WASHINGTON - I have definitely noticed an increase in traffic on the blog on days when I've written about Temple football. Were I not going to be at Franklin Field this Saturday to cover Cornell-Penn for the Inquirer, I would be at the Linc for the Owls' last home game of the season against Kent State.

Temple athletic director Bill Bradshaw told me yesterday that he expects around 20,000 fans to be in attendance. I'll be interested to see what the final number is, because it's a pretty big deal for Bradshaw's program.

But since I won't be there, I'll make it up to you with two more interviews with AP football poll voters: Scott Wolf of the Los Angeles Daily News and Barker Davis of the Washington Times.

Wolf has the Owls ranked 20th in his latest ballot. He told me by email that he thinks "they deserve respect after winning eight straight games and for the fact they have come so far as a program. They also beat Navy, a team that almost beat Ohio State, and Notre Dame."

While Wolf said that "the MAC receives little or no coverage in Southern California," he added that he has no problem "ranking a MAC team with an 8-2 record."

Davis does not have the Owls on his ballot, but as he was at yesterday's Temple-Georgetown game (he also covers the Hoyas), I was able to get his view.

He showed me the raw form of the ballot he sent in, which included a "Next 5" with his Top 15. The Owls were fourth in that "Next 5."

Davis had plenty of praise for the Owls' success this season, noting that "they had never even been on my radar before." But his main reason for not ranking them is the loss to Villanova.

"The 'Nova loss is a bad one," he said, because the Wildcats are in I-AA. "A loss to 'Nova is equivalent to two [I-A] losses."

Davis is certainly aware of the Wildcats' success this season. But he noted that he would have also held Michigan accountable for their famous loss to Appalachian State a few years back.

Like Wolf, Davis also gave Temple full credit for the win over Navy, even though the Midshipmen's starting quarterback, Ricky Dobbs, wasn't playing. But beyond that, Davis asked, "who are Temple's other quality wins?"

It is worth noting that Temple has not played Central Michigan, the only team in the MAC ranked higher in Sagarin than the Owls. But if Temple beats Kent State, the two teams will meet in the MAC title game.

That brings us us to this week's Crunchy Numbers.

Since I missed today's coaches luncheon, all the divisions together in this roundup. Most of the Division II and Division III seasons are over at this point anyway, with the notable exception of Delaware Valley.

Division I

21. Penn State (19)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 91/91 Indiana, 31-20
This week: 11/21 at No. 45 Michigan State, 3:30 p.m. (ABC)
Sagarin predicts: Penn State by 3 (81.01 to 74.70 and 3.06)

34. Rutgers (53)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 22/38 South Florida, 31-0
This week: 11/21 at No. 95 Syracuse, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN360.com)
Sagarin predicts: Rutgers by 11 (78.06 to 64.35 and 3)

43. Villanova (46)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 195/193 Towson, 49-7
This week: 11/21 vs. No. 116 Delaware, 3:30 p.m. (Comcast Network)
Sagarin predicts: Villanova by 19 (76.60 and 3.06 to 60.41)

61. Temple (65)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 134/138 Akron, 56-17
This week: 12/21 vs. No. 108 Kent State, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Temple by 13 (71.94 and 3.06 to 61.83)

116. Delaware (116)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 41/40 Navy, 35-18
This week: 11/21 at No. 43 Villanova, 3:30 p.m. (Comcast Network)
Sagarin predicts: Villanova by 19 (76.60 and 3.06 to 60.41)

122. Penn (137)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 157/150 Harvard, 17-7
This week: 11/21 vs. No. 220 Cornell, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Penn by 27 (59.19 and 3 to 35.53)

131. Lafayette (141)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 150/135 Holy Cross, 28-26
This week: 11/21 at No. 198 Lehigh, 12:30 p.m. (ESPN360.com, RCN-4 or RCN-8, WPBPH-60, WFMZ-69)
Sagarin predicts: Lafayette by 13 (56.68 to 40.63 and 3.06)

It's the 145th meeting of the Leopards and the Mountain Hawks/Engineers, which I believe is a record of some kind.

205. Delaware State (189)
Last week: Home loss vs. No. 169/174 Norfolk State, 21-16
This week: 11/21 vs. No. 238 Howard, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Delaware State by 15 (39.76 and 3 to 27.30)

198. Lehigh (214)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 199/196 Fordham, 35-28
This week: 11/21 vs. No. 131. Lafayette, 12:30 p.m. (ESPN360.com, RCN-4 or RCN-8, WBPH-60, WFMZ-69)
Sagarin predicts: Lafayette by 13 (56.68 to 40.63 and 3.06)

219. Princeton (228)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 190/188 Yale, 24-17
This week: 11/21 at No. 203 Dartmouth, 12:30 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Dartmouth by 8 (40.09 and 3 to 35.99)

230. Bucknell (237)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 160/158 Colgate, 29-14
This week: 11/21 vs. No. 135 Holy Cross, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Holy Cross by 22 (56.18 to 31.46 and 3)

Divisions II and III

West Chester
Season over

Delaware Valley
Last week: Road win vs. Widener, 28-16
This week: 11/21 vs. Susquehanna, 12:00 p.m. (NCAA Division III playoffs first round)

The winner gets Albright or Alfred in the second round. Not sure where the game would be played, but that first-round game is at Alfred. Delaware Valley beat Albright to win the MAC's automatic playoff bid.

