Final AFCA Division II National Rankings

WACO, Texas – The Slippery Rock University football team finished the 2021 season ranked No. 20 in the final Division II national rankings released Monday by the American Football Coaches Association.
 
The Rock spent the entire 2021 season ranked in the top 20 of the national poll, reaching as high as No. 5 and never dropping below No. 20. Slippery Rock has been ranked nationally in each of the last eight seasons and has spent at least one week ranked in the top 10 in five of the last six seasons.
 
Slippery Rock finished the 2021 season with a 9-3 record after dropping one-possession games in week 11 at Kutztown and week 12 at Notre Dame after enduring a slew of injuries in the final month of the season. All told, The Rock played stretches of the final three weeks without up to eight different starters due to injuries.
 
Despite those injuries, SRU picked up a third straight PSAC West title after going 6-1 during conference play, including posting a victory over then third-ranked Cal U that marked SRU's first win over a top three ranked opponent since 1998. The Rock won their sixth PSAC West title in the last eight seasons and put together a 20-1 record against the division over the last three seasons.
 
The Rock have averaged a PSAC-leading 10.25 wins per season over the last four years with 41 victories between 2017-21, which included three PSAC West titles, three NCAA playoff appearances, two trips to the national quarterfinals and one trip to the national semifinals.
 
The 9-3 record this fall marked the 12th straight winning season for Slippery Rock, which ranks The Rock as one of the top 10 active teams in Division II in that category.
 
National champion Ferris State finished the year ranked No. 1 in the final national poll after being the only undefeated team in the nation.
 
Super Region One finished the year with eight teams ranked in the final top 25. Shepherd led the way at No. 5, followed by Kutztown at No. 8, Notre Dame (Ohio) at No. 9, New Haven at No. 14, Slippery Rock at No. 20, Cal U at No. 21, Frostburg State at No. 22 and Bentley at No. 24. Charleston (W.Va.) and Findlay both finished the year receiving votes to give the region 10 total teams mentioned in the final poll.
 
Slippery Rock will open the 2022 season at home against Wayne State the first week of September.
 
 2021 AFCA DIVISION II FINAL NATIONAL RANKINGS

Rank	Team (1st place votes)	W-L	Pts.	Prev.
1	Ferris St. (Mich.) (30)	14-0	750	1
2	Valdosta St. (Ga.)	12-2	720	5
3	Colorado School of Mines	12-2	651	9
4	Northwest Missouri St.	11-2	646	3
5	Shepherd (W.Va.)	13-2	626	8
6	Bowie St. (Md.)	12-2	545	10
7	Grand Valley St. (Mich.)	10-2	521	4
8	Kutztown (Pa.)	11-2	497	12
9	Notre Dame (Ohio)	11-2	454	6
10	Harding (Ark.)	11-2	448	7
11	Angelo St. (Tex.)	11-3	437	NR
12	West Florida	9-2	422	2
13	West Georgia	9-3	413	13
14	New Haven (Conn.)	10-2	307	18
15	Nebraska-Kearney	10-3	304	21
16	Western Colorado	10-2	293	11
17	Newberry (S.C.)	10-3	271	NR
18	Albany St. (Ga.)	10-2	233	16
19	Bemidji St. (Minn.)	10-3	175	NR
20	SLIPPERY ROCK (Pa.)	9-3	166	19
21	California (Pa.)	9-1	135	14
22	Frostburg St. (Md.)	10-1	134	15
23	Ouachita Baptist (Ark.)	9-2	101	17
24	Bentley (Mass.)	9-2	97	20
25	Washburn (Kan.)	9-3	84	24

 
Dropped Out: Henderson St. (Ark.) (22), Minnesota-Duluth (23), Augustana (S.D.) (25)

Others Receiving Votes: Minnesota-Duluth, 82; Lindenwood (Mo.), 71; Augustana (S.D.), 55; Henderson St. (Ark.), 51; Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.), 40; Charleston (W.Va.), 12; Colorado Mesa, 6; Findlay (Ohio), 3.



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