All times MDT
No. 11 Wofford (8-3) at No. 2 Montana (11-0)
(KGVO AM 1290)
Kickoff: 12:05 p.m.
Venue: Washington-Grizzly Stadium (23,187), Missoula, Mont.
Forecast: Cloudy, highs in the lower to mid 30s.
The teams: Montana enters the playoffs with an 11-0 record, the program’s first undefeated regular season since 1996. The Griz have won 21 straight regular-season games, and 23 of their last 24. Montana won the Big Sky Conference automatic bid to the playoffs with an 8-0 conference record. Montana is making its 15th straight playoff appearance, an FCS record. UM is in the playoff field for the 18th time, tying Eastern Kentucky for the most in history. Wofford brings an 8-3 record into the playoffs. The Terriers shared the Southern Conference regular-season title with Appalachian State, but earned the league’s automatic bid to the playoffs because of a 42-31 win over the Mountaineers. Wofford lost to FBS North Carolina State (38-17), Elon (24-13) and Georgia Southern (38-35).
The matchup: Montana leads the Big Sky in scoring defense, rushing defense, and total defense. ... The Grizzlies finished second in the Big Sky in scoring offense, rushing offense, and total offense. ... Montana running back Lex Hilliard finished the regular season with 1,013 yards and 15 touchdowns. ... Wofford averages 318 rushing yards per game and 124.4 passing yards per game. ... Wofford’s Kevious Johnson finished the regular season with 1,029 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns. ... Wofford had 41 rushing touchdowns this season. ... Montana’s defense allowed just nine rushing touchdowns all season. ... Wofford’s Seth Goldwire led the Terriers with 90 tackles. ... Montana defensive end Kroy Biermann is a leading candidate for the Buck Buchanan Award. He finished the regular season with 15 sacks, 16½ tackles for loss and five forced fumbles. ... Wofford led the Southern Conference in scoring defense, and was third overall in total defense. ... Wofford was third in the league in scoring offense, and second in rushing offense.
No. 14 E. Washington (8-3) at No. 3 McNeese State (11-0)
Kickoff: 6:05 p.m.
Venue: Cowboy Stadium (17,410) Lake Charles, La.
Forecast: Cloudy with showers and thunderstorms likely. Highs in the mid 50s.
The teams: Eastern Washington earned one of the eight at-large bids to the playoffs. The Eagles closed the regular season by winning their final four games and five of their last six. EWU lost to Portland State (28-21), Montana (24-23) and FBS Brigham Young (42-7). The Eagles are making their third playoff appearance in the last four seasons, and their sixth overall appearance. McNeese State won the Southland Conference regular season title with a 7-0 mark. The team opened the season with a 35-12 win over Portland State of the Big Sky. The season also included a 38-17 win over BSC Louisiana-Lafayette.
The matchup: Eastern Washington sophomore quarterback Matt Nichols finished the regular season with a 62.7 completion percentage. He threw for 3,125 yards with 30 touchdowns and six interceptions. He averages 312.5 yards of total offense per game. ... Eagles wideout Aaron Boyce led the Big Sky with 1,230 receiving yards. He had 75 catches and nine touchdown catches. ... McNeese State quarterback Derrick Fourroux threw for 1,878 yards with 16 touchdowns and just five interceptions. ... McNeese State defensive end Bryan Smith has 10½ sacks and 22½ tackles for loss this season. He is a candidate for the Buck Buchanan Award. ... McNeese State led the Southland in scoring offense and scoring defense.
No. 12 James Madison (8-3) at No. 5 Appalachian St. (9-2)
Kickoff: 10 a.m.
Venue: Kidd Brewer Stadium (16,650), Boone, N.C.
Forecast: Partly sunny. Highs in the lower 40s.
