By Jordan Nicewarner, Panhandle News Network Sports
MARTINSBURG, W.Va – The 8-0 Shepherd Rams now sit at number three in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Division II Coaches’ Poll but remain at six in the D2Football.com Poll that was released on the 24th.
Angelo State used a stingy defense and a balanced offense to dominate Texas A&M-Kingsville. The top 10 in the poll remain the same this week.
1️⃣ @gvsufootball
2️⃣ @ASURamFootball
3️⃣ @SURamsFootball
4️⃣ @OuachitaFB
5️⃣ @GorillasFBTop 25 ⬇⬇⬇https://t.co/nhPibusYPH
— AFCA (@WeAreAFCA) October 24, 2022
Shepherd is coming off a 42-14 win on the road at West Chester over the weekend where Tyson Bagent was 29-of-34 for 296 yards and three touchdowns through the air and added one on the ground. Ronnie Brown continues to impress as he went for 98 yards on 16 carries, tacking on a 30-yard touchdown run and a 46-yard touchdown catch.
The Shepherd Defense continues to impress. Led by LB Dewayne Grantham, this Rams Defense has surprised many around the PSAC. Being young across the board, the Rams defense still stands sixth in the PSAC in total defense and leads the league in interceptions with 14.
Shepherd’s strength of schedule (SOS) might be the reason why Shepherd still hasn’t cracked the top 5 on the D2Football.com poll. Their win over Kutztown looks good on paper, but KU’s week one loss to Assumption 3-0 has stunted KU’s SOS. Although, completing the regular season undefeated and potentially going into the PSAC Championship game should help see Shepherd into the D2Football.com top 5.
The members of the Top 10 in the https://t.co/7sJv27VAe0 Poll remained the same, although the order changed slightly.https://t.co/UVucn6JVny pic.twitter.com/xZRd0RwkDa
— D2Football (@D2Football) October 25, 2022
Shepherd heads back to Rams Stadium this Saturday to face 3-5 Bloomsburg at 12 pm Noon. Saturday is Senior Day as well as Military Appreciation Day at Rams Stadium with special pre-game festivities planned.
Don’t miss this week’s Ernie McCook Show live from Captain Benders Tavern every Thursday at 7:30 pm and tune in Saturday at 11 am for the Rams Pregame Show only on 95.9 The Big Dawg