The majority of teams won as they should have but a pair of outcomes saw a couple of moves in the fourth iteration of the Division II Fall College Rankings. There were two particularly notable results last weekend: Marist’s 24-7 loss to Vassar, and New Hampshire’s 29-19 win over Vermont.
Traditionally, some Tri-State opponents can hang with Vassar in the first half, but the second half sees the reigning DII College Fall Championship titleholder pull away. Marist, however, did a good job pressuring the Brewers and only trailed 12-7 during the second half. Vassar did run in another two tries to finish the game, but the Foxes are rewarded in the rankings for the relatively close loss. Thus, the previously 5th-9th ranked teams shifted one spot lower.
The rankings did take note of Bloomsbury’s 11-point loss to DI Princeton, as well as Fairfield’s shutout victory and Bryant’s massive win over Saint Michael’s.
2018 fall runner-up Winona State showed its cards last weekend when it beat DI Minnesota 22-10 last weekend. Typically, the field assumes that the Black Katts are good as they cruise through the DII Northern Lights, but the DI win confirms that suspicion early on. More to come.
All of the other teams won the games they should have won, except Vermont, which dropped a 29-19 contest to Hartford on the road. The Connecticut team replaced Vermont on the rankings, and will face New Hampshire this weekend. New Hampshire dropped a 40-14 match to Coast Guard earlier in the season and remains on the watch list.
The rankings are also watching the RIT vs. St. Bonaventure match this Saturday. The Bonnies lead Upstate New York’s DII-NSCRO West, and this regular season-ending match should lend some perspective on RIT.
