With four 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 seven.
16th Place: North Carolina A&T University Aggies (1-6, 0-3) (-)
In a season that could be classified as rock bottom, the Aggies have found a basement with their 59-17 loss to the hands of Hampton University on Saturday.
The second-worst offense in the conference, combined with the dead-last defense has been a recipe for disaster in 2024. They will try to save their crops against a struggling Campbell University this Saturday.
15th Place: Bryant University Bulldogs (2-5, 0-3) (-1)
With their only wins this season coming against non-conference opponents, Bryant’s first season in the CAA has been a rough one. The struggles continued in week seven with a 55-17 thumping from Monmouth University.
The Bulldogs could look for a rebound second half to the season, but with their remaining five opponents containing three top-25 teams and two others receiving votes, the outlook remains grim.
14th Place: Campbell University Fighting Camels (2-5, 0-3) (+1)
Campbell fell just short of their second top-25 upset this season on Saturday, losing to #15 College of William and Mary 35-28.
The Camels are still looking for their first CAA win of the season, and they have a golden opportunity to do so against a struggling NC A&T team this weekend.
13th Place: University at Albany Great Danes (3-4, 1-2) (-3)
After starting off the season at 1-3, it seemed that things would be turning up for the Great Danes after winning two straight contests. However, Albany’s cruise down the win streak freeway was interrupted by a box of nails in the form of a 30-14 loss to Elon University.
12th Place: Elon University Phoenix (2-5, 1-2) (+1)
Elon is riding high after their victory, as the triumph over Albany snapped the four-game skid they trudged through prior.
The Phoenix have struggled so far in 2024, so they will take any win they can get to gain momentum to hopefully take flight at some point this season.
11th Place: Towson University Tigers (3-4, 1-2) (-2)
A 52-24 loss at home can be poor for team morale, and a 52-24 loss in front of a homecoming crowd can be devastating.
Stony Brook University rained on the parade of the Tigers this past Saturday, knocking them below .500 in both their overall and CAA record.
10th Place: Hampton University Pirates (4-3, 1-2) (+2)
Hampton’s blowout 59-17 win over NC A&T is not just another win in the standings, but the most points the Pirates have scored against a Division I opponent since Sep. 15, 2007 when they won a game 59-14 against… North Carolina A&T.
They say history always repeats itself, but this just seems silly.
9th Place: University of Maine Black Bears (4-3, 2-2) (+2)
Contrary to Towson, Maine got the job done on homecoming weekend, squashing #5 Villanova University 35-7.
The victory marked the largest upset since Dec. 7, 2018 when the Black Bears downed #3 Weber State University 23-18 in the FCS quarterfinals. Although this win doesn’t have quite the same magnitude, it doesn’t make it any less sweet.
8th Place: University of New Hampshire Wildcats (4-3, 2-1) (-4)
New Hampshire’s offense disappeared this weekend, blanketed by the University of Rhode Island’s defensive scheme. The Wildcats mustered only one touchdown in the 26-9 loss, their lowest offensive output against an FCS opponent since they only recorded three points against URI back on Nov. 13, 2021.
7th Place: Stony Brook University Seawolves (5-2, 2-1) (+1)
Stony Brook’s offense rose above and beyond this past weekend, muscling out their largest offensive tally since 2018 in their 52-24 win over Towson.
It’s becoming increasingly apparent that this is not the Stony Brook team from 2023, and a few more wins could see them crack the national top-25, as they have been receiving votes.
6th Place: #16 College of William and Mary Tribe (5-2, 2-1) (-1)
The Tribe’s 35-28 win over Campbell was like finishing a marathon after the finish line had already been packed up: You did it, but not as well as you should have.
The close call was not what William and Mary needed, especially following a tough loss to Towson the week before. They now have a red-hot Stony Brook team racing towards them, and need to put their best effort together to hold off the Seawolves.
5th Place: #13 Villanova University Wildcats (5-2, 2-1) (-3)
Maybe it was an off day, or maybe the trek up to Maine was a bit too taxing, but the only thing that can be said for certain is that Villanova did not play like the fifth-best team in the country on Saturday.
The 35-7 mauling from the Black Bears serves as the first loss to a FCS opponent this season, and quick action is needed in terms of a response to ensure they don’t suffer a second defeat to UNH this coming Saturday.
4th Place: Monmouth University Hawks (4-3, 2-1) (+3)
Potent, dangerous and relentless would be three words to describe the Monmouth Hawks 2024 offense. The group not only leads the CAA with 44.4 points per game, but they lead the country as a whole.
The 55-17 win over Bryant was just the latest piece of the points collage they are creating this season, and they will try and make even more noise against Towson coming up this weekend.
3rd Place: #18 University of Richmond Spiders (5-2, 3-0) (+3)
There are no longer any undefeated teams in the CAA, and Richmond is to thank for that recent update to the standings, as they took down Delaware 28-9.
The Spiders have not lost a regular season CAA contest in over a calendar year, and a continuation to that streak could grant them an FCS playoff spot for the third straight season.
2nd Place: University of Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens (6-1, 3-1) (-1)
Since the conference began in 2007, a CAA football team has never finished undefeated… That will not change in 2024.
Delaware was the last chance the conference had, but after falling to Richmond it was made official that 2024 would not be the year. One loss does not define a team though, and Delaware is still in excellent shape this preparation season before making the jump up the Conference USA.
1st Place: #15 University of Rhode Island Rams (6-1, 3-0) (+2)
Say jump and they ask ‘how high?’
Say run and they ask ‘how fast?’
Say win and they ask ‘beat who?’
It was 92 days ago when the Rams were selected to finish eighth in the CAA preseason poll, a ranking that they have proved heavily to be above.
Rhode Island is the only CAA team undefeated against FCS competition, and as it now transitions to the role of ‘king of the hill,’ it will look to fend off the challengers going forward.