ROME -- In terms of salaries, Atalanta ranks 15th in Serie A. On the field, however, its been a different story for the provincial club, which has relied on homegrown talent to become the best team in the Italian league over the last seven rounds.After gaining 19 out of a possible 21 points since Sept. 26, Atalanta has rocketed up the standings to fifth place to make qualifying for Europe a distinct possibility.The Bergamo squad has won four straight and achieved three consecutive clean sheets in which it has outscored the opposition 7-0.Were on a fantastic streak but the most important thing has been the way weve been playing and that the squad and players have been improving continuously, Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini said.Gasperinis job was at risk when Atalanta lost four of its five opening matches, but club president Antonio Percassis faith in the coach has proved decisive.Atalanta features nine homegrown players on its first team -- the most in Serie A -- and regularly uses them.Players like 22-year-old defenders Mattia Caldara and Andrea Conti, 21-year-old striker Andrea Petagna -- all members of Italys under-21 squad -- and 22-year-old midfielder Roberto Gagliardini, who was given his first call up to Italys senior national team this month after only nine Serie A appearances, are in the team.Then theres 19-year-old Ivory Coast midfielder Franck Kessie, who first spent time on the youth squad after arriving in January 2015. He leads the team with four goals this season.Its a matter of pride for us and for the club, Gagliardini said of the widespread use of homegrown players.Added Caldara: Were friends before were teammates.The youth movement was on full display in Atalantas last match, a 3-0 win at Sassuolo in which Caldara and Conti scored and Gagliardini provided the assist for the opening goal by Alejandro Papu Gomez.The victory over Sassuolo was significant because it gave Atalanta bragging rights as the leagues top provincial squad.Sassuolo set a club record by finishing sixth last season to qualify for the Europa League, an achievement Atalanta would like to emulate.In its 109-year history, Atalanta has spent 56 seasons in Serie A -- more than any other club which has never won the top division.Its only major trophy was the 1963 Italian Cup, besides six Serie B titles. Atalanta also reached the Cup Winners Cup semifinals in 1988 while competing in Serie B -- one of the best performances by a non-first division club in a major UEFA competition.The club has also had its troubles, getting docked six points in 2011-12 for a widespread betting and match-fixing scandal that ended the career of club captain Cristiano Doni, who was arrested.Atalanta was also docked two points the following season but it managed to avoid relegation from Serie A on both occasions.With a population of 120,000, Bergamo is a mid-sized city that is considered part of the wider Milan metropolitan area, which made a 2-1 win over Inter Milan last month especially sweet.Gasperini, in his first season at Atalanta, was hardly given a chance at Inter, where he was fired after five winless matches in September 2011.Bergamo attracts many Milan residents for its airport that is home to low-cost airlines and the club is also a relatively low-cost affair.Atalanta, which pays its players a total of 24 million euros ($26.5 million) per season, is level on points with fourth-place Lazio, which pays its players more than twice as much.In July, Atalanta sold Marten de Roon to Middlesbrough for 14 million euros ($15 million), a year after paying Heerenveen 1.5 million euros ($1.6 million) for the Dutch midfielder. That helped Atalanta earn a 6 million euro ($6.5 million) profit in the offseason transfer market.Were enjoying the moment and it provides us with extra motivation to continue along this path, Gasperini said.Having helped launch the careers of players like Roberto Donadoni, Christian Vieri and Filippo Inzaghi -- plus current AC Milan standouts Riccardo Montolivo and Giacomo Bonaventura -- Atalanta has long been a starting spot for players who later achieