Oct. 14, 2003

BALTIMORE, Md. -- The Johns Hopkins University football team jumped four spots to a program-best 15th in this week's American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Division III Coaches' Poll, which was released today. The Blue Jays are 6-0 this season, have won a school-record 10 straight games dating back to last season and are ranked in the top 25 for the fourth consecutive week. Prior to this four-week run in the top 25, the highest a Johns Hopkins football team was ever ranked was 26th (October 15, 2002).

Johns Hopkins received 461 points in this week's poll - 169 more than last week, when JHU was ranked 19th. Hopkins is the only team from the Centennial Conference in this week's top 25 and is one of two teams from the state of Maryland in the top 25 (Salisbury/19th). In addition to their national ranking, the Blue Jays are also currently ranked seventh in the Division III ECAC Lambert Football Poll, which ranks the best teams in the East. Prior to this week's initial 2003 ECAC Lambert Poll, Johns Hopkins had never been ranked in the top 10 in this prestigious poll.

Johns Hopkins (6-0, 2-0 Centennial Conference) will carry its 10-game winning streak into this Friday' night's game against Gettysburg (4-1, 1-0 CC). The 10-game winning streak is the longest active winning streak in the Centennial Conference and the longest active winning streak by a college football team in the state of Maryland. Last Saturday's 37-14 victory over Franklin & Marshall also gave the Blue Jays the first 10-game unbeaten streak in school history. Hopkins had nine-game unbeaten streaks that bridged the 1904-05 seasons and the 1907-08 seasons.

Under head coach Jim Margraff, the Blue Jay football program has enjoyed a great deal of success since 1990. Margraff ranks as the all-time winningest football coach in school history with an 81-52-3 (.607) record and the 81 games Johns Hopkins has won under Margraff's guidance in 13-plus seasons are four more than Hopkins won in the previous 20 seasons combined. In addition, since the beginning of the 1995 season, the Blue Jays are 57-28-1 (.669).

AFCA Division III Coaches' Poll

Through Games of 10-11-03

1. Mount Union (OH) (45) 5-0 1,125

2. St. John's (MN) (1) 5-0 1,102

3. Linfield (OR) 4-0 1,019

4. Mary-Hardin-Baylor (TX) 5-0 997

5. Brockport St. (NY) 6-0 936

6. Wheaton (IL) 5-0 933

7. Wartburg (IO) 5-0 835

8. Springfield (MA) 6-0 815

9. Baldwin Wallace (OH) 4-1 720

10. Lycoming (PA) 4-0 702

11. Washington & Jefferson (PA) 5-0 637

12. Rowan (NJ) 4-1 570

13. Bridgewater (VA) 4-1 538

14. Trinity (TX) 5-1 501

15. Johns Hopkins (MD) 6-0 461

16. Bethel (MN) 6-0 419

17. Hardin-Simmons (TX) 4-1 367

18. Wisconsin-La Crosse 4-1 329

19. Salisbury (MD) 4-0 269

20. St. Norbert (MN) 6-0 258

21. Capital (OH) 5-0 246

22. Christopher Newport (VA) 4-1 184

23. New Jersey 5-1 164

24. Simpson (IO) 5-0 129

25. Wittenberg (OH) 4-1 109

Others Receiving Votes: John Carroll-80, Hampden-Sydney-76, UW Whiteater-61, Adrian-45, Ithaca-43, RPI-37, UW Stout-35, Trinity (CT)-28, Wooster-24, UW Stevens Point -20, Hanover-18, Menlo-15, UW Eau Claire-14, Concordia-14, Pacific Lutheran-12, Wabash-9, Pomona Pitzer-8, Concordia-Moorehead-7, Montclair State-6, Millikin-4, Augustana-2, Willamette-1, Kings Point-1, UW Oshkosh-1.

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