Lights get votes, four Frontier teams ranked

The Montana State University-Northern football team is off to a great start. And now, the Lights are getting some national attention.

In the new NAIA Coaches Poll, released Monday afternoon, the Lights received seven votes. This is the first time Northern has been mentioned in the NAIA Poll since the 2012 Preseason Coaches Poll August last year.

Northern has won three of its first four games and just completed a two-game home stand with a 49-24 walloping of Dickinson State last Saturday at Blue Pony Stadium.

Meanwhile, the Frontier Conference as a whole, is getting plenty of national recognition.

In the latest poll, four Frontier teams are ranked in the Top 25, with Carroll College moving up one spot to No. 3 this week. Carroll’s 24-17 win over Rocky Mountain College last Saturday didn’t hurt the Bears’ standing in the poll either. Despite the loss, RMC moved up to No. 18 this week. The surprise team of 2013 is UM-Western. After last Saturday’s 28-22 win at Montana Tech, the unbeaten Bulldogs jumped into the Top 25 at No. 15. It’s Western’s highest ranking in the NAIA in more than a decade. Tech, which has lost two straight, fell all the way to No. 21.

Northern will try to be the first team to beat the Bulldogs when the Lights travel to Dillon Saturday. For the complete NAIA Poll, see below.