The teams: Two-time defending national champion Appalachian State is not one of the four seeded teams in the 16-team field, despite winning its third-consecutive Southern Conference championship and looking to become the first team to ever claim three straight national titles. James Madison finished second in the Colonial Athletic Association’s South Division, a game behind Richmond. Between them, the Mountaineers and Dukes have won the last three national titles (JMU in 2004, ASU in ’05 and ’06). ASU and JMU are quite familiar with each other, as the two schools - separated by just 268 miles - have met on the gridiron 14 times, most recently in 2006 when Appalachian came away with a 21-10 triumph in Boone.
The matchup: JMU quarterback Rodney Landers is averaging a double-triple in the way of yards this season. The Virginia Beach, Va., native carries a 141.3 passing yards-per-game average and a 104 rushing yards-per-game average. ... The Dukes will be looking to run the ball in bunches as the Mountaineers rank 89th in the country in run defense, allowing close 200 yards a game on the ground. ... Mountaineers safety Corey Lynch, a frontrunner in the race for the Buck Buchanan Award, was defensive player of the year in the Southern Conference with four interceptions. The senior two-time All-American became a household name nationally when he blocked Michigan’s game-winning field-goal attempt as time expired to seal Appalachian’s 34-32 victory in the season opener. ... Appy State quarterback Armanti Edwards leads an offense that ranks among the nation’s top 10 in scoring (42.8 ppg. - second), total offense (481.2 ypg. - third), rushing (273.3 ypg. - fourth) and pass efficiency (152.46 - 10th).
Weber State receiver Bryant Eteuati, right, is dragged down by Eastern Washington's Jared Kuhl on Nov. 17 in Cheney, Wash.
Photo by JESSE TINSLEY/Associated Press
No. 17 New Hampshire (7-4) at No. 1 Northern Iowa (11-0)
Kickoff: 5:35 p.m.
Venue: UNI-Dome (16,324), Cedar Falls, Iowa.
The teams: Northern Iowa holds the nation’s longest win streak at 12 games in a row. Northern Iowa’s 6-0 mark in Gateway Conference play marked the ninth time in league history a team went undefeated against conference competition. It was the fifth time UNI has completed Gateway play with an unblemished record. UNH is the only team in Colonial Athletic Association history to advance to the quarterfinals three consecutive years (2004-2006) and is now in the playoffs for the fourth straight year. The Wildcats have lost two of their last three games. They dropped a 27-7 decision to UMass two weeks ago.
The matchup: Northern Iowa ranks first in the nation in scoring defense (13.18 points/game). UNI opponents have scored 145 points through 11 games this season. ... Panthers junior running back Corey Lewis has rushed for 2,319 yards in 35 career games. Lewis has also scored 23 rushing touchdowns in his UNI career. UNI senior quarterback Eric Sanders has passed for 8,407 yards and 68 touchdowns in 44 career games. ... Sanders ranks first among active FCS players on the all-time completion percentage chart (69.43 percent). ... New Hampshire senior quarterback Ricky Santos became the Colonial Athletic Association’s all-time TD passing leader on Sept. 8 after throwing for a pair of TDs against James Madison. The previous mark was 99 set by Villanova’s Chris Boden. Santos now has 121 passing TDs heading into the game at Northern Iowa, which places him third on the NCAA FCS all-time list.
No. 9 Eastern Kentucky (9-2) at No. 6 Richmond (9-2)
Kickoff: 4 p.m.
Venue: University of Richmond Stadium (21,319), Richmond, Va.
Forecast: Mostly sunny. Highs in the upper 40s.
The teams: Winners of six consecutive games, Colonial Athletic Association champion Richmond heads into the first round against Ohio Valley champion Eastern Kentucky. The Spiders are making their eighth all-time appearance in the playoffs, and second in three years under head coach Dave Clawson. The Colonels had an undefeated conference record (8-0), winning all but one of their conference games by double figures. The Colonels finished the regular season averaging 33.5 points per game while allowing just 23.2 points per game. Both marks rank first in the OVC.
