Week 5 “Other” Conferences Game Breakdowns
This probably will be the most exciting week in the FCS so far, although in this section, it was scarce in games to choose from out of just the lower conferences without bumping into bigger conference opponents. The Southland has big games with Sam Houston hosting Eastern Washington and McNeese against Northern Iowa, but there are still great games that don’t feature any of the usual big boys. Last week’s predictions went a perfect 5-0 for the first time this year, making the season total 15-6. Here’s a look at another five entertaining games for week five.
Cornell (1-0) vs Yale (1-0), Saturday, 12:00 ET
The Ivy League schools kicked off their seasons last week and now we’re kicking off this week’s breakdown with two games that put a couple of early undefeated team against each other. Cornell beat Bucknell 45-13 last week and hopes a 4-6 season from last year is behind them as they look toward the Bulldogs who were, in fact, one of the few victories the Big Red claimed last year. Yale probably remembers that 45-6 loss from a year ago very well, but it was at Cornell and now the Bulldogs are the home team and with a win would already match their win total from a year ago.
Projected Score: Cornell 24 – Yale 28
Brown (1-0) vs Harvard (1-0), Saturday, 7:30 ET
Get the studying done early because there won’t be time after the later start for the next Ivy League matchup. Brown enters having knocked off Georgetown by 38 last week. The Bears return a pretty solid team, but as was the case last year, Harvard will be the challenge between Brown and an Ivy League title. Harvard opened with five consecutive wins in last season’s 8-2 campaign and the Crimson look like a team that can have that kind of run again. It’ll be a close game that could go either way, but I see a late kick being the difference.
Projected Score: Harvard 24 - Brown 21
#17 Fordham (4-0) vs St. Francis (1-2), Saturday, 12:00 ET
Maybe on paper it won’t look like the most exciting game, but the storylines highlight this game as the Fordham Rams out of the Patriot League look to go 5-0. And this isn’t the average undefeated run by a lower conference team. Fordham has proven they’re for real with back-to-back wins over CAA opponents and an upset of FBS Temple, and then last week they easily handled Columbia. However, don’t make any mark in the win column just yet because St. Francis may enter a little underrated. The Red Flash, aside from having one of the coolest nicknames, are not exactly what their records shows with the two losses coming to FCS powers Georgia Southern and then a four point loss to James Madison. So get ready for the exciting show Saturday across the FCS and it may start early with this game.
Projected Score: Fordham 21 – St. Francis 17
#10 Coastal Carolina (4-0) vs Elon (1-3), Saturday, 1:30 ET
Similar to the Fordham game, this may not end the closest on the scoreboard but you can’t overlook what the Chanticleers from Coastal Carolina are doing as they are blazing through their early schedule. The biggest opponent faced so far was Eastern Kentucky in which CCU pulled away late to win by 20. Still, Elon is used to playing against tough teams and being the underdogs, and with Coastal on the road, there’s no guarantee they will play at their best, so a close finish could be in order.
Projected Score: Coastal Carolina 45 – Elon 20
Eastern Kentucky (2-2) vs #9 Eastern Illinois (3-1), Saturday, 2:30 ET
I’ve been slow to give EIU the credit they may deserve and have felt for a while that EKU was still the team to worry about in the OVC. But after watching Eastern Illinois roll over opponent after opponent and then nearly upsetting a good FBS team in Northern Illinois, I have to say the Panthers may be the new favorite. Plus EKU has not looked early on like the team expected either, and the loss to Coastal Carolina, while against a good team, still showed EKU is not as strong as they’ve been in the past. Look for EIU QB Jimmy Garappolo to pass former Panther’s QB Tony Romo and set the all-time mark for TD passes in OVC history. The winner of this game controls the OVC and the path to the title and ultimately the playoffs if they can then just handle the next tier of teams in UT-Martin, Jacksonville State, and Tennessee State.
Projected Score: Eastern Illinois 34 – Eastern Kentucky 21
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