



As the 30th Missouri Valley Football Conference season swings into action Saturday night when Western Illinois travels to Southern Illinois, the league is feeling good about the nonconference statement it has made.



The Valley is 20-1 against fellow FCS competition so far. A record seven of its 10 teams are ranked among the subdivision’s top 25.



Among the latest entries, Illinois State (2-0) has again surged into the rankings (at No. 22 and No. 23 in the FCS Coaches and Sports Network polls, respectively) and Missouri State (3-1) is ranked for the first time since the 1997 preseason.



The other ranked Valley schools include No. 1 North Dakota State, No. 9 South Dakota State, No. 10 UNI, No. 16/17 Southern Illinois and No. 12/18 Youngstown State. The remaining three MVFC schools — Indiana State, South Dakota and Western Illinois — all received votes in the rankings.



In the Sagarin Ratings, the Valley is ranked first among FCS leagues and notably is listed ahead of three FBS leagues in conference strength — the Mid-American, Conference USA East and the Sun Belt.



It’s a good harbinger for the league improving its postseason participation. Last year, the Valley landed just two teams in the FCS playoffs. There are 121 schools that play FCS football.



“It’s a shot across the bow,” said South Dakota coach Joe Glenn during Tuesday’s league teleconference. “Ideally, we get three, maybe four teams in, but the stars have to align for that. But the rankings now are making the statement that we deserve a shot at the end.”



Missouri State coach Terry Allen takes some of the blame for the Valley getting shorted in past postseasons.



“In the past, we lost some nonconference games and then knocked off some teams in the conference that kept them out of postseason,” he said. “This year (after winning on the road at Northwestern State and Central Arkansas and faring well at FBS Oklahoma State), we feel better about holding up our end of the bargain.”



The 20-1 mark vs. peer schools is tops in league history so far with three such contests remaining. Next best was a 13-2 mark in 2003.



“I really believe you have all 10 teams that are worthy of top 25 consideration,” said SIU coach Dale Lennon. “The message has been sent. I don’t know how you could send a stronger one.”



Lennon’s Salukis (3-1) and Western Illinois are both coming off respectable losses on Big Ten fields — SIU falling 35-13 at Purdue and WIU falling 24-7 at Northwestern.



Western (2-2) also has a 37-3 defeat at Wisconsin on its resume this season.



“Watching them play as well as they did against Wisconsin and Northwestern was very impressive,” Lennon said. “They have playmakers on both sides of the ball. They’re playing some solid, sound defense and make you work for everything you get. It’s going to be a battle.”



COLLEGE FOOTBALL NOTES: Top-ranked North Dakota State has now won 28 consecutive games, an FCS record and tied for the fifth longest in Division I in the past 50 years. The Bison and Illinois State are two of 34 remaining unbeaten Division I teams. ... The 2-0 Redbirds carry a 10-game home winning streak into Saturday’s 6:30 p.m. matchup against 0-3 Austin Peay. A key for ISU this season has been big plays by the defense. The Redbirds have six interceptions in their two games, tying their total for the entire 2013 season. ... WIU wide receiver Lance Lenior set career highs with 11 receptions and 115 yards at Northwestern. Quarterback Trenton Norvell completed a career-high 29 passes for 292 yards at Evanston. “That may have been his best game,” said WIU coach Bob Nielson. “Unfortunately, we turned the ball over four times. You can’t do that against a Big Ten team on the road.” ... Tim Finney threw five touchdown passes Sunday to ignite Robert Morris to a 42-7 victory over the Eureka junior varsity in a makeup game. The RMU club team travels to 10th-ranked Wright State on Saturday.



Dave Reynolds can be reached at 686-3210 or at dreynolds@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @davereynolds2.



