS coaches poll.
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
On Saturday night, South Dakota did something no other Missouri Valley team has done this year — lose to an FCS opponent.
Through the first three weeks, the MVFC has dominated its FCS foes, going 15-1 with the lone loss coming by a touchdown at third-ranked Montana. For comparison’s sake, the conference went 19-9 against the FCS last year, counting playoffs.
The MVFC also picked up its second FBS win last weekend when Indiana State, which was expected to be one of the league’s weaker teams, beat Ball State for the first time since 1987.
“I think the conference is definitely as strong as it’s ever been,” Youngstown State coach Eric Wolford said Tuesday.
The MVFC, which has finished first in the Gridiron Power Index each of the last three years, is rated as the 15th-best league in the country, ahead of three FBS conferences in USA Today’s Sagarin Ratings: the Mid-American Conference (the West is 16th, while the East is 19th), Conference USA (17th) and the Sun Belt (18th).
While top-ranked North Dakota State gets the most attention — on Saturday, the Bison hosted ESPN’s “College GameDay” for the second straight year — the MVFC has five other teams ranked in the FCS coaches poll: South Dakota State (10th), Northern Iowa (11th), Southern Illinois (13th), YSU (15th) and Illinois State (24th).
“Really, this is by far the best the conference has been top to bottom,” Wolford said.
The MVFC is 2-8 against FBS teams this season, a mark that includes YSU’s 28-17 loss to Illinois. The rest of the FCS is a combined 3-71, with no conference winning more than one FBS game.
This week’s MVFC schedule includes two more FBS games: Southern Illinois at Purdue and Western Illinois at Northwestern.
“Obviously,” Wolford said, “we want all those guys to win.”
The Penguins (2-1) play host to St. Francis on Saturday, then have an open week before they open MVFC play at Missouri State on Oct. 4. But while the MVFC may get a lot of attention nationally, that’s not always the case inside Stambaugh Stadium.
“I don’t pay attention to any other teams,” sophomore guard Brock Eisenhuth said. “Just Youngstown.”
So he hasn’t seen what’s going on with North Dakota State?
“I don’t care about them,” he said. “I worry about one game at a time.”
Nania eyes return
After missing last weekend’s game with an ankle injury, junior quarterback Dante Nania was back at practice on Monday and Tuesday. Nania only did individual drills on Monday but was working with the starters in team drills on Tuesday.
“I would expect him to be able to go” against St. Francis on Saturday, Wolford said.
Freshman Hunter Wells started in place of Nania last week and threw for 297 yards and four touchdowns.
When asked if Wells will be a part of the offense whether Nania is healthy or not, Wolford said, “We haven’t really had that discussion. I think we just reaffirmed our confidence in him [Wells], as far as him going out and playing. He’s a playmaker. He’s a guy that you feel confident putting in at anytime if you need be.”