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Football Hawks move to No. 18 in NAIA Top 25 Coaches Poll
By Matt Green
KANSAS CITY -- The Shorter University football squad appears at No. 18 in the latest NAIA Football Top 25 Coaches Poll, which was released by the organization on Monday evening.
The Hawks (2-0), who scored a thrilling 29-21 victory over Pikeville at Barron Stadium on Saturday, move up from No. 21 where they appeared in the season's first ranking last week. Shorter is ranked for the first time since 2009.
Shorter's Saturday opponent, Georgetown College, also climbed in this week's ratings. The defending Mid-South Conference East Division champion Tigers slid up one spot to No. 7 after their impressive 31-14 victory over then No. 10-ranked Cumberlands (Ky.) last weekend.
The Hawks used several big plays down the stretch against Pikeville on Saturday to stay unbeaten. Shorter blew a 20-0 first half lead and trailed 21-20 when it regained possession of the football with 1:44 to play in the fourth quarter.
Consecutive completions from David Byrd to Kareem Hawkins and Jonny Sitton moved the ball into Pikeville territory and sophomore kicker Troy Postell connected on a 45-yard field goal with 28 seconds left -- he had misfired from 44 yards just three minutes earlier -- to put the Hawks ahead 23-21.
Thanks to two big pass plays, Pikeville drove to the Shorter 16 on its ensuing possession to set up a 33-yard field goal for the win with eight seconds to play, but Shorter senior Daniel Hazard blocked the attempt, picked up the loose ball and raced 65 yards for the game-clinching score as time expired. It was Shorter's fourth straight win over the Bears in the series.
Shorter experienced the same excitement when it toppled a ranked Georgetown team at Barron Stadium last year -- the first win for the Hawks over the three-time national champions in three all-time meetings. The Hawks managed a 47-46 overtime win over the Tigers last Sept. 25, a game that wasn't over until Georgetown botched a snap on its extra point attempt in the extra session.
Kickoff Saturday in Georgetown is set for 1:30 pm. Fans who cannot make the trip to Kentucky can listen to all the action by tuning into 95.7 WATG-FM or by accessing the live webcast made available via the link on Shorter's athletics website.
