The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor football team once again held its ground and is ranked third in the country in both of the two major NCAA Division III Top 25 Polls again this week. The Cru (5-0, 2-0 ASC) opened American Southwest Conference play with a 59-10 victory over Howard Payne University last Saturday.
The Cru is ranked third in the country in the fourth consecutive American Football Coaches Association Top 25 Poll to open the 2016 season. The Cru received two first-place votes and 946 total points from the AFCA. Defending national champion Mount Union is #1 in the poll with 36 first-place votes and 1,042 total points. Wisconsin-Whitewater is second with four first-place votes and 1,002 points. Hardin-Simmons is ranked ninth in the nation with 721 total points and East Texas Baptist is ranked 15th with 429 points. The Cowboys and Tigers are the next two opponents on the UMHB schedule. Linfield College is ranked 10th by the AFCA this week. UMHB topped the Wildcats 66-27 earlier this season.
“It was good to get a win last week and we can learn a lot from looking at that video,” Cru head coach Pete Fredenburg said. “Especially with some of the struggles we had with our second team in the game. There will be a different energy and excitement level in practice this week. We have a big football game coming up and we need to be able to rise to the occasion.”
UMHB remained at #3 in the country in the D3football.com Top 25 Poll. The Cru totaled 587 points and claimed six first-place votes in that poll. Mount Union is #1 with 15 first-place votes and 606 total points. Wisconsin-Whitewater is ranked second with three first-place votes and 598 total points. Linfield is 8th, Hardin-Simmons is ranked 12th in the country and East Texas Baptist is 16th in the D3football.com Poll.
UMHB will return to action with an American Southwest Conference road game at East Texas Baptist University (5-0, 1-0 ASC) this Saturday. The Cru will take on the Tigers in a 1:00 PM kickoff at Ornelas Stadium.
