THEMA: for his career ... The Canucks avenged a 5-0 loss

Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - If Richmond is this good in November, imagine what the Spiders could accomplish in December. Such prospect would mean Richmond is playing in the postseason, and Saturdays one-point win over then-No. 4 Villanova strengthened the Spiders bid for their first FCS playoff appearance since 2009. On Monday, the Spiders moved up five spots to No. 8 in The Sports Network FCS Top 25 - their highest ranking in over three years. With New Hampshire remaining at No. 2 and Villanova at No. 7, CAA Football has three of the top eight teams in the poll. Richmond (7-2, 4-1) would love to go into the playoffs with the CAAs automatic bid, but the Spiders need some help over the final three Saturdays of the regular season. They are one game behind first-place New Hampshire in the standings and lost the head-to-head meeting on Sept. 20. But they hold the head-to-head advantage over Villanova. As the Spiders try to play their way into the 24-team playoffs - the CAA figures to receive multiple at-large bids in addition to the automatic qualifier - they will need continued success this month. They are 8-0 in November games under third-year coach Danny Rocco, who also had plenty of success in the month when he coached Liberty for six seasons prior to arriving at Richmond. Opponents have been caught in the Spiders web recently as they have allowed only 19 points combined in their last three games. In the 10-9 win over Villanova, linebacker Omar Howard, the Co-CAA Defensive Player of the Week, had 18 tackles and one sack of Wildcats quarterback John Robertson, a five-time CAA offensive player of the week who had his worst game of the season. I thought it was a signature win for our season, Rocco said Monday. Obviously, we have to continue to find ways to win and be successful. This is a more veteran team than weve had since Ive been here. And I think they recognize the significance of the moment. Guys have really stepped into new roles and have played at a really high level for us. Richmond hasnt dwelled on injuries to key some players, including quarterback Michael Strauss and wide receiver Stephen Barnette. Rocco has turned to his nephew Michael at quarterback, and the redshirt senior is 3-0 as the starter, which isnt surprising considering he made 21 career starts at Virginia before he transferred to Richmond in spring 2013. On Saturday, the Spiders hope to continue to make it a November to remember when they travel to Maine, the 2013 CAA champion. North Dakota State (9-0), the three-time reigning FCS national champion, remained the unanimous No. 1 in the rankings (all 164 first-place votes) after posting a 37-17 victory over South Dakota State on Saturday. First-year coach Chris Kliemans Bison have won an FCS-record 33 straight games since 2012 and are one of three unbeaten teams remaining this season (Coastal Carolina and Harvard are the other two). After NDSU, the rest of the Top 10 was No. 2 New Hampshire (7-1), No. 3 Coastal Carolina (9-0), No. 4 Jacksonville State (7-1), No. 5 Eastern Washington (8-2), No. 6 McNeese State (6-2), No. 7 Villanova (7-2), Richmond, No. 9 Fordham (8-1) and No. 10 Youngstown State (7-2). Montana (6-3) moved up to No. 11 in advance of its huge game in the Big Sky Conference Saturday on the road against Eastern Washington. Then it was No. 12 Illinois State (7-1), No. 13 Chattanooga (6-3), No. 14 Southeastern Louisiana (6-3), No. 15 Montana State (6-3), No. 16 Eastern Kentucky (8-1), No. 17 Indiana State (6-3), No. 18 Harvard (7-0), No. 19 Northern Iowa (5-4) and No. 20 Bethune-Cookman (7-2). Rounding out the Top 25 were No. 21 Cal Poly (6-3), which entered the rankings for the first time this season following its recent back-to-back sweep of Montana and Montana State; No. 22 South Dakota State (5-4); No. 23 Bryant (7-1); No. 24 William & Mary (5-4); and No. 25 Northern Arizona (6-3), which re-entered after a six-week absence. Albany and Stephen F. Austin fell out of the Top 25 after suffering losses on Saturday. Led by North Dakota State, the Missouri Valley Football Conference had the most teams in the Top 25 with six, followed by the Big Sky with five and the CAA with four. Eleven of the 13 FCS conferences had at least one team in the rankings. A