This Week's Schedule
Thursday, September 15
Union College at UT Martin, 6:00 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
Saturday, September 17
Southeast Missouri at Purdue, 11:00 a.m. (BTN)
Georgia State at #16 Jacksonville State, 2:30 p.m. (CSS)
#14 Chattanooga at Eastern Kentucky, 5:00 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
*Tennessee State at Murray State, 6:00 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
Austin Peay at Memphis, 6:00 p.m.
*Tennessee Tech at Eastern Illinois, 6:30 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
This Week's OVC Highlights/Storylines
No OVC team remained undefeated on the season as week No. 2 of the season saw Eastern Illinois, Jacksonville State and Tennessee State suffer its first losses of the year...Three OVC teams did win during the week as Tennessee Tech blew out Maryville College, Eastern Kentucky opened at home with a 28-24 victory over Missouri State and Murray State went on the road to shutout Mississippi Valley State 39-0...That was the first shutout for Murray State since the 2004 season and first shutout on the road since the 1996 campaign (a year the Racers won the OVC Championship)...Eastern Kentucky's Ichiro Vance recorded 19 tackles in his team's win, the second-highest output in the FCS this season (and third highest output in all of Division I when you factor in FBS schools)...Due to its lose Jacksonville State slipped to No. 16/17 in the FCS Top 25 polls this week; the Gamecocks have been ranked in the Top 25 for 33 consecutive weeks...Eastern Kentucky, Murray State, Eastern Illinois and UT Martin are the other schools receiving votes in the Top 25 polls...After three OVC teams had byes last week, all nine teams will be involved in games during week three...Included in that are two OVC matchups as Tennessee State will travel to Murray State and Tennessee Tech will play at Eastern Illinois...The week begins on Thursday when UT Martin plays its second Thursday night game of the year as they host Union College...Two OVC teams will play FBS squads as Austin Peay is at Memphis and Southeast Missouri is at Purdue...The other non-conference action includes Eastern Kentucky hosting nationally-ranked Chattanooga and Jacksonville State hosting Georgia State.
This Week's adidas® OVC Players of the Week
OFFENSIVE
Mike Harris, RB • Sr., 5-11, 200 • Tulsa, Okla. • Murray State
Harris rushed for 104 yards and two touchdowns as Murray State went on the road to top Mississippi Valley State 39-0 on Saturday. The effort marked his second 100-plus yard rushing game of the season and sixth in his 11-game career at Murray State. The senior scored on a 15-yard run in the first quarter to put his team up 9-0 and later added a 13-yard score in the third quarter which made the score 32-0. On the day Harris carried the ball 19 times and averaged 5.5 yards/carry. Harris currently ranks 14th nationally with a 110.0 rushing yards/game average.
Others Nominated: Jeremiah Williams, Eastern Kentucky; Tre Lamb, Tennessee Tech.
DEFENSIVE
Ichiro Vance, LB • So., 6-1, 234 • LaGrange, Ky. • Eastern Kentucky
Vance had a career-high 19 tackles, two tackles-for-loss and forced a fumble in Eastern Kentucky's 28-24 home-opening victory over Missouri State on Saturday. The 19 tackles (9 of which were solo) are the second-highest output in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) this season and third-highest output in all of Division I (FBS and FCS combined). They were the most tackles for an EKU player in a game since Bob Head had 21 against Eastern Illinois during the 1996 season. In the second quarter the sophomore forced a fumble at mid-field that led to the Colonels second touchdown of the game just four plays later (putting the team up 14-0). Vance currently ranks fifth nationally in tackles/game (13.00).
Others Nominated: Antonio Taylor, Eastern Illinois; Rashad Smith, Jacksonville State; Brandon Wicks, Murray State; Rico Council, Tennessee State; Travis Adkins, Tennessee Tech.
