Photo courtesy Life University Athletics / K.M. Klemencic •
Within the Division I fall college rankings, the big question was what to do with Life. The Running Eagles played Notre Dame College and Penn State over the course of three days, lost to the former and tied the latter. Head coach Ros Chou talked about the tour and confessed:
The Notre Dame College match really demonstrated our lack of preparation for a worthy opponent. Across the board, the coaches and the players seemed to look past the Thursday afternoon match, and a great team like NDC will make you pay for it. It was a great wake-up call for the whole team to treat every single game as if it is a championship match. What we coaches said to the team is that there are great lessons to be learned from losses, and that what is most important is how a team bounces back and learns from their mistakes.
The loss galvanized Life, and the result was felt in the tie against DI Elite champion Penn State. No collegiate team has come that close to the Nittany Lions in some time, and we’re hoping for another showdown later in the season. That said, Notre Dame College’s achievement cannot be overlooked (the Falcons went on to beat Army 15-8 two days after playing Life) on the rankings.
As for the rest of the top 10: Penn State added wins against Ohio State and Rutgers to remain undefeated in the Big 10; Central Washington’s second annual East Coast tour produced big wins against NIRA’s Norwich and AIC; Quinnipiac is 5-0 against varsity sides after a 70-point win over Brown; BYU played a competitive match against Air Force, which advance a spot; Dartmouth holds steady at number nine after escaping Harvard by three points, while the Crimson followed with a 53-point win over Princeton.
In the second half of the rankings, UConn banked its third win of the season and slipped past winless Norwich, which added a friendly against the Australian Defence Force to its schedule. Notre Dame got its fourth win in the Big 10, while Indiana has struggled against the weather in playing league matches. The game to watch, of course, is the Notre Dame vs. Indiana rematch. Minnesota is out in front of the Midwest, winning its fourth-straight against Northern Illinois 78-7. An important match will come down to Northern Iowa on Oct. 22. Finally, New Mexico skirted by Colorado State with a 26-24 victory, and all eyes will be on the Air Force game on Oct. 16.
One more note on records: Since no information has been released regarding the DI Elite competition this season, we’re operating as if it isn’t occurring – for record purposes only. So, for example, Penn State’s record reflects Big 10 results, and important friendlies are mentioned in the notes.
DI COLLEGE FALL TOP 20
Rank (Previous Rank) Team (League record). Notes
blue-highlighted text links to match report
1 (1) Penn State (4-0). Also defeated Army 24-7, tied Life 10-10 in friendlies (f)
2 (2) Central Washington (3-0). Defeated Norwich 85-18, AIC 57-29
3 (3) Quinnipiac (5-0). Defeated Brown 77-7
4 (4) Lindenwood (2-0). Defeated Stars 96-15 (record reflects first XV matches only)
5 (8) Notre Dame College (2-1). Defeated Army 15-8, Life 15-7 (f), Kent State 81-0 (f)
6 (6) Life (1-1-1). Lost 15-7 to Notre Dame College, tied Penn State 10-10, defeated UNC 129-0
7 (5) BYU (2-0). Defeated Air Force 38-12
8 (7) Army (2-3). Lost 17-8 to Notre Dame College, 24-7 in PSU (f)
9 (9) Dartmouth (4-1). Defeated Harvard 22-19
10 (11) Harvard (2-1). Lost 22-19 to Dartmouth, defeated Princeton 58-5
11 (10) AIC (2-4). Lost 57-26 to Central Washington, defeated West Chester 56-10
12 (13) UConn (3-0). Defeated Northeastern 43-0
13 (12) Norwich (0-4). Lost 85-18 to Central Washington, 60-5 to AUS Defence Force (f)
14 (15) Air Force (2-0). Lost 38-12 to BYU (f)
15 (14) Brown (0-3). Lost 77-7 to Quinnipiac
16 (16) Notre Dame (4-0). Defeated Purdue 44-5
17 (17) Princeton (1-1). Lost 58-5 to Harvard
18 (18) Indiana (0-1). Idle
19 (19) Minnesota (4-0). Defeated Northern Illinois 78-7
20 (20) New Mexico (1-1). Defeated Colorado State 26-24
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