Rowan
Last week: Home win vs. The College of New Jersey, 39-0
This week: Season over

Sometimes, karma can be a good thing. Congrats to the Profs for winning without Mike Hoffman and their other injured starters.

Ursinus
Last week: Road win vs. Dickinson, 35-32
This week: Season over

Widener
Last week: Home loss vs. Delaware Valley, 28-16
This week: Season over

Lincoln
Season over

Cheyney
Season over

This isn't really a preseason version of the poll, because the season is already underway. And it's not really fair to call it a Week 1 poll, because there hasn't been a full week of games yet for all the teams.

So we're going to call this the Opening Week edition of the Schuylkill 16. The next edition of the rankings will appear here on Wednesday, Nov. 25. We'll call that Week 3, and go from there.

It's not easy to do a ranking at this point in the season because we have so little information to work from. But we have plenty of comments to make up for it.

We also have what I will politely call an outlier in the first-place voting. Make fun of him as you wish.

On a less light note, I've added a new feature this year that I'm calling the Progression. It's a bit math-heavy, but I think it's sort of interesting. It works something like this.

Theoretically, if every voter cast the exact same ballot, the progression of points (thus the title) would be a straight line. Multiply the number of voters times one for the first place team, times two for the second place team, and so forth.

The chart that you'll displays the progression of points from the ballots that were cast compared to that straight line. I think it's got some kind of official name, but I haven't taken a math class in a really long time. If you know, post something in the comments.

Finally, a special thanks to the many new voters out there. Tf you want to join the party, just email me. The more the merrier.

I'll be back at around 6:45 for live coverage of Drexel at St. Joe's from courtside at Hagan Arena. See you then.

1. Villanova, 29 points (26 first-place votes)
- "You can pencil in #1 for 'Nova all season long. There is no team in the area better than the Wildcats." (Mike Birnbaum)
- "Has a lot of pressure on them with the pre-season No. 1 pick in the Big East." (Ryan Wixted)
- "A lot of expectations this year, but they won't need another Final Four run to stay #1 in this poll.  This could be the only team in the S16 to make the tournament." (Nick Catrambone)

Agree or disagree?

- "If Villanova legitimately drops out of the top spot in this poll, I'll jump in the Schuylkill." (Neil Fanaroff)

And there's your pith of the week.

2. Temple, 84 points
- "Really curious to see how they handle the first couple of weeks. Ryan Brooks and Lavoy Allen are going to have to step up the scoring with the loss of Dionte Christmas." (Ryan Wixted)
- "Depending on how well Brooks and Allen take the lead Temple's season could go south. (Max Wheeling)
- "It's going to be fun getting to watch Juan Fernandez for a full season. Might be the most exciting player in the area." (Mike Birnbaum)

Shall we start handicapping the Geasey Award now?

- "Unfortunately for Fran and gang, Christmas only came for 4 years." (Fred David)

3. La Salle, 110 points
- "Aaric Murray could put La Salle back into the post-season this year." (Mike Birnbaum)
- "In my mind, the Explorers have the best shot at finishing second in the S-16 this year." (Josh Wheeling)
- "Dr. John has his best team yet at La Salle.  An at-large bid in the tourney is a stretch but it's a step in the right direction for the program." (Nick Catrambone)
- "Giannini's fingerprints are all over this team and he finally has the right pieces in place to make a run in the A-10." (Ryan Wixted)
- "La Salle will beat Villanova and return to the NCAA tournament." (Charlie Wohlrab)

That would be quite a result, wouldn't it? The teams meet Nov. 28 at the Pavilion.

4. Penn State, 112 points
- "Penn State could be a real sleeper in the Big Ten this year." (Terrence D.)
- "Wins in the Big Ten will be hard to come by this year, so a lot will have to go right for another 10-8 conference record." (Nick Catrambone)

5. Saint Joseph's, 154 points
- "It's going to be a rough year in a tough A-10 for the Hawks.  Govens and Williamson are a nice backcourt, but they'll need others to step up for St. Joe's to have a respectable season." (Nick Catrambone)
- "The loss of Nivins and Carr will lead to a significant drop off for St. Joseph's and lead to a fairly one-sided Holy War." (Max Wheeling)
- " I think they can make a run late and hang in a competitive A-10." (Ryan Wixted)

6. Rutgers, 185 points
- "I think they're trying to hide something from us: 10 straight home games against cupcakes to open the year.  Whatever success they have early will end in January, another year at the bottom of the Big East for the Scarlet Knights." (Nick Catrambone)

7. Drexel, 187 points

8. Penn, 235 points
- "Penn's margin of defeat for their two games this weekend might be 70. Just once I'd like to be the big dog opening the season against a cupcake." (Neil Fanaroff)
- "I can feel it in the air; this is the year for the Quakers!" (Fred David)

In basketball or women's lacrosse?