CO-SPECIALIST
Jeremy Caldwell, KR • Sr., 5-10, 180 • Chattanooga, Tenn. • Eastern Kentucky
After Missouri State had cut Eastern Kentucky's advantage from 14-0 to 14-10 in the fourth quarter, Caldwell took the ensuing kickoff and raced 88 yards for a touchdown. It marked Caldwell's third kickoff for a touchdown in his collegiate career. Overall Caldwell averaged 32.0 yards/kickoff on three attempts during the game and had 101 all-purpose yards on the night. On the season he ranks 18th nationally in kickoff returns (29.0 yards/return). The Buck Buchanan Award nominee also had a tackle and recovered a fumble that he returned 23 yards to set up an EKU score.
CO-SPECIALIST
Travis James, KR/WR • Jr., 5-11, 175 • Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. • Tennessee State
James returned four kickoffs for 111 yards (27.75 yards/return) with a long of 66 in Tennessee State's 35-29 loss to Jackson State in the Liberty Bowl on Saturday. James also caught three passes for 116 yards and a touchdown (a 54-yarder in the first quarter) to account for his 227 all-purpose yards on just seven total touches. The 227 all-purpose yards is the fifth-most in a FCS game this season.
Others Nominated: Kienan Cullen, Murray State; Caleb Mitchell, Tennessee Tech.
NEWCOMER
Jeremiah Williams, RB • Jr., 5-11, 199 • Dallas, Texas • Eastern Kentucky
Williams, a transfer from Trinity Valley Community College, ran for 119 yards and two touchdowns as Eastern Kentucky topped Missouri State 28-24 in its home opener on Saturday. Williams had 24 carries and averaged 5.0 yards/carry and also caught a pass for nine yards. The junior scored on a seven-yard run in the second quarter to extend the Colonels' advantage to 14-0 and added his second touchdown on a 12-yard run with 3:55 to play in the game to solidify the victory.
Others Nominated: Jimmy Lera, Eastern Illinois; Washaun Ealey, Jacksonville State; Sam Small, Murray State; Tra'Darius Goff, Tennessee Tech.
Notes From Around the Gridiron
OVC Teams Versus FBS Foes: In the first two weeks of the season five OVC schools have squared off in games against teams from the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS); overall OVC schools will play 10 games against FBS teams during the 2011 season. Despite going 0-5 in those games, the closest game involved Eastern Kentucky losing 10-7 at Kansas State as the Wildcats scored the go-ahead touchdown with 1:39 to play. OVC schools are 18-144-1 all-time against FBS foes. Last year the league snapped a 50-game losing streak to FBS opponents when Jacksonville State topped Ole Miss 49-48 in double overtime to begin the season. That victory was one of seven for Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) foes over FBS teams in 2010; so far two FCS teams have topped FBS teams in 2011 (Richmond beat Duke and Sacramento State beat Oregon State).
Caldwell Earns Honors From College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) For Week No. 2: Eastern Kentucky kick returner Jeremy Caldwell was named the College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) National Kick Returner of the Week for Week 2 after his performance against Missouri State. Caldwell returned a kickoff 88 yards for a touchdown to give EKU an 11-point lead. In addition to Caldwell five other OVC players earned honorable mention honors for the week. The goal of CFPA is to provide the most scientifically rigorous conferments in college football. Recipients are selected exclusively based upon objective scientific rankings of the extent to which individual players increase the overall effectiveness of their teams.
NCAA Stats Leaders: In the latest set of NCAA statistical leaders, Eastern Illinois senior Lorence Ricks is fourth nationally in all-purpose yards (198.5/game) while Southeast Missouri State's Spencer Davis is fifth (188.0/game). Tennessee Tech senior running back Dontey Gay ranks fourth in rushing yards (131.5 yards/game) while UT Martin quarterback Derek Carr is fifth in total offense (325.0 yards/game) and seventh in passing yards (325). UT Martin kicker Cody Sandlin ranks fifth nationally in field goals (3.00/game) while his teammate Taino Perez is first nationally in fumbles recovered (1.00/game). EIU senior defensive back Nick Martinez is second in interceptions (1.0/game), Eastern Kentucky sophomore Ichiro Vance is fifth nationally in tackles (13.0/game) and Tennessee State senior linebacker Rico Council is eighth in sacks (1.5/game) and third in tackles-for-loss (2.5/game). In the team rankings Tennessee Tech is eighth nationally in rushing (241.0 yards/game) while UT Martin is eighth in total offense (475.0 yards/game) and ninth in passing offense (325.0 yards/game). Murray State ranks fifth in scoring defense (10.5 points/game), Eastern Kentucky is fifth in net punting (41.14 yards/game) and Tennessee State is fourth in turnover margin (+2.50/game).
