The Mountaineers, the No.1 seed in the Football Championship Series Division I playoffs, begin their quest for a fourth national championship Saturday afternoon at Kidd Brewer Stadium.

The Mountaineers (9-2 overall) open post-season play with a second-round game against Western Illinois in the first meeting ever between the schools. Western Illinois (8-4), which only won one game last fall (1-10 last season) finished in second place with a 5-3 record in the Missouri Valley Conference. And quarterback Matt Barr of the Leathernecks, a Walter Payton Award candidate, was named the Missouri Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Year.
Barr, who scored the game-winning touchdown in last Saturday's wildcard game against Coastal Carolina, led the league in passing efficiency, total offense, passing yards, touchdown passes and touchdowns accounted for.
The Mountaineers are ranked third in this week's FCS Coaches Top 25 Poll. The Mountaineers did receive 12 first-place votes. The Leathernecks are ranked 24th. Eastern Washington is No.1 with 13 first-place votes, and Stephen F. Austin, a possible second-round opponent for ASU, is No.2 with one-first place vote. William & Mary  and Delaware round out the top five.
Wofford is sixth, Jacksonville State, which plays the Terriers at home on Saturday is ninth. The Gamecocks also received one first-place vote; Georgia Southern, which blew out South Carolina State on Saturday and plays at William & Mary in a second-round game on Saturday, is ranked 22nd.
The Mountaineers are 3-0 lifetime against the Missouri Valley Conference. Saturday's second-round game with WIU begins are 12 noon. Our coverage begins at 10 am on AM 1450, WATA.
The Sports Network did not release a new poll this week. ASU was ranked second in last week's poll and received 39 first-place votes; Eastern Washington was No.1 and received 64 first-place votes.

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FCS Coaches Poll

No. School Record Points Prev

1 Eastern Washington (13) 9-2 660 3
2 Stephen F. Austin (1) 9-2 617 5
3 Appalachian State (12) 9-2 616 2
4 William & Mary  8-3 573 6
5 Delaware  9-2 562 1
6 Wofford  9-2 552 7
7 Montana State  9-2 527 8
8 Southeast Missouri State  9-2 463 10
9 Jacksonville State (1) 9-2 449 4
10 New Hampshire  7-4 401 13
11 South Carolina State  9-3 383 11
11 Villanova  7-4 383 15
13 Pennsylvania  9-1 306 16
13 Bethune-Cookman  10-1 306 9
15 Liberty  8-3 305 18
16 Northern Iowa  7-5 265 12
17 Montana  7-4 198 14
18 Lehigh  10-2 188 22
19 Jacksonville (Fl)  10-1 165 21
20 Cal Poly  7-4 128 23
21 North Dakota State  8-4 123 17
22 Georgia Southern  8-4 121 26
23 Grambling  9-2 110 24
24 Western Illinois  8-4 92 27
25 Dayton  10-1 70 25

Others Receiving Votes: Florida A&M(8-3) 57; Richmond(6-5) 38; Robert Morris(8-3) 19; Massachusetts(6-5) 18; Southern Utah(6-5) 14; James Madison(6-5) 11; Central Arkansas(7-4) 11; Northern Arizona(6-5) 7; McNeese State(6-5) 7; Texas Southern(8-3) 7; Harvard(7-3) 4; Alabama State(7-4) 4; Sacramento State(6-5) 3; Old Dominion(8-3) 3; Eastern Kentucky(6-5) 2; Chattanooga(6-5) 2; Alabama A&M(3-8) 2; Weber State(6-5) 1; UC Davis(6-5) 1