9. Rider, 248 points
- "I probably have Rider way too high, but I like that first place vote they got in the MAAC preseason poll." (Brian O'Neill)
- "Great non-conference challenges for Rider in November with trips to Mississippi State, Virginia, Kentucky, and Cancun. Talk about scheduling tough. I can't wait to work on my tan in Cancun!" (Steve Rudenstein)

A special welcome to Steve, who is the Broncs' radio broadcaster.

10. Princeton, 276 points

11. Delaware, 297 points

12. Lehigh, 299 points
- "Can someone explain the difference to me between Lehigh and Lafayette?  Is it the same school?  I've always been confused by this." (Terrence D.)

The one hosts Eagles training camp and the other hosts Crayola. Right?

13. Bucknell, 303 points
- "They might be the biggest team in the Patriot League, but I'm not sure if there's enough talent." (Nick Catrambone, who has clearly done his homework)

14. Lafayette, 369 points
- "The biggest question mark in the S16." (Nick Catrambone, again)

15. Monmouth, 389 points

16. Delaware State, 399 points

Let's start tonight by setting out the agenda for the rest of the week. After going to the football coaches' luncheon tomorrow, and I'll post the Spectacle of the Week poll and Top 10 chart on Thursday this week.

On Friday, you'll get the season's first edition of the Schuylkill 16 rankings. Then I'll head out to City Avenue for Drexel-St. Joe's, as the Hawks christen Hagan Arena with a good matchup.

I was at Hagan Arena this afternoon for St. Joe's media day, and you'll get that blog post later tonight. There will be a lengthy audio track of Phil Martelli talking to reporters and a photo gallery of the new gym.

After Friday night's game, I will head straight to 30th Street Station and get on a train bound for Boston. A few hours of sleep later, I'll head to Harvard Stadium to cover Penn's Ivy League football title showdown against the Crimson for the Inquirer.

I know that a couple of you have gotten on my case for writing about Penn a lot, but it's what I do and I've said that many times before. This game is particularly important, as a win would give the Quakers their first championship since 2003.

If that happens, we could be on course for the most successful season in local college football history. I can't remember ever seeing or reading about a year in which Penn, Villanova and Temple all won conference championships. That is a real possibility. I'd love to hear from the historians among you about whether anything like this has happened before.

It's important to note that the Penn-Harvard game will not be on television anywhere. So I will be liveblogging from the press box, and I would strongly encourage you to join me starting just before noon. I know a lot of Penn fans read this blog, so hopefully the word will get out.

Next Monday, I'll be courtside at the Pavilion as Penn and Villanova meet in the first Big 5 game of the season. Then on Tuesday, I'll be live-blogging from Washington as Temple faces Georgetown as part of ESPN's 24-hour college basketball marathon.

That game will start at 4 p.m., so be sure to check out the blog if you're stuck at your desk and can't get to a television.

I'll probably go dark for a few days after that. I might put up a post on Thursday or Friday, but the next live events will be on the 21st. I'll be covering the Penn-Cornell football game and the Penn-Delaware basketball game for the Inquirer, and there will be live coverage from Franklin Field.

I would do something for the basketball game, but since that's a 7 p.m. tipoff I'll have print deadlines to deal with. So there probably won't be a liveblog for that game.

That's the agenda for the next few weeks. The intersection of college football and basketball is always a crazy time, but it's also a lot of fun. And as you know, this blog is the best place to take it all in.

Now we get to the latest edition of Football Crunchy Numbers. This week's home advantage factor is 3.11 points.

19. Penn State (12)
Last week: Home loss vs. No. 19/12 Ohio State, 24-7
This week: 11/14 vs. No. 91 Indiana, 12:00 p.m. (Big Ten Network)
Sagarin predicts: Penn State by 20 (82.01 and 3.11 to 65.60)

46. Villanova (49)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 53/57 Richmond, 21-20
This week: 11/14 at No. 195 Towson, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Villanova by 31 (76.13 to 41.80 and 3.11)

53. Rutgers (55)
Last week: No game
This week: 11/12 vs. No. 22 South Florida, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Sagarin predicts: South Florida by 3 (79.97 to 74.08 and 3.11)

65. Temple (61)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 145/140 Miami (Ohio), 34-32
This week: 11/13 at No. 134 Akron, 8:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Sagarin predicts: Temple by 10 (70.94 to 57.36 and 3.11)

116. Delaware (114)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 151/154 Hofstra, 28-24
This week: 11/14 at No. 41 Navy, 3:30 p.m. (CBS College Sports)
Sagarin predicts: Delaware by 20 (77.21 and 3.11 to to 60.35)

137. Penn (135)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 225/228 Princeton, 42-7
This week: 11/14 at No. 157 Harvard, 12:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Penn by 1 (56.30 to 52.45 and 3.11)

