For the first time ever, the Big South conference went undefeated, leaving them 7-0 this week.

Three teams got their first win of the season.
Two teams remain undefeated.
One team got a win over a ranked opponent.

I really struggled this week with the placement of Liberty and Coastal. In considering LU’s victory over #7 Montana, I was very tempted to have them jump Coastal. But CCU was saved by Furman’s upset over FBS opponent UCF. The Chanticleers beat Furman by 3 points in week 1.

Here are the updated power rankings for week 3:
Note last week’s ranking in (parenthesis).

  1. (1) Coastal Carolina 3-0, 0-0 *Nationally ranked #1*

It was a close one down in Conway as Western Illinois kept the Chanticleers on their heels until the last drive of the game. The Leathernecks took the lead four times before Coastal capped off the final score of 34-27. De’Angelo Henderson had another strong performance as he rushed for 165 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Should be noted that the defense gave up over 500 yards of total offense for the 2nd time this season.

Next up: Vs. Bryant, 6:00pm

  1. (2) Liberty 2-1, 0-0 *Nationally ranked #10*

Williams Stadium saw it’s first ever top 15 match up on Saturday night as #7 Montana traveled to Lynchburg. Liberty managed to get the upset and sent the Griz home with their 2nd loss of the season. Not only did the offense gave a glimpse of the power is possesses, the defense made it known what they are capable of. A Montana offense that has averaged over 500 yards per game barely got 300 thanks to a dominate rush defense.

Next up: @ Southern Illinois, 7:00pm

  1. (3) Charleston Southern 2-1, 0-0

CSU had a struggling ETSU team visit Charleston and they took full advantage. The defense held the recently revived Tennessee team in check as they scored only one touchdown on the night. The offense had 40 points on the board before ETSU joined them in the 4th quarter.
No surprise CSU got the W here.

Next up: @ The Citadel, 6:00pm

  1. (4) Presbyterian 1-2, 0-0

The Blue Hose got their first win of the season against DI opponent Campbell over the weekend. While the Fighting Camels got off to an early lead, Presbyterian gained control at the start of the 2nd quarter and coasted to victory. Campbell’s offense was 1 of 12 on third downs and had trouble holding on to the ball. Presbyterian managed to force three turnovers.

Next up: Vs. Chattanooga, 7:00pm

  1. (5) Gardner-Webb 1-2, 0-0

It was all defense for Gardner-Webb on Saturday as they gained just 138 yards of total offense in their win over DII school Virginia Union. Only 26 yards of that came through the air. While the Panthers gathered 309 yards of total offense, the Bulldogs managed to collect 4 turnovers and keep them out of the endzone for the majority of the game. Gardner-Webb may have came away with the win, but this one was way too close for comfort as VU mounted a comeback in the 4th quarter. They were 4 yards short of taking the lead with 1:54 left to play. G-Webb won it 9-13.

Next up: @ Wofford, 7:00pm

  1. (6) Monmouth 1-2, 0-0

Monmouth had little trouble handling Wagner this past week. Their offense managed to collect 465 yards of total offense, the most of their season. On the other side of the ball, their defense was able to force 4 turnovers.

Next up: @ Fordham, 1:00pm

  1. (7) Kennesaw State 3-0, 0-0

The Owls had their hands full on Saturday as they took on DII opponent Shorter. The Hawks had the lead from the 2nd quarter until the clock showed 1:39 in the 4th when a field goal lifted Kennesaw over Shorter. Though they are undefeated, the Owls have faced a pair of DII schools and a poor ETSU team. Their biggest test yet comes this week.

Next up: @ Dayton, 6:00pm