The late, great Buddy Teevens was more than a coach. He was a teacher, innovator and a legend in the sport. When he passed away last year, his loss left a huge void in the Ivy League and college football landscape as a whole.
Dartmouth named Sammy McCorkle its coach in October of last season, removing the interim tag from his title. All he has done since then is win Ivy League Coach of the Year as his Big Green won the conference title, and this year he's eyeing more of the same as part of a 6-0 start.
What makes this team so special is the way they have been winning games. Outside of their season-opening win vs. Fordham, the Big Green have played in five straight games that have been decided by four points or fewer. Many forget that this is still a game composed of student-athletes primarily between the ages of 18 and 22 years old, so to have his team showcase that level of mental toughness to find a way to win games consistently is simply amazing.
Taking over for a legend is never easy, and this was even more difficult considering the circumstances, but what McCorkle has done so far in two short seasons deserves a ton of credit.
Now, there is still a lot of season left to play, and the Big Green has their work cut out for them if they want to secure their 29th and second consecutive Ivy League crown, which would be the first time they've done that since the 1991 and 1992 seasons.
Get the full rundown of Week 10's top games with Fanatics. On to the rankings ...
| Team | Rank | Record | Breakdown |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 1. Montana State | 8-0 | The Bobcats are back in action this weekend against Eastern Washington. Their bye week came at the right time, giving them their second wind for the stretch run. |
 | 2. North Dakota State | 8-1 | It was a "let's clear the depth chart" type game for the Bison last week as they ran all over Murray State 59-6. An important three-game stretch coming up vs. Northern Iowa, Missouri State and South Dakota. |
 | 3. South Dakota State | 6-2 | In the best game of the weekend, the Jackrabbits were able to nudge past South Dakota in overtime 20-17. It was good to see this response after their 13-9 loss to the Bison the week before. |
 | 4. South Dakota | 6-2 | No big fall for the Coyotes after losing in overtime to South Dakota State. Last week showed how good of a team the Coyotes are. They will make a deep playoff run as well. |
 | 5. UC Davis | 7-1 | I will be focused on the Aggies defense and if they can show dominance against Northern Colorado, which is dead last in the Big Sky standings. |
 | 6. Tarleton State | 7-1 | The passing game was spotty vs. Austin Peay to put it nicely, yet the Texans still got the win. Turning the ball over like that doesn't usually translate into wins. They've got to clean that up. |
 | 7. Southeast Missouri State | 8-1 | Dorian Anderson, Tristan Smith and Cam Pedro make an excellent trio of receivers for this Redhawks passing game. They are a difficult matchup to defend each weekend. |
 | 8. Central Arkansas | 6-2 | The Bears are looking for their third straight win as they take on Utah Tech. UCA is starting to gain traction as we hit November. |
 | 9. Incarnate Word | 6-2 | Winners of five straight games, UIW is playing some great ball at this juncture of the season. How about QB Zach Calzada's play during this stretch? Simply impressive! |
 | 10. Villanova | 6-2 | With the way the CAA is shaping up, there is no more room for error if you're Villanova. Get the wins how you can, just how they got one last weekend vs. New Hampshire. |
 | 11. Mercer | 7-1 | Things looked bleak early on vs. Western Carolina, but the Bears scratched and clawed their way back and ended up winning the game by double digits. RB Dwayne McGee had 223 yards rushing and helped spearhead the comeback. |
 | 12. Idaho | 6-3 | The Vandals are idle this week, taking their victory over Eastern Washington into the bye before returning on Nov. 9 to take on Portland State. |
 | 13. Rhode Island | 7-1 | In his 11th season, Rams coach Jim Fleming has transformed this program from laughing stock into bonafide winners. They are built for the long term. |
 | 14. Richmond | 6-2 | Tied for first place with Rhode Island in the CAA, the Spiders are looking to continue their winning ways this weekend vs. Towson. Richmond is going for its seventh straight victory. |
 | 15. North Dakota | 5-3 | Defensively, the Fighting Hawks had arguably their worst day of the season, which contributed to their 41-40 overtime loss to Youngstown State. |
 | 16. Montana | 6-2 | The Grizzlies' defense has given up 55, 20 and zero points over the last three weeks. Needless to say, the latter two were wins. They're trending in the right direction defensively. |
 | 17. Chattanooga | 5-3 | Since starting 0-3, the Mocs have quietly turned things around. They're playing with good balance offensively and complementary football as a whole. |
 | 18. Stony Brook | 6-2 | One of the better stories of the season so far has been the play and subsequent turnaround of the Seawolves. A dominant win over William & Mary last weekend at home 35-13. |
 | 19. Abilene Christian | 5-3 | The Wildcats passed one test by knocking off an underrated Eastern Kentucky team. Can they do it against Southern Utah, which is equally underrated? |
 | 20. Dartmouth | 6-0 | Five of their six wins have been four points or fewer. The Big Green do not flinch in these end-of-game situations, they thrive in them. |
 | 21. William & Mary | 5-3 | The Tribe have to quickly shake off the loss to Stony Brook and hit the road again for a game against North Carolina A&T. We've reached the "no room for error" conversation for the Tribe. |
 | 22. Tennessee State | 6-2 | Monumental game for Tennessee State vs. UT Martin this weekend. The Tigers look to stay within a game of Southeast Missouri State in the Big South-OVC. Big step for the program under coach Eddie George. |
 | 23. UT Martin | 5-3 | The best matchup coming up vs. Tennessee State is the Skyhawks offense vs. the Tigers defense. Something's gotta give. |
 | 24. North Carolina Central | 6-2 | Eagles RB J'Mari Taylor's 50-yard, fourth-quarter touchdown run put the game away. The defense dominated Morgan State's offensive attack en route to a 16-7 victory. |
 | 25. Jackson State | 6-2 | The Tigers have been on a tear since their loss to Grambling, averaging 40 points per game. Credit to coach T.C. Taylor for what he has done with this program since taking over. |