141. Lafayette (141)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 163/160 Colgate, 56-49
This week: 11/14 at No. 150 Holy Cross, 12:30 p.m. (RCN-4 or RCN-8, WPBPH-60)
Sagarin predicts: Holy Cross by 1 (53.80 and 3.11 to 55.97)

189. Delaware State (185)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 227/229 Winston-Salem State, 24-21
This week: 11/14 vs. No. 169 Norfolk State, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Norfolk State by 2 (48.07 to 43.18 and 3.11)

214. Lehigh (214)
Last week: Home loss vs. No. 150/150 Holy Cross, 24-20
This week: 11/14 at No. 199 Fordham, 12:30 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Fordham by 7 (41.57 and 3.11 to 37.48)

228. Princeton (225)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 135/137 Penn, 42-7
This week: 11/14 vs. No. 190. Yale, 1:00 p.m. (YES Network)
Sagarin predicts: Yale by 8 (43.12 to 31.88 and 3.11)

237. Bucknell (236)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 194/199 Fordham, 21-7
This week: 11/14 at No. 160 Colgate, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Colgate by 25 (50.57 and 3.11 to 28.89)

There are two big games this week. Penn State hosts a rather underwhelming Ohio State team, with much of the talk centered on Terrelle Pryor's first game at Beaver Stadium with the Buckeyes.

At the same time, Villanova travels to FCS No. 1-ranked Richmond in the CAA's game of the year.

We can talk about this more on Thursday when I put together the Spectacle of the Week poll, but I wonder which of those two games you think is bigger.
 
Note that there's a bit of a tweak in this week's rundown. I only just noticed that the Sagarin home-field advantage adjustment fluctuates every once in a while. It's now up to 3.31 points, so the predictions have been tweaked accordingly.

12. Penn State (13)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 98/93 Northwestern, 34-13
This week: 11/7 vs. No. 19 Ohio State, 3:30 p.m. (ABC)
Sagarin predicts: Penn State by 6 (84.66 and 3.31 to 81.59)

49. Villanova (54)
Last week: No game
This week: 11/7 at No. 53 Richmond, 3:30 p.m. (Comcast SportsNet)
Sagarin predicts: Richmond by 3 (74.05 and 3.31 to 74.82

Villanova is the top-ranked I-AA team in Sagarin and Richmond is the second. It's notable that Michigan is ranked below both of them at No. 67.

55. Rutgers (68)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 52/59 Connecticut, 28-24
This week: No game

61. Temple (76)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 45/50 Navy, 27-24
This week: 11/5 vs. No. 145 Miami (Ohio), 7:30 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Temple by 19 (72.00 and 3.31 to 56.04)

Yes, Temple's next game is the same night as a potential Game 7 of the World Series. I guess reaching bowl eligibility used up the Owls' luck?

114. Delaware (87)
Last week: Home loss vs. No. 137/121 James Madison, 20-8
This week: 11/7 vs. No. 151 Hofstra, 12:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Delaware by 11 (62.06 and 3.31 to 54.49)

The Dukes' win was their first in conference play of the season after four losses. Their schedule has been tough this year, but I don't think anyone expected results to be this bad.

135. Penn (149)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 165/169  Brown, 14-7 (OT)
This week: 11/7 vs. No. 225 Princeton, 3:30 p.m. (Comcast Network)
Sagarin predicts: Penn by 26 (57.02 and 3.31 to 34.03)

Anyone want to take the over after what we've seen from Penn's offense the last few weeks?

141. Lafayette (142)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 239/236 Bucknell, 35-14
This week: 11/7 vs. No. 163 Colgate, 1:00 p.m. (RCN-4, RCN-8, WBPH-60)
Sagarin predicts: Lafayette by 8 (56.19 and 3.31 to 51.43)

185. Delaware State (184)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 114/109 South Carolina State, 52-10
This week: 11/7 at No. 227 Winston-Salem State, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Delaware State by 9 (44.70 to 32.82 and 3.31)

214. Lehigh (220)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 161/163  Colgate, 27-20
This week: 11/7 vs. No. 150 Holy Cross, 12:30 p.m. (Service Electric 2)
Sagarin predicts: Holy Cross by 13 (54.54 to 38.16 and 3.31)

225. Princeton (227)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 215/220  Cornell, 17-13
This week: 11/7 at No. 135 Penn, 3:30 p.m. (Comcast Network)
Sagarin predicts: Penn by 26 (57.02 and 3.31 to 34.03)

236. Bucknell (239)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 142/ Lafayette, 35-14
This week: 11/7 at No. 194 Fordham, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Fordham by 17 (43.04 and 3.31 to 29.15)

With all due respect to Penn State, the biggest game of this weekend is probably Temple at Navy. The Owls are a win away from becoming bowl eligible for the first time since they won seven games in 1990. They haven't actually played in a bowl game since beating California, 28-15, in the 1979 Garden State Bowl at Giants Stadium.

If Temple really does end up in a bowl game, I will go into the Inquirer and Daily News archives and get the stories from that game.

