With five teams sitting inside the national top-25 rankings, others receiving votes and upsets over Football Bowl Subdivision opponents scattered throughout, the Coastal Athletic Association has proved itself as one of the best Football Championship Subdivision conferences in the country.
Every week, the staff at The Good Five Cent Cigar will rank the 16 teams upon their performance on the gridiron. Here are the rankings after week nine.
16th Place: North Carolina A&T University Aggies (1-8, 0-5) (-)
NC A&T’s week nine loss was yet another display of its extensive struggles in 2024, as it fell to the College of William and Mary 45-7 on its home turf.
The falter marked its seventh in a row, and with just three games left in the season, the Aggies are simply playing for pride at this point.
15th Place: Bryant University Bulldogs (2-7, 0-5) (-)
Bryant came as close as you can get to claiming its first CAA victory this past weekend, falling to Stony Brook University 31-30.
Although it would much rather have walked away with a win, it will take any positive note at 2-7, and a step in the right direction classifies as just that.
14th Place: Campbell University Fighting Camels (3-6, 1-4) (-2)
Campbell’s 50-27 loss to Elon University not only marks its sixth of the season, but the largest amount of points it has surrendered all season long.
The Fighting Camels have struggled in CAA play this season, picking up its only conference victory against last placed NC A&T. It will need to take down some tough competition in the remaining few weeks in order to salvage this season.
13th Place: University at Albany Great Danes (3-6, 1-4) (-)
Albany’s 31-14 loss to the University of New Hampshire was another edition of its conference play struggles in 2024.
The second-worst offense in the CAA has not provided the Great Danes with many fruitful outings this season, and whether it is a schematics or a personnel change, something needs to switch.
12th Place: Elon University Phoenix (3-6, 2-3) (+2)
The 50-27 win for Elon over Campbell was one that made fans ask “how much did we score?”
The next-highest offensive tally this season for the Phoenix is 21, and the win this weekend was the most points that Elon has scored since Nov. 18, 2023, when it scored 51 against Hampton University.
11th Place: Towson University Tigers (4-5, 2-3) (-2)
After holding the top offense in the conference to just 14 points in the week prior, Towson put up another respectable performance against nationally-ranked University of Richmond, but still fell to the Spiders 35-24.
It’s no secret that the Tigers are trending in the right direction, but Towson needs to string together some wins if it wants to advance in the power rankings.
10th Place: Hampton University Pirates (5-4, 2-3) (-2)
After their 20-point routing of Elon last week, the Pirates fell just short of Villanova this week 20-14.
The loss stopped a stretch of two-straight victories and inched Hampton back towards the .500 mark. It will need three solid outings from here on out to consider itself eligible in any way for the FCS playoffs.
9th Place: University of New Hampshire Wildcats (5-4, 3-2) (+2)
New Hampshire’s 31-14 win over Albany was a sigh of relief for the Wildcats for multiple reasons.
Not only was it a win after dropping two straight, but it was the first time it scored double-digit points in that stretch. While all is not lost for UNH’s season, it will need some convincing performances down the stretch to consider this season a success.
8th Place: University of Maine Black Bears (4-5, 2-3) (+2)
There was a point in time where Maine was beating the University of Oklahoma 7-0… that is a real statement that we can say in truth.
However, given that the Sooners won the game 59-14, it goes down in the record books as a loss for the Black Bears, and Maine dips below the .500 mark as a result.
7th Place: Monmouth University Hawks (4-5, 2-3) (-)
Monmouth’s top-ranked CAA offense was not enough to take down the top-five defense of the University of Rhode Island, as the Hawks fell to the Rams 37-28.
The score stood at just a three-point advantage for Rhody late in the game, but a fumble on a hook and ladder play allowed the Rams to tack on an extra touchdown and seal the deal on their home turf.
6th Place: #20 College of William and Mary Tribe (6-3, 3-2) (-)
Although William and Mary’s 45-7 win over NC A&T was a dominant one, it wasn’t unlike the expectations of a top-25 team against a squad with only one win on the season.
Although the Tribe is currently in position to return to the FCS playoffs after missing out on a berth in 2023, it will still need to finish out the final weeks in a strong manner to make their case to the committee.
5th Place: #17 Stony Brook University Seawolves (7-2, 4-1) (-)
Well… at least it’s a win. Stony Brook’s performance on Saturday was far from what it has shown it is capable of this season, edging Bryant 31-30 in a win.
However, it is still a tally in the win column, and now the Seawolves can regroup going forward.
4th Place: #12 Villanova University Wildcats (7-2, 4-1) (-)
From an outside perspective, it seems as if Villanova has lost its offensive spark. The Wildcats tacked on over 20 points in four of its first six contests, but have failed to do so over the past three.
Villanova was able to take down Hampton 20-14, but the victory still left something to be desired.
3rd Place: University of Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens (7-1, 4-1) (-)
Rest and relaxation is key for recovery and peak performance. Delaware was able to achieve that in its bye this week ahead of a date with the red-hot Rhody Rams at home.
2nd Place: #13 University of Richmond Spiders (7-2, 5-0) (-)
Richmond’s 35-24 win over Towson was another edition of the Spiders getting the job done in 2024.
The Spiders are in a key position to make the FCS playoffs, and with two of the three next opponents it will face being Hampton and Campbell, Richmond could easily finish 9-3.
1st Place: #11 University of Rhode Island Rams (8-1, 5-0) (-)
2024 is the best season for Rhode Island’s football team since 1984. 40 years ago was the last time the Rams started a season 8-1. The only difference in that season to now is that the 2024 Rams’ loss was to FBS University of Minnesota, and the 1984 Rams’ loss was to FCS College of Holy Cross.
The Rams are one of eight programs that are undefeated in FCS play. Its 37-28 win over Monmouth kept itself in that pool, and if it can continue on that track, it is likely to host a playoff game for the first time in 39 years.