Following its exciting 30-24 victory over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, the University of Redlands football team moved up three slots to No. 20 on the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Top-25 Poll, according to Monday's announcement. The Bulldogs collected 213 points, compared to only 114 in the previous poll from a week ago that landed them back on the list at No. 23.

Ironically, the Bulldogs slipped two spots on the D3football.com Top-25 Poll to No. 17.

After overcoming a 21-point deficit, the Bulldogs prevailed against the CMS Stags on a "Hail Mary" play as time expired on Saturday. With a gutsy performance on both sides of the ball, the Maroon and Gray put up 10 points in 62 seconds to end the second quarter and then out-scored CMS, 20-3, in the final two periods for the exciting comeback victory in Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) action.

With the score tied at 24, the Bulldogs faced one more chance with 14 seconds on the clock, beginning on their own 41-yard line. Junior quarterback Chad Hurst (Dixon, CA) found sophomore wide receiver Taylor Irwin (Rocklin, CA) for 17 yards and the first down but left only one second on the clock.

Following a timeout, Hurst dodged the defense and let go of a "Hail Mary" attempt as time expired, with Irwin making the heroic grab for the 42-yard winning score.

In conference action, the Bulldogs boast a well-balanced attack that has amassed an average of 223.7 yards of passing and 215.7 yards of rushing, resulting in 38.3 points per SCIAC game.

The team is also 4-for-4 on fourth-down conversions this season.

Defensively, junior linebacker Jordan Garcia (Carlsbad, CA) leads the Maroon and Gray with 51 total tackles, including 31 of the solo variety. Senior defensive lineman Brett Hutter (Ontario, CA) has racked up 10 tackles for a loss of 22 total yards.

Redlands (4-1, 2-1 SCIAC) sits in a tie for second place with Occidental College and looks forward to facing the Tigers on Saturday in a 7 p.m. conference showdown in Eagle Rock.