The other big game this weekend is Penn's trip to Brown, where the QUakers haven't won since 2003. The Quakers haven't beaten the Bears at all since 2004. Sagarin has both those streaks ending Saturday by a narrow margin, which surprises me.

It will be almost entirely on Penn's defensive backfield to win this game. Brown ranks No. 7 in the FCS with an average of 290 passing yards per game. If Chris Wynn and Jonathan Moore can do something about that, Quakers quarterback Kyle Olson will have a chance to put points on the board going in the other direction.

While Brown ranks 21st in rushing defense, allowing 98.33 yards per game, the Bears are 105th in passing defense at 243.67 yards per game.

The Penn-Brown game will not be televised, but I will be in Providence to cover the game for the Inquirer. Kickoff is at 12:30 p.m., and I'll try to provide some live coverage here on the blog.

13. Penn State (21)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 34/46 Michigan, 35-10
This week: 10/31 at No. 98 Northwestern, 4:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Sagarin predicts: Penn State by 17 (84.76 to 65.12 and 3)

54. Villanova (58)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 200/197 Rhode Island, 36-7
This week: No game

68. Rutgers (78)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 141/144 Army, 27-10
This week: 10/31 at No. 52 Connecticut, 12:00 p.m. (WPVI-6, ESPN360.com)
Sagarin predicts: Connecticut by 7 (73.72 and 3 to 70.12)

76. Temple (97)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 104/117 Toledo, 40-22
This week: 10/31 at No. 45 Navy, 3:30 p.m. (CBS College Sports)
Sagarin predicts: Navy by 10 (75.91 and 3 to 68.63)

87. Delaware (86)
Last week: No game
This week: 10/31 vs. No. 137 James Madison, 12:00 p.m. (Comcast Network)
Sagarin predicts: Delaware by 13 (66.92 and 3 to 56.66)

142. Lafayette (136)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 194/190 Fordham, 26-21
This week: 10/31 vs. No. 239 Bucknell, 1:00 p.m. (RCN-4 or RCN-8, WBPH-60)
Sagarin predicts: Lafayette by 31 (55.49 and 3 to 27.87)

149. Penn (150)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 196/191 Yale, 9-0
This week: 10/31 at No. 165 Brown, 12:30 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Penn by 1 (54.22 to 50.09 and 3)

184. Delaware State (188)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 178/194 Morgan State, 35-22
This week: 10/31 at No. 114 South Carolina State, 1:30 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: South Carolina State by 20 (61.76 and 3 to 45.21)

220. Lehigh (225)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 233/239 Bucknell, 35-16
This week: 10/31 at No. 161 Colgate, 1:00 p.m. (WFMZ-69, Fox College Sports)
Sagarin predicts: Colgate by 17 (50.87 and 3 to 36.66)

227. Princeton (236)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 172/160 Harvard, 37-3
This week: 10/31 vs. No. 215 Cornell, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Cornell by 5 (37.97 to 32.08 and 3)

239. Bucknell (233)
Last week: Home loss vs. No. 225/220 Lehigh, 35-16
This week: 10/31 at No. 142 Lafayette, 1:00 p.m. (RCN-4 or RCN-8, WBPH-60)
Sagarin predicts: Lafayette by 31 (55.49 and 3 to 27.87)

Lots of stuff to talk about today, and we’ll start by looking ahead to tomorrow.

Tomorrow is Big East men’s basketball media day at Madison Square Garden, and I’ll be there bright and early to bring you live coverage all day.

I’ll also have a few new hoops-related treats to unveil for you that I think you’ll like. Stay tuned.

I don’t have any inside scoops, but if I had to bet I think Villanova will be picked very high in the preseason poll. My guess is either the Wildcats or West Virginia will be No. 1, with Georgetown third.

We already know about the CAA preseason poll. Their media day was today down in Washington, and the Dragons were picked to finish seventh. Old Dominion was picked to finish first, with Northeastern second and Virginia Commonwealth third.

The Dragons women’s team was picked first, with star forward Gabriela Marginean named as the preseason player of the year.

Philly Hoops Insider has the complete breakdown.

Tomorrow night, I’ll be liveblogging Dodgers-Phillies Game 4 tomorrow night. Our liveblogs so far have been incredibly successful and a lot of fun, so I hope you’ll join me.

Because of tomorrow’s events, I won’t be at the football coaches luncheon (nor will most of the reporters who usually attend, if you think about it). So today’s Crunchy Numbers post includes the Division II and Division III recap.

A bit of bonus reading material before we get there, though. First of all, as it’s Tuesday, there’s a new Forde-Yard Dash.

Second, ESPN released (in PDF form) its college basketball TV schedule for the coming season this afternoon. Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch tweeted that it measures 9,248 words.

As with last year, I’ll be compiling spreadsheet schedules for the City Six men’s and women’s teams and another one with all of the nationally televised games this season.

