LIONS 10TH IN DII POLL, FACE WEST ALABAMA
SATURDAY
FLORENCE
-- The University of North Alabama will
enter its final regular-season contest
ranked tenth nationally in the NCAA Division
II after moving up one spot in the latest
American Football Coaches Association
Division II poll.
UNA, now 8-1
overall, was ranked 11th last week and has
now been ranked no lower than 11th in the
last 27 straight DII polls.
North Alabama
will face its oldest rival, West Alabama, on
Saturday at 6 p.m. at Braly Stadium.
This will be
the 60th meeting between North Alabama and
West Alabama. UNA has faced West Alabama
every season since it began its football
program in 1949 - and the two schools met
twice in 1986. UNA leads the all-time series
44-14-1 and the Lions have won 20 of the
last 23 meetings since 1985.
West Alabama
hasn’t won a game at Braly Stadium since
1987. UNA has won the last 10 straight
meetings at Braly. All-time, UNA has a
212-103-8 record at Braly. Current UNA
head coach Mark Hudspeth is 27-7 at Braly
and UNA has won its last 14 straight
regular-season home games.
This will mark
the first time that former UNA head coach
Bobby Wallace has coached at Braly Stadium
since his last game as the Lions’ head coach
on November 15, 1997. Ironically, that game
was a 56-14 UNA win over West Alabama - so
Wallace’s last win as head coach at UNA was
over the Tigers. Wallace had a 82-36-1
record in 10 seasons at UNA, including three
GSC championships, three NCAA Division II
National Championships and six playoff
appearances.
UNA will be
recognizing 16 seniors at Saturday's game as
they play their final regular-season contest
for the Lions. UNA's senior class includes
Heath Ballard, Vince Cary, Eric Denson,
Keldrick Docher, Jonathan Douglas, Craig
Fox, Dusty Goodwin, James Hall, Reggie
Hubbard, Tim Hunt, Tranaine Jehovah, Jason
Messing, Jason Morgan, Scott Shurden, Tez
Thigpen and J.D. Whited
The pairings
for the 2007 NCAA Division II playoffs will
be made on Sunday - November 11. UNA has
competed in the Division II playoffs 12
times since 1980, including three of the
last four years under Mark Hudspeth.
AFCA DIVISION
II POLL
1. Grand Valley
State 9-0
2. Chadron St. 10-0
3. Nebraska-Omaha 9-0
4. West Texas A&M 10-0
5. Northwest Missouri St. 8-1
6. California (Pa.) 10-0
7. North Dakota 8-1
8. Valdosta St. 8-1
9. Delta St. 8-1
10. North Alabama 8-1
11. Carson-Newman 9-1
12. Catawba 9-1
13. Tarleton St. 9-1
14. Tuskegee (Ala.) 9-0
15. Shepherd 9-1
16. Central Washington 8-1
17. Abilene Christian 8-2
18. Indiana (Pa.) 8-1
19. Midwestern St. 8-2
20. West Chester 8-2
21. Mesa St. 9-1
22. Newberry 8-2
23. Winona St. 9-1
24. Virginia Union 9-1
25. Hillsdale 8-2
LIONS MOVE TO SECOND IN SOUTHEAST REGION
FLORENCE
-- On the strength of a 65-17
pounding of West Georgia on Saturday, the
University of North Alabama football team
has moved up one spot to second in the
latest NCAA Division II Southeast Region
rankings.
The Lions, 8-1
heading into this weekend's regular-season
finale at home against West Alabama, were
ranked third behind Delta State and Valdosta
State entering last Saturday's games.
Valdosta State (8-1) moved up to the top
spot and UNA moved up to second, while Delta
State dropped from first to third after a
20-9 win over West Alabama.
The top six
teams in the final regional rankings on Nov.
10 will advance to the NCAA Division II
playoffs, and the top two teams will receive
first round byes.
Southeast
1. Valdosta
State 8-1
2. North Alabama 8-1
3. Delta State 8-1
4. Catawba 9-1
5. Carson-Newman 9-1
6. Albany State 8-2
7. Newberry 8-2
8. Virginia Union 9-1
9. Fort Valley 8-3
10. Morehouse 7-3
11. Henderson State 6-3
12. Shaw 7-3
