Welcome to the FCS Football Talk podcast.
On this episode, Sam Herder and Zach McKinnell discuss:
-The FCS Playoff Committee’s Top 10 rankings
-Week 9 Three Game Balls and A Flag
-Takeaways from South Dakota State’s victory over South Dakota
-Week 10’s most intriguing games
You can also find the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart, and Spreaker.
SUBSCRIBE: FCS Football Talk
3 Game Balls and a Flag
Each week of the 2024 FCS football season, the FCS Football Talk podcast will award three game balls and a flag from the previous weekend’s action.
The game balls are awarded to three standout teams or individual players, while the flag is thrown after a disappointing performance or questionable coaching decision.
Below are the three game balls and a flag from Week 9.
Zach’s 3 Game Balls And A Flag
- Game Ball: Mercer
- No. 14 Mercer defeated No. 24 Western Carolina 44-34, the third win over a ranked opponent for the Bears
- The Bears trailed 24-7 late in the second quarter but scored 27 unanswered points to spark the comeback victory
- Mercer’s offense posted over 300 rushing yards and averaged over 7.5 yards per carry
- Running back Dwayne McGee led the attack with 223 rushing yards and two touchdowns
- Quarterback Whitt Newbauer made his first career start, completing 10-of-21 attempts for 234 passing yards and two total touchdowns
- Despite allowing 24 points in the first half, Mercer’s defense held the Catamounts scoreless on six of their final eight drives
- Brayden Manley: 9 total tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks
- Game Ball: Stony Brook
- Stony Brook defeated No. 16 William & Mary 35-13, earning the first win over a ranked opponent since 2021
- Running back Roland Dempster led the Seawolves with 144 rushing yards and two touchdowns
- Behind Dempster, the Seawolves recorded over 220 rushing yards and two touchdowns, averaging almost 5.0 yards per carry
- Tyler Knoop: 15-of-26 for 240 passing yards and two passing touchdowns
- The Seawolves held William & Mary to 3.4 yards per carry and forced four turnovers
- After finishing last season 0-10, Stony Brook improved to 6-2 (3-1 CAA) and is positioned to earn an at-large bid for the FCS Playoffs
- Game Ball: North Carolina Central
- No. 20 North Carolina Central defeated Morgan State in a crucial MEAC matchup
- The Eagles held the Bears to 204 total yards and 3.3 yards per play
- Thomas Johnson: 6 total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and 3 sacks
- Linebacker Jaki Brevard led the Eagles with 12 total tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss
- Running back J’Mari Taylor exploded 196 rushing yards and 1 touchdown while averaging over 7.5 yards per carry
- The Eagles move to 6-2 (2-0 MEAC) with a chance to remain the only undefeated team in the conference on Thursday night against South Carolina State
- Flag: North Dakota
- No. 7 North Dakota suffered an upset loss to Youngstown State
- The Hawks fall to 5-3 (2-2 MVFC) and will need to win at least three of their four remaining games to secure an at-large bid to the FCS Playoffs
- North Dakota’s defense allowed over 400 yards of total offense, including 334 yards on the ground
- Youngstown State’s two turnovers helped keep the Hawks in the game, leading to 14 points
- Simon Romfo: 19-of-24 for 212 passing yards and three passing touchdowns
- Bo Belquist: 10 receptions for 105 receiving yards and two touchdowns
Sam’s 3 Game Balls And A Flag
- Game Ball: Idaho QB Jack Layne
- Returned to the starting lineup for the first time since he broke his collarbone in Week 1
- Idaho beat EWU 38-28, and Layne finished 17/28 for 235 yards and two touchdowns, which opened up the running game for 252 yards and three scores
- Idaho improves to 6-3 overall with two FCS losses, an FBS win, three then-ranked wins, and one currently-ranked win
- Last 3 games: at Portland State, vs. Weber State, at Idaho State
- The Vandals will have an argument for a first-round bye if they win out
- Game Ball: SDSU QB Mark Gronowski
- Gronowski had arguably his best game this season
- No. 3 SDSU defeated No. 4 20-17 in OT
- Gronowski went 20/27 for 163 yards, plus 54 rushing yards and a touchdown
- He played better than his numbers indicate, making some impressive throws downfield while SDSU also had a few drops
- SDSU’s offense still isn’t fully clicking, but the downfield passing attack looked improved
- Game Ball: Chattanooga
- Chattanooga has won 5 straight and is now 5-3
- Two losses were against FBS teams, including a one-score loss to Georgie State. The third loss is to ranked Mercer by one score
- The Mocs have one ranked win over ETSU
- They have won their last three games 41-10, 37-5, and 31-10
- Flag: William & Mary
- W&M lost to Stony Brook 35-13 to drop to 5-3 overall and 5-2 vs. the FCS with no ranked wins
- The next three games: at NC A&T, vs. Elon, and vs. Bryant
- The regular-season finale is at rival Richmond, who is currently No. 16
- Might need to win out to make the playoffs at 9-3
- Winning the next three but losing to Richmond results in an 8-4 record with no ranked wins
