RALEIGH, N.C. – North Carolina A&T moved a step closer to gaining unanimous status as the top-ranked Black College football team in the country, and is followed by a pair of teams carrying two impressive winning streaks of their own.
In the BOXTOROW HBCU coaches poll, the Aggies (5-0) remained unbeaten with a defensively dominant 21-7 victory on the road against South Carolina State and received 17 of 18 first-place votes. The Aggies were led by three players who garnered MEAC player of the week honors coming off the team’s fourth win of the season by a double-digit margin.
Aggies quarterback Lamar Raynard was named MEAC offensive player of the week after passing for 298 yards and two touchdowns in the win over South Carolina State. He was joined by linebacker Jeremy Taylor, who forced three turnovers in the win and was named the league’s defensive player of the week. And true freshman placekicker Noel Ruiz was named MEAC rookie of the week after connecting on three field goals to account for nine of N.C. A&T’s 21 points.
The Coaches Poll’s lone other first-place vote went to No. 2 Grambling (4-1), which has won four straight games after rallying to beat Clark Atlanta over the weekend in the Chicago Football Classic at Soldier Field. Meanwhile, North Carolina Central stayed locked in at third in the poll after extending its conference winning streak to 17 consecutive games by traveling to knock off Florida A&M.
Alcorn State jumped up two spots from the previous week to land at the No. 4 spot in the poll and was followed by fifth-place Tennessee State, which has fallen each of the past two weeks after consecutive losses on the heels of a promising 3-0 start.
The BOXTOROW coaches poll is administered by FROM THE PRESS BOX TO PRESS ROW and is voted on by the HBCU Football Championship Subdivision coaches.
2017 BOXTOROW FCS HBCU Football Coaches Poll Week 5
(Records through September 30, 2017)
| No. | Team | W/L | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  North Carolina A&T (17) |
5-0 | 179 | |
| 2. |  Grambling (1) |
4-1 | 158 | |
| 3. |  North Carolina Central |
3-1 | 141 | |
| 4. |  Alcorn State |
3-2 | 107 | |
| 5. |  Tennessee State |
3-2 | 96 | |
| 6. |  Howard |
2-2 | 91 | |
| 7. |  Prairie View A&M |
2-2 | 83 | |
| 8. |  Hampton |
2-2 | 46 | |
| 9. |  Bethune-Cookman |
1-3 | 36 | |
| 10. |  Alabama A&M |
2-3 | 21 | |
Others receiving votes: Southern (2-3) 17, South Carolina State (1-3) 7, Florida A&M (2-3) 5.
(1st place votes in parentheses)
Note: (1st place votes in parentheses)
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