OVC Teams in Top 25: Currently only one OVC team is ranked in the two major FCS polls, as Jacksonville State comes in at No. 16 in the FCS Coaches poll and No. 17 in the Sports Network/Fathead.com poll. Four of the eight other OVC schools received votes in the polls, including Eastern Kentucky, Murray State, Eastern Illinois and UT Martin. Jacksonville State has now been ranked in the Top 25 for 33 consecutive weeks.
Spoo Tied for Fourth All-Time in OVC Wins; Will Retire After 2011 Season: With a victory over Tennessee State on Nov. 6 of last season, Eastern Illinois head coach Bob Spoo moved into a tie for fourth place on the OVC all-time career Conference victory list. Spoo has now won 67 OVC games in his tenure at EIU, which has spanned the school's entire time in the OVC (1996 through the present, although he was not on the sidelines for the 2006 season). Spoo trails only Roy Kidd (207 OVC wins at EKU), Boots Donnelly (102 wins at Austin Peay and Middle Tennessee) and Charles Murphy (73 wins at Middle Tennessee) on the all-time list and he is currently tied with Jimmy Feix (67 wins at Western Kentucky). In all games as head coach since Eastern Illinois joined the OVC in 1996, Spoo has registered 91 victories, fifth-most in league history. Following the end of the 2010 season, Spoo announced he would retire at the conclusion of the 2011 season, which will be his 25th as the Panthers head coach.
Murray State's Brockman on Walter Payton Award Watch List: Murray State junior quarterback Casey Brockman is one of 20 candidates on the 2011 Walter Payton Award Preseason Watch list, released by The Sports Network and sponsored by Fathead.com. Brockman is one of 12 quarterbacks on the initial list honoring the top offensive player in the FCS. The Walter Payton Award was established in 1987, will celebrate its 25th anniversary this season and is presented annually to the most outstanding college football player on the FCS level. When the award was established, it was the only such award to be presented to an individual player in FCS football. It has since been joined by the Buck Buchanan Award, which was established in 1995 and honors the outstanding defensive player in the FCS. The OVC has had one player previously win the Walter Payton Award, when Eastern Illinois quarterback Tony Romo took home the award in 2002 after passing for 2,950 yards and 33 touchdowns while leading the Panthers to a playoff berth. The Payton Award Watch List will undergo revision during the 2011 season. Ballots will be sent to a panel of about 200 sports information and media relations directors, broadcasters, writers and other dignitaries after the regular season on Nov. 21. Three finalists will be announced on Dec. 1 and invited to The Sports Network/Fathead FCS Awards Presentation.
EKU's Caldwell on Buck Buchanan Award Watch List: Eastern Kentucky senior cornerback Jeremy Caldwell is one of 20 candidates on the 2011 Buck Buchanan Award Preseason Watch List released by The Sports Network and sponsored by Fathead.com. Caldwell is one of six senior defensive backs named to the list (five or which are cornerbacks). The Buchanan Award is in its 17th season and will be presented to the FCS' outstanding defensive player at the national awards banquet Thursday night, Jan. 5 in Frisco, Texas. The OVC has never had a player win the Buchanan Award. The Buchanan Award Watch List will undergo revision during the 2011 season. Ballots will be sent to a panel of about 200 sports information and media relations directors, broadcasters, writers and other dignitaries after the regular season on Nov. 21. The Buck Buchanan award is named for Junious "Buck" Buchanan, the NAIA All-American and Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive lineman who played for Grambling State University from 1959 through 1962. As a freshman, Buchanan came to Grambling on an "if" scholarship, to receive financial help if he played well. After a season of playing both varsity basketball and football, Buchanan decided to concentrate solely on football. By the time he finished four years at Grambling, his coach, Eddie Robinson, asserted that Buchanan was "... the finest tackle I have ever seen."