They are formatted so you can easily export them to the calendar in Outlook. I don’t know if they are compatible with Google Calendar, but if any of you know how to do that, please shoot me an email and let me know.

Now for this week’s numbers.

Division I

21. Penn State (28)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 54/59 Minnesota, 20-0
This week: 10/24 at No. 34 Michigan, 3:30 p.m. (ABC)
Sagarin predicts: Michigan by 1 (77.91 and 3 to 80.42)

58. Villanova (69)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 119/135 James Madison, 27-0
This week: 10/24 vs. No. 200 Rhode Island, 3:30 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Villanova by 33 (72.84 and 3 to 42.53)

The result of the week without a doubt. Because of how close the last few 'Nova-JMU games have been, and because it pushes them quite some distance above Rutgers. Think I should mention that in New York?

78. Rutgers (62)
Last week: Home loss vs. No. 26/24 Pittsburgh, 24-17
This week: 10/23 at No. 141 Army, 8:00 p.m. (ESPN2)
Sagarin predicts: Rutgers by 10 (68.76 to 55.47 and 3)

86. Delaware (90)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 181/187 Towson, 49-21
This week: No game

97. Temple (96)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 131/141 Army, 27-13
This week: 10/24 at No. 104 Toledo, 7:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Toledo by 1 (63.81 and 3 to 65.41)

136. Lafayette (147)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 138/172 Harvard, 35-18
This week: 10/24 vs. No. 194 Fordham, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Lafayette by 15 (56.69 and 3 to 44.70)

150. Penn (172)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 161/164 Columbia, 27-13
This week: 10/24 vs. No. 196 Yale, 3:30 p.m. (Comcast Network)
Sagarin predicts: Penn by 13 (54.27 and 3 to 44.19)

188. Delaware State (187)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 37/34 Michigan, 63-6
This week: 10/24 vs. No. 178 Morgan State, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Delaware State by 2 (46.63 and 3 to 48.07)

225. Lehigh (205)
Last week: Home loss vs. No. 188/196 Yale, 7-0
This week: 10/24 at No. 233 Bucknell, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Lehigh by 1 (35.39 to 32.25 and 3)

233. Bucknell (229)
Last week: No game
This week: 10/24 vs. No. 225 Lehigh, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Lehigh by 1 (35.39 to 32.25 and 3)

236. Princeton (214)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 160/185 Brown, 34-17
This week: 10/24 at No. 172 Harvard, 12:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Harvard by 21 (49.06 and 3 to 31.16)

It’s the first time since Bucknell was added to Crunchy Numbers that the Bison aren’t in last place. I can’t honestly say I expected Princeton to do the honors, but it looks like the Tigers really are that bad. And it won’t get any better this week.

Divisions II and III

West Chester
Last week: Road loss vs. Shippensburg 24-19
This week: 10/22 vs. Cheyney, 6:00 p.m.

Delaware Valley
Last week: Home win vs. Wilkes, 23-0
This week: 10/24 at Lycoming, 1:00 p.m.

Rowan
Last week: Road win vs. Morrisville State, 67-0
This week: 10/24 vs. Buffalo State, 1:30 p.m.

Ursinus
Last week: Road win vs. Johns Hopkins, 16-14
This week: 10/24 at McDaniel (Westminster, Md.), 1:00 p.m.

McDaniel is notable for being the site of the Baltimore Ravens’ training camp.

Widener
Last week: Home loss vs. Lycoming, 28-16
This week: 10/24 at Albright, 1:00 p.m.

Lincoln
Last week: Road loss vs. Elizabeth City State, 54-18
This week: 10/24 vs. Virginia State, 1:30 p.m.

Cheyney
Last week: Road loss vs. Bloomsburg, 28-16
This week: 10/22 at West Chester, 6:00 p.m.

A schedule update to start things off. After tomorrow afternoon's football coaches luncheon, I am headed to Washington to cover the U.S.-Costa Rica soccer game for the Inquirer.

Many of you have heard by now that star U.S. forward Charlie Davies was seriously injured in a car crash in the early hours of this morning on a highway near the team's hotel in Arlington, Va.

The U.S. Soccer Federation announced this evening that Davies suffered a lacerated bladder and fractures to the tibia and femur bones in his right leg. He also suffered facial fractures and a left elbow fracture

You can get more information from the Washington Post, SI.com and the Associated Press.

This is obviously a very big deal and it will overshadow tomorrow night's game to no small degree. But the game is of consequence. With a win, the U.S. would finish in first place outright in the final round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying for the first time in its history.

Costa Rica will be playing to avoid fourth place, which would put it in a playoff with the fifth-placed team in South America for a World Cup berth. That team could be Argentina if it does not win or tie at longtime rival Uruguay tomorrow.

The U.S. game starts at 8:00 tomorrow, with ESPN2 coming on the air at 7:30. I hope to do a live chat from RFK Stadium during the game, and I'll also have another widget for you bringing in the nationwide conversation on Twitter.

Now for this week's Crunchy Numbers.

