Poll
ABILENE -- The ACU Wildcats' season-opening win over McMurry last Saturday pushed them up one spot in the latest American Football Coaches' Association poll, which was released Monday.
The Wildcats -- who opened their season with a win for the fifth straight year -- moved from No. 10 to No. 9 in this week's poll. ACU will be back in action Saturday at 6 p.m. at Shotwell Stadium when it opens its 40th and final season in the Lone Star Conference by hosting longtime rival Texas A&M-Kingsville.
The Javelinas made their 2012 season debut in the AFCA poll on Monday when they checked in at No. 24 in the nation after a 35-7 thumping of Central Washington last Saturday night in Kingsville.
The top seven teams remained unchanged in this week's AFCA poll as there were only a few minor upsets on the NCAA Division II scene last weekend.
Defending national champion Pittsburg State (Kan.) still holds onto the top spot, and received 28 first-place votes this week. The Gorillas are followed by Minnesota-Duluth at No. 2, Northwest Missouri State at No. 3, Midwestern State at No. 4 and Wayne State (Mich.) at No. 5.
Valdosta State (Ga.) took the biggest fall, moving from No. 8 to No. 20 after its 28-24 loss to Saginaw Valley State (Mich.). Valdosta State will be in Texas next week to play Angelo State at noon on Sept. 15 at Cowboys Stadium as part of the Lone Star Football Festival.
Rounding out the top 10 in this week's poll are Colorado State-Pueblo at No. 6, Grand Valley State (Mich.) at No. 7, Winston-Salem State (N.C.) at No. 8, ACU at No. 9 and California (Pa.) at No. 10.
CSU-Pueblo opened its season last Thursday with a 44-34 win over then-No. 24 West Texas A&M, which dropped out of this rankings.
ACU currently has four teams on its 2012 schedule who are ranked in this week's poll: No. 24 Texas A&M-Kingsville this Saturday, No. 22 Delta State (Miss.) on Thursday, Sept. 27, in Cleveland, Miss.; No. 4 Midwestern State on Oct. 20; and No. 13 West Alabama in Abilene on Nov. 3.