Sgt. York Trophy Enters Fifth Season in 2011: The Sgt. York Trophy is a challenge trophy which goes to the annual winner of the quadrangular season series between the four OVC institutions in the state of Tennessee (Austin Peay, Tennessee State and Tennessee Tech and UT Martin). In July 2007, the Nashville Sports Council and the Ohio Valley Conference announced the creation of the trophy, which is only the second traveling trophy involving more than two schools nationwide (the other is the Commander in Chief's Trophy). It is named after Sgt. Alvin C. York, a native of Pall Mall, Tenn. and a Soldier who was one of the most honored of World War I. He received the Congressional Medal of Honor after the war and returned to his home state to dedicate his life to improving education and facilitating educational opportunities for children in the state of Tennessee. The trophy goes to the team with the best record against the other schools, and in case of a tie there will be co-champions and the actual trophy will go to the institution that has gone the most seasons without winning the trophy. In 2007 Tennessee State and Austin Peay finished in a tie for the trophy with identical 2-1 records; both shared the award but Tennessee State went home with the hardware due to a 1-point win in the head-to-head meeting during the season. Tennessee State went 3-0 in Sgt. York play in 2008 to claim its second trophy. In 2009 Tennessee Tech claimed the trophy after going undefeated in Sgt. York games and a year ago UT Martin became the third-straight OVC team to go 3-0 and win the trophy in claiming its first title.
EKU's McClellan Earns National All-Star Honor from College Sporting News (Sept. 5): Eastern Kentucky senior Patrick McClellan earned National Defensive All-Star (National Player of the Week) honors from the College Sporting News on Sept. 5 for his performance in EKU's near upset of FBS foe Kansas State. He was part of a defensive unit that forced five Kansas State turnovers and held them to their lowest point total in more than a year as EKU lost 10-7 in the final two minutes of the game. The senior forced two fumbles and recovered one in the third quarter that he returned 18 yards to the 1-yard line which set up EKU's lone touchdown of the night (and the first score of the game by either team). McClellan also had seven tackles (six solo) and 1.5 tackles-for-loss.
Sandlin Earns Honors From College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) For Week No. 1: UT Martin kicker Cody Sandlin was named the College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) National Placekicker of the Week for Week 1 after his performance against nationally-ranked Jacksonville State. Sandlin connected on field goals of 43, 25 and 45 yards in the Skyhawks 24-23 at No. 9 JSU. Sandlin was also a perfect 2-for-2 on extra points and accounted for 11 total points. In addition to Sandlin seven other OVC players earned honorable mention honors for the week. The goal of CFPA is to provide the most scientifically rigorous conferments in college football. Recipients are selected exclusively based upon objective scientific rankings of the extent to which individual players increase the overall effectiveness of their teams.
A Look at the Coaches: All nine head coaches from last season return to their schools in the Ohio Valley Conference this season. The Dean of OVC Coaches is Eastern Illinois coach Bob Spoo who is in his 25th and final season with the Panthers in 2011. Jacksonville State's Jack Crowe is the second longest tenured coach in the league (in his 12th season at JSU) while Murray State's Chris Hatcher and Tennessee State's Rod Reed have been at their schools the fewest years, as each are in their second seasons.
FCS Playoff Information: For the first second time this season the NCAA Division I playoff field features 20 teams (the field was upped from 16 prior to the 2010 season, which was the first expansion since the field grew from 12 to 16 teams in 1997). The field will include 10 automatic bid teams and 10 at-large selections. The eight lowest-rated teams will play in the first round, while the 12-highest rated teams will receive a bye into the second round. For the second-straight year the championship game will be played in Frisco, Texas at Pizza Hut Park, a 23,500-seat multi-purpose stadium. The Southland Conference will serve as the host of the championship, which will be held on Saturday, Jan. 7.