The Inquirer's sports department put up a poll last night asking whether the Eagles or Penn State has a softer schedule. I would be seriously inclined to pick the Nittany Lions.

This is the seventh week of Crunchy Numbers this season. In each of the five editions after Penn State's wins, they fell in the Sagarin rankings. In the edition after their loss to Iowa, they rose.

As Mike Kern liks to say, you can look it up.

Now the Nittany Lions are in conference play for the rest of the season. I'll be interested to see if they move up with a win over Minnesota, because it's at home and the Gophers aren't that good.

I'll also be interested to see if Villanova jumps over Rutgers with a win at James Madison. It's a very big game for the Dukes, who narrowly lost to Richmond last weekend. They're now 2-3 overall and 0-2 in CAA play, so they can't lose any more games for the rest of the season if they want to make the playoffs.

And by the way, Sagarin has Columbia beating Penn by four points. Chew on that.

28. Penn State (18)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 152/156 Eastern Illinois, 52-3
This week: 10/17 vs. No. 54 Minnesota, 3:30 p.m. (ABC)
Sagarin predicts: Penn State by 8 (79.05 and 3 to to 74.47)

62. Rutgers (56)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 231/224 Texas Southern, 42-0
This week: 10/16 vs. No. 26 Pittsburgh, 8:00 p.m. (ESPN)
Sagarin predicts: Pittsburgh by 5 (79.40 to to 71.40 and 3)

69. Villanova (64)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 110/81 New Hampshire, 28-24
This week: 10/17 at No. 119 James Madison, 3:30 p.m. (Comcast Network)
Sagarin predicts: Villanova by 6 (70.39 to 61.20 and 3)

90. Delaware (118)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 90/106 Massachusetts, 43-27
This week: 10/17 at No. 181 Towson, 3:30 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Delaware by 15 (65.50 to 47.53 and 3)

96. Temple (97)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 156/157 Ball State, 24-19
This week: 10/17 vs. No. 131 Army, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Temple by 10 (64.75 and 3 to 57.94)

147. Lafayette (146)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 174/161 Columbia, 24-21
This week: 10/17 at No. 138 Harvard, 12:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Harvard by 6 (57.33 and 3 to 54.56)

172. Penn (167)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 222/229 Bucknell, 21-3
This week: 10/17 at No. 161 Columbia, 1:30 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Columbia by 4 (51.82 and 3 to 49.96)

187. Delaware State (177)
Last week: Home loss vs. No. 228/215 Bethune Cookman, 9-7
This week: 10/17 at No. 37 Michigan, 12:00 p.m. (Big Ten Network)
Sagarin predicts: Michigan by 34 (77.34 and 3 to 46.04)

205. Lehigh (200)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 235/241 Georgetown, 27-0
This week: 10/17 vs. No. 188 Yale, 12:30 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Yale by 1 (45.34 to 41.15 and 3)

214. Princeton (209)
Last week: Home loss vs. No. 142/146 Colgate, 21-14 (2 OT)
This week: 10/17 at No. 160 Brown, 12:30 p.m. (Versus)
Sagarin predicts: Brown by 17 (52.10 and 3 to 38.17)

229. Bucknell (222)
Last week: Road loss vs. No. 167/172 Penn, 21-3
This week: No game

NOTE: This post has been updated from the original version...

Let's start with a bit of housekeeping (with apologies to Dan Levy), because the next few weeks are going to be a bit busy here on the blog.

This coming Saturday, I'll be at Franklin Field to cover the Bucknell-Penn football game for the Inquirer. I hope to open a chat during the game, so be ready for a post near the 1:00 p.m. kickoff.

Saturday night, the U.S. national soccer team will play a World Cup Qualifying at Honduras. Because the Honduran soccer federation owns the broadcast rights, the match will only air on closed-circuit television in the United States.

This morning, Tir Na Nog at 16th and Arch was added to the rights-holder's official list of establishments that will show the game. That is the only location in the region that is airing the English-language broadcast as of now. I will be there, and I hope to provide some kind of updates either here on the blog or on Twitter if I can't get a laptop into the room.

The list of establishments showing the game in Spanish include two in South Jersey: Los Compadres in Atlantic City (2701 Arctic Ave.) and La Escondida II in Pleasantville (701 Black Horse Pike).

The game is scheduled to kick off at 10:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The cover charge is supposed to be $15.

The following Wednesday, Oct. 14, I'll be in Washington, D.C. to cover the U.S.' final World Cup Qualifying match against Costa Rica. I know that a number of you are planning to go to the game, so I'll take this opportunity to remind you that this blog and our live chats are iPhone-compatible. So those of you who have iPhones are welcome to join the conversation from the the stands.

On Saturday, Oct. 17, I'll be in New York to cover Penn's football game at Columbia. I was as shocked as anyone when I saw the Lions' scoreline from this past weekend: a 38-0 win at Princeton. The result was Columbia's first road shutout of an Ancient Eight opponent since 1961, and in general it was the kind of statement game that sent shockwaves around the league.