The matchup: Richmond senior Tim Hightower, a Walter Payton Award candidate, is the nation’s sixth-leading rusher this season, averaging 141.9 yards per game. He has scored 20 touchdowns in 2007 (17 rushing) and owns eight single-season or career Richmond records. ... The well-balanced Spiders average 36.5 points per game. ... Eastern Kentucky junior quarterback Allan Holland was named Ohio Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Year, senior defensive back Derrick Huff earned OVC Defensive Player of the Year honors and Danny Hope was named the OVC Roy Kidd Coach of the Year. ... Holland, a native of Hazard, Ky., stepped into the starting quarterback position in the second game of the year and guided the Colonels to their first playoff appearance in 10 years. The junior has averaged 178.4 passing yards per game, third most in the league. Huff, has nine interceptions on the year, tied for most in the nation.
No. 18 Eastern Illinois (8-3) at No. 4 Southern Illinois (10-1)
Kickoff: 12:30
Venue: McAndrew Stadium (17,324), Carbondale, Ill.
Forecast: Partly sunny. Highs in the mid 40s.
The teams: Both SIU and Eastern Illinois ended the regular season on winning streaks of four or more games before securing at-large berths. The Salukis have won four straight games and the Panthers five in a row. With its win at Hampton last week, SIU posted 10 wins in a season for the third time under head coach Jerry Kill. Kill is 1-1 against the Panthers. This year marks the second time in three years that SIU and EIU hook up in the first round of the playoffs. The Salukis beat the Panthers, 21-6, in Charleston during the 2005 campaign.
The matchup: SIU is fourth in the nation in scoring offense. The Salukis have ranked among the nation’s top five scoring offenses for nine of 11 weeks this season. The Salukis are averaging 40.8 points per game. ... SIU is also among the top 10 teams in the country in total offense (6th, 457.09 ypg.) and passing efficiency (4th, 169.49 rating). ... SIU left-handed quarterback Nick Hill has completed 209 of 283 passes (73.9 pct.) for 2,619 yards and 23 touchdowns in 11 starts. He has thrown for 200 or more yards in all but four of his starts. ... The Panthers sport the best rushing defense in the Ohio Valley Conference, giving up 144.3 yards per game. ... On offense for EIU, running back Adeniji Ademola and wideout Micah Rucker earned first-team all-OVC honors. ... The Panthers are balanced on offense, averaging roughly 200 yards passing and rushing per game.
No. 25 Fordham (8-3) at No. 7 UMass (9-2)
TV: ESPNU Kickoff: 10 a.m.
Venue: McGuirk Alumni Stadium (17,000), Amherst, Mass.
Forecast: Mostly sunny, highs in the upper 30s.
The teams: UMass was awarded the Colonial Athletic Association’s automatic qualifier after it won a coin toss held last Saturday when the Minutemen finished tied with Richmond after three tie-breakers and the conference athletic directors determined the teams were indistinguishable. Fordham clinched the Patriot League title with a 24-21 win over Holy Cross two weeks ago. The Minutemen captured their 22nd conference title with this year’s crown, the first awarded by the CAA.
The matchup: UMass junior quarterback and Walter Payton Award Finalist Liam Coen has emerged as one of the top signal callers in the nation. He became UMass’ career passing leader with 191 yards vs. New Hampshire (11/10). He now has 7,442 entering the Fordham game. He tossed four scoring strikes at Hofstra (11/17) to give him 59 in his career. ... UMass has given up just 16.36 points per game, which ranks 11th nationally. ... The Fordham offense is led by sophomore quarterback John Skelton along with the one-two running back combination of senior Jonte Coven and freshman Xavier Martin. On the year, Skelton has completed 191 of 337 passes for 2,369 yards and 19 touchdowns. Coven has gained 926 yards on 183 carries with five touchdowns for the Rams while Martin had an impressive freshman campaign, rushing 122 times for 612 yards and eight scores. He was named Patriot League Rookie of the Week three times in 2007.
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