Published: November 09, 2008 02:07 am      

Colonels still not receiving respect in national FCS rankings

Five-straight victories have catapulted the Colonels into a tie for first place in the Ohio Valley Conference and given them a very good chance to repeat as conference champions.

Still, that winning streak hasn’t gained them much respect, at least not nationally.

In the latest Sports Network Football Champion-ship Subdivision poll, Eastern Kentucky University received just 63 votes and was ranked behind OVC rivals Jackson-ville State (95 votes) and UT Martin (20th - 527 votes).

Even more surprisingly, the Colonels did not receive a single vote in the latest FCS Coaches Poll.

“I didn’t even know whether we were ranked or not,” EKU coach Dean Hood said earlier this week. “So, it’s not something I’m concerned about. All those things will take care of themselves.”

The Colonels (6-3, 5-1 OVC) began the year ranked 20th in the TSN poll, then slipped to 24th after a season-opening loss to Cincin-nati. They fell out of the top 25 following a loss to Western Kentucky the next week and have not been ranked since.

EKU was also ranked in the first FCS Coaches Polls before falling out of the rankings.

Regardless of national rankings, the Colonels have put themselves into a position to get back into the playoffs for a second-straight season. After starting the season 2-3, the Colonels outscored their opponents 133-80 during their current winning streak.

EKU is currently tied at the top of the OVC standings with UT Martin (7-3, 5-1 OVC) and Tennessee State (8-2, 5-1 OVC).

The Colonels were off this week and will return to action next week at Roy Kidd Stadium against long-time rival Murray State.

Two open weeks

Several years ago, EKU athletic director Mark Sandy explored many different possibilities while trying to find a 12th opponent for the school’s football team during the 2008 season.

In the end, he simply just didn’t like his options.

So, while many other FCS teams will play a dozen games this year, the Colonels will not. Instead, they get the rare opportunity to have an extra week off as they continue their pursuit of another OVC title.

“Two bye weeks in one season,” EKU senior safety Zach Denton said after last week’s 29-16 win on the road over Southeast Missouri State. “I’ve never had two bye weeks in one season.”

It certainly is a somewhat unique situation.

The Colonels have not had two open weeks in one year since 2001, when they played just 10 games.

Austin Peay and Jacksonville State are the only other OVC teams not playing 12 games this season.

“I’ve never been involved in a situation where you had two bye weeks in a season,” Hood said. “So, it’s a bit different. I was excited about the first bye week we had because I thought coming out of the Jacksonville State game that we were a banged-up, bruised-up football team. Right now, we feel pretty good physically and mentally. I’d really rather play this week, but I don’t think it will hurt us if we keep the same focus and approach.”

EKU opened this season with seven straight games before a bye on Oct. 18. The defending conference champs then went on to win defeat Eastern Illinois the following week, then rallied in the second half last Saturday to defeat SEMO.

Stats, etc.

With the win over the Redhawks, the Colonels extended their recent stretch of dominance against OVC opponents. They have won 17 of their past 18 conference games going back to the middle of the 2006 season.

Prior to Saturday’s games, EKU led the league in scoring defense (22.1 ppg), turnover margin (+11) and penalty yards per game (37.3 ypg).