Preseason Forecasts: For the third time in the past four seasons Jacksonville State University was picked the favorite in the Ohio Valley Conference football race. The Gamecocks picked up 13 of the 18 first-place votes in the 2011 poll which is a vote of league head coaches and sports information directors. Jacksonville State was one of three schools to receive at least one first-place vote in the poll and the Gamecocks received 123 total points, which was 17 points ahead of second-place Murray State. The Racers received four first-place votes and were tabbed second in the poll (106). Eastern Kentucky (93) was picked third and defending champion Southeast Missouri (81) was picked fourth and received the remaining first-place vote. The poll is rounded out by Tennessee Tech (73), UT Martin (64), Eastern Illinois (57), Tennessee State (33) and Austin Peay (18). Is being picked first in the preseason poll necessarily a good thing? In the past 33 years of preseason polls (all that were available), the preseason predicted champion has only gone on to win the OVC Championship 12 times (36.4%). Over the past eight years not once has the eventual champion been predicted in the preseason poll (it was last done correctly in 2002).
Murray State's Brockman, Jacksonville State's Lewis and Tennessee State's Council Headline Preseason All-OVC Team: Murray State junior quarterback Casey Brockman was named 2011 Ohio Valley Conference Preseason Offensive Player of the Year while Jacksonville State senior defensive lineman Monte Lewis and Tennessee State senior linebacker Rico Council were tabbed OVC Preseason Co-Defensive Players of the Year in a vote on by the league's head football coaches and sports information directors. Eastern Kentucky led the way with seven selections on the preseason team while Jacksonville State and Murray State had five players apiece on the squad. Each of the league's nine teams had at least one player on the preseason squad. Returning players who were first-team All-OVC selections last season (nine in total) were automatic selections to the preseason team this year. The squad also included 10 players who were second-team selections in 2010. Of the 31 total selections, 21 were seniors, seven were juniors and three were sophomores.
NFL Connections: As of the start of the 2011 season, 13 former Ohio Valley Conference players are on NFL rosters (11 active players, 2 practice squad members). Those players include former Eastern Illinois standout Tony Romo, a three-time Pro Bowl pick, Cortland Finnegan (Samford), who has been a Pro Bowl defensive back selection with the Tennessee Titans and Tennessee State's Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, who was a starter for the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, has been a Pro Bowl selection and is now in his first season with the Philadelphia Eagles. Seven of the nine current OVC football schools have at least one player in the NFL with Eastern Kentucky leading the way with three active players. Several NFL coaches also have connections to OVC schools, including two who went to Eastern Illinois, the "Cradle of NFL Head Coaches." Those coaches include Super Bowl champion Sean Payton (New Orleans) and Mike Shanahan (Washington). UT Martin graduate and former assistant coach Jerry Reese made waves in 2007 when he led the New York Giants to Super Bowl XLII in his first season as General Manager with the franchise.
I-AA No More: Although some people may accidentally still refer to it as I-AA football, the term that represents the level of Division I football in which the Ohio Valley Conference competes has been retired. Beginning with the 2006 National Championship game, the term Football Championship Subdivision (or FCS) is to be used. FCS is the only Division I football rank to host a NCAA-sponsored national championship (one of 89 championships the NCAA sponsors). The division formerly known as I-A was changed to Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and those teams compete for the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) national championship. Teams who play at the FCS level can offer a maximum of 63 scholarships (FBS teams can offer 85) and compete in a 20-team playoff at the end of the season to determine the national champion.
OVCSports.TV: For the sixth consecutive year, fans can watch every Conference matchup and all non-conference home contests at OVCSports.TV. The venture with NeuLion (formerly JumpTV Sports) allows fans to access live and on-demand streaming video and audio of all conference matchups on their home computer. The premium Web site was launched in July 2006 and streamed over a thousand events in its first five seasons, including all Conference matchups in football and men's and women's basketball as well as select baseball, soccer, softball and volleyball games and OVC Championship events. Packages are available on a yearly, seasonally, monthly or per-event basis.