national panel of sports information and media relations directors, broadcasters, writers and other dignitaries select the Top 25. In the voting, a first-place vote is worth 25 points, a second-place vote 24 points, all the way down to one point for a 25th-place vote. During the regular season, the Top 25 will be released every Monday afternoon, except for the final weekend of the regular season, when it will be released Sunday morning, Nov. 23, prior to the selection of the 24-team FCS playoff field. The Sports Network will release a final Top 25 following the FCS championship game, which will be held Jan. 10 in Frisco, Texas. Nino Niederreiter Jersey .com) - John Wall supplied 24 points and 11 assists in leading the Washington Wizards to a 102-91 win over the New York Knicks on Christmas Day. Gustav Olofsson Jersey . Louis against the Blues. The Canucks picked up their second straight victory in the swings opener on Tuesday in Calgary before getting routed in Minnesota last night, 5-1. www.hockeywildauthority.com/kyle-quincey-wild-jersey-c-23/. Rodgers was ruled out on Friday by Packers head coach Mike McCarthy. Matt Flynn will make his second consecutive start for the Packers. Chris Stewart Jersey .J. -- New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning is going to start the off-season training program with a surgically repaired left ankle. Eric Staal Jersey .2 million in 2012, according to tax returns the league has submitted.Vancouver, BC (SportsNetwork.com) - Alex Burrows had two goals and the Vancouver Canucks broke out of a scoring slump in a big way, rolling to a 7-1 victory over the Arizona Coyotes. After mustering just 10 goals over their previous six games, the Canucks put up three in the first period to back a 38-save effort from Ryan Miller. Three of Vancouvers scores on the night came on the power play, where the club had gone 1-of-22 over its last seven outings. Daniel Sedin and Brad Richardson had a goal and an assist in the rout, with Kevin Bieksa, Chris Higgins and Shawn Matthias also lighting the lamp for the Canucks. Were happy with the win. We did a lot of good things, said Burrows. Mike Smith lasted just over a period for Arizona before being pulled after letting up four goals on 11 shots. Devan Dubnyk stopped 26-of-29 chances in relief. Oliver Ekman-Larsson accounted for the Coyotes lone goal as the visitors dropped their seventh game in the last eight. Its kind of a microcosm of our team this year, Arizona head coach Dave Tippett said of the game. The Canucks beat Smith three times on just 10 shots in the opening period to give Miller all the support he needed, with Burrows beginning the barrage 6:34 in by collecting a loose puck behind the Arizona net and stuffing it through the Coyotes goaltenders pads. Bieksa made it 2-0 when he raced out of the penalty box to join a Vancouver rush led by Henrik Sedin, who hitt the defenseman in stride before Bieksa fired the puck in from the left side with 2:43 to go in the first.dddddddddddd It was a three-goal margin at the first intermission after Daniel Sedin knocked in a long rebound left by Smith on Radim Vrbatas initial attempt. Smiths night then ended quickly in the second, when Richardson raced up the right side and rocketed a shot into the top right corner with just 1:41 elapsed in the session. Burrows got his second of the night on a Canucks power play, chipping in a second-chance rebound while camped in front of the Coyotes net to make it 5-0 with 7:41 still remaining in the frame. Arizona finally had a highlight later in the second, as Ekman-Larssons wrister off a Sam Gagner feed got through a screened Miller with Arizona on a 5-on-4. Higgins and Matthias each scored on the power play 2:24 apart in the third to finish off the lopsided win. Its nice to see the guys get rewarded, to see the smiles on their faces, Miller said. Game Notes Henrik Sedin finished with two assists ... Forward Jannik Hansen did not play for Vancouver two days after temporarily collapsing on the bench in Saturdays game against Calgary ... The Canucks were 3-for-8 on the power play ... Miller improved to 8-1-0 against the Coyotes for his career ... The Canucks avenged a 5-0 loss to Arizona in Vancouver back on Nov. 14, in which Dubnyk recorded 35 saves. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '