VALDOSTA — In the first Division II Super Region 2 rankings of the season, the Valdosta State football team was tabbed fourth.The Blazers are ranked fourth with a 6-2 overall record and a 5-2 record against Division II competition.
"I thought we would be about three or four," Valdosta State head coach David Dean said. "If you look at the national rankings, we are the third ranked team in the South Region. So I figured we would be somewhere in there around three or four."
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) leader Miles is ranked No. 1 in Super Region 2 with a 7-1 record against Division II schools. Mars Hill is ranked second with a 5-1 record against DII competition, followed by West Alabama, who is 4-1 record against Division II teams. Carson-Newman is ranked fifth (5-2 against DII), and Fort Valley State (5-2 against DII) is ranked sixth.
The top six teams in the final region rankings, set to be released Sunday, Nov. 11, will make up the playoff field with the top two-seeded teams receiving bye weeks in the first round. The three-seed will host the sixth-seed and the four-seed will host the fifth-seeded team. The playoffs begin Nov. 17.
"The thing is, it is going to change," Dean said. "We have three weeks left in the regular season, so a lot of those folks are going to play each other and have tough games yet to play. All we can do is take care of ourselves."
Lenoir-Rhyne (4-2), Wingate (5-3), Newberry (5-3) and Albany State (5-3) round out the top 10 of the rankings.
Valdosta State concludes Gulf South Conference play Thursday night when the Blazers visit conference newcomer Shorter in Rome. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. and will be carried live on CSS.
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