FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SUBDIVISION

• Southern Illinois remains No. 1

  
  

  Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Southern Illinois used a 44-24 win over Missouri State in Missouri Valley Football Conference play to solidify its hold atop The Sports Network FCS Top-25 poll.

  The Salukis, who vaulted to the top of the poll last week when Richmond had its 17-game winning streak snapped, received 49 of 137 first-place votes.

  SIU (9-1) closes out the regular season Saturday with a non-conference game at Southeast Missouri State, after going a perfect 8-0 in league play. The Salukis will be looking to finish in first place at the end of the regular season in the poll for the second time in school history, after previously accomplishing that feat in 2004.

  Villanova (9-1) impressed voters enough with a 49-7 victory over Towson on the road in Colonial Athletic Association play to jump to No. 2 in the poll. The Wildcats picked up 38 first-place votes.

  Montana (10-0) dropped one spot to No. 3, despite a 38-10 win over Northern Colorado in Big Sky Conference play. The Grizzlies ended up with 45 first- place votes and also clinched the automatic bid for their conference to reach the playoffs for an NCAA-record 17th consecutive year.

  Appalachian State received three first-place votes and South Carolina State grabbed the final two.

  Southern Illinois finished with 3,278 points to edge out Villanova by 53 points and Montana by 133 points in extremely close balloting.

  Richmond (9-1) rebounded from its 21-20 loss to Villanova by beating winless Georgetown 49-10 in a non-conference game. That allowed the Spiders to remain at No. 4 in the poll.

  William & Mary (9-1) won a showdown at home with then-No. 8 New Hampshire, 20-17, to stay in the No. 5 position. New Hampshire dropped to No. 11.

  Appalachian State (8-2) won the automatic bid from the Southern Conference, as the Mountaineers posted a 27-10 win on the road against then-No. 6 Elon and moved up one spot to No. 6 slot in this week's poll.

  South Carolina State (9-1) also clinched an auto bid, winning the MEAC title with a 37-13 victory over Morgan State. That helped the Bulldogs rise from ninth to a historical best of No. 7.

  McNeese State (8-2) stayed alive for at least a share of the Southland Conference championship, beating then-No. 25 Texas State 30-27 on the road. The Cowboys were rewarded with a jump from 10th to eighth in the poll.

  Northern Iowa (7-3) leaped back into the top-10 at No. 9 with a 34-0 home win over Western Illinois. The Panthers were No. 11 last week.

  Elon (8-2) completed the top-10, falling from sixth to 10th with its loss to Appalachian State.

  Teams from 12th through 19th stayed in the same places this week.

  South Dakota State (7-3) narrowly missed an upset of the Big Ten Conference member Minnesota, falling 16-13, but remained at No. 12.

  Holy Cross (9-1) stayed at No. 13 with a 28-26 victory over then-No. 20 Lafayette to capture the Patriot League title and automatic bid. Lafayette (8-2) slid one place to No. 21.

  Eastern Illinois (8-2) moved a step closer to the Ohio Valley Conference crown by beating Tennessee-Martin 49-13, as the Panthers remained at No. 14.

  Stephen F. Austin moved to within a game of the Southland Conference auto bid by stomping Southeastern Louisiana on the road, 41-10 to stay at No. 15.

  Liberty (8-2) clinched at least a share of the Big South Conference title by thumping Gardner-Webb 51-28 to stick at No. 16.

  Jacksonville State (7-3) held its spot at No. 17 with a 55-28 rout of Tennessee Tech.

  Eastern Washington (7-3) kept its playoff hopes alive and remained at No. 18 with a 41-28 non-conference win over Southern Utah, while Weber State won a Big Sky game in a snowstorm at home, 27-9 against Northern Arizona, to grab the No. 19 position again.

  Prairie View (7-1) clinched its first-ever berth in the SWAC title game next month by beating Alcorn State 34-14 and moved to 20th in the poll. That is the highest position ever for the Panthers.

  Following No. 21 Lafayette are Colgate (9-2), Penn (7-2), Montana State (7-3) and Delaware (6-4).

  Colgate moved up two positions to No. 22 by beating Bucknell 29-14 in Patriot League play.

  Penn clinched at least a share of the Ivy League title with a 17-7 victory at Harvard. It is the first appearance of the Quakers in the poll since Oct. 24, 2005, when they were 25th for one week.

  Delaware dropped a 35-18 decision at Navy and slipped two spots to No. 25.

  Florida A&M joined Texas State as the two teams falling out of the top-25. The Rattlers, who were No. 22 last week, were blanked by Hampton, 25-0 on the road.

  11/16 15:42:04 ET