I have seen Penn teams pound Columbia squads a number of times, and before Saturday I figured this year would be more of the same. I suspect I am not the only one out there who wonders if things might change this time around.

The game will kick off at 1:30, and as with the Bucknell game I hope to have some kind of chat during the afternoon. There are a number of big national games that day, so we should have plenty to talk about.

Finally, I'll be back in Manhattan on Wednesday, Oct. 21, to begin the countdown to college basketball season at Big East Media Day. While this year's conference might not measure up to last year's strong season, there will still be plenty of attention paid to events at Madison Square Garden that day. I will be particularly interested to see how big a crowd Rick Pitino draws.

There will be live coverage as well as plenty of multimedia from the event.

So that's what we have to look forward to.

As for today, we have the latest edition of Football Crunchy Numbers.

18. Penn State (23)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 85/91 Illinois, 35-17
This week: 10/10 vs. No. 152 Eastern Illinois, 12:00 p.m. (ESPN Classic)
Sagarin predicts: Penn State by 31 (81.43 and 3 to 53.61)

56. Rutgers (54)
Last week: No game
This week: 10/10 vs. No. 231 Texas Southern, 3:30 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Rutgers by 45 (73.21 and 3 to 31.23)

64. Villanova (83)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 82/77 William & Mary, 28-17
This week: 10/10 at No. 110 New Hampshire, 12:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Villanova by 5 (71.51 to 63.05 and 3)

For the record, 58 of the 120 teams in I-A football are ranked below Villanova in the Sagarin Index. Among the notable names are Kansas State, Syracuse and Purdue.

97. Temple (109)
Last week: Road vs No. 159/164 Eastern Michigan, 24-12
This week: 10/10 vs. No. 156 Ball State, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Temple by 15 (65.01 and 3 to 52.82)

118. Delaware (120)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 156/159 Maine, 27-17
This week: 10/10 vs. No. 90 Massachusetts, 10:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Massachussets by 1 (65.58 to 61.39 and 3)

146. Lafayette (162)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 167/188 Yale, 31-14
This week: 10/10 vs. No. 174 Columbia, 6:00 p.m. (RCN-4 or RCN-8, WBPH-60, tape-delayed on MASN)
Sagarin predicts: Lafayette by 9 (55.84 and 3 to 49.50)

167. Penn (164)
Last week: Road win vs. No. 209/204 Dartmouth, 30-24
This week: 10/10 vs. No. 222 Bucknell, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Penn by 18 (51.38 and 3 to 36.51)

177. Delaware State (184)
Last week: No game
This week: 10/10 vs. No. 228 Bethune-Cookman, 7:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Delaware State by 20 (48.80 and 3 to 32.30)

200. Lehigh (186)
Last week: Home loss vs. No. 151/137 Harvard, 28-14
This week: 10/10 vs. No. 235 Georgetown, 12:30 p.m. (Service Electric 2, tape-delayed on Fox College Sports)
Sagarin predicts: Lehigh by 15 (42.05 and 3 to 29.60)

209. Princeton (179)
Last week: Home loss vs. No. 201/174 Columbia, 38-0
This week: 10/8 vs. No. 142 Colgate, 7:00 p.m. (ESPNU)
Sagarin predicts: Colgate by 13 (56.43 to 40.47 and 3)

222. Bucknell (223)
Last week: Home win vs. No. 232/235 Georgetown, 14-6
This week: 10/10 at No. 167 Penn, 1:00 p.m.
Sagarin predicts: Penn by 18 (51.38 and 3 to 36.51)

After last week's upheaval, there are more than a few people out there wondering whether any teams in college football can actually play this game.

Florida and Texas seem to be the two top teams in the country, but they haven't really been tested yet. And as they're both off this week, we'll have to wait even longer to find out if they're for real.

The highest-ranked team playing this week is No. 3 Alabama, which is following in the Gators' footsteps with a trip to Kentucky. After Tim Tebow's concussion last week, you would think Nick Saban has his team ready to play.

The biggest game in the SEC is No. 4 LSU at No. 18 Georgia. The Tigers are 4-0, including a win at Washington. A win in Athens could propel them over the Crimson Tide in the polls.

The game I most want to see won't be on local television. It's USC at Cal, and it could go a long way towards determing who wins the Pac-10 this season. But it won't determine who's in first place this week. That honor goes to UCLA at Stanford. The Cardinal are 2-0 in conference play, and welcome a Bruins squad playing its Pac-10 opener.

USC at Cal will air on ABC west of the Rockies, while the rest of the country (including Philadelphia) will get Oklahoma at Miami. Which isn't a bad game, but it doesn't have the same kind of stakes.

Penn State at Illinois will be the 3:30 ABC game, while ESPN will simulcast ABC's broadcast of Florida State at Boston College in that timeslot.

That goes along with the Versus doubleheader of Penn-Dartmouth at noon and William & Mary at 3:30. Which games will you be watching?

As for the Top 10 chart, this week we add the first Harris poll of the season. Check it out below:

Poll: What's the Spectacle of the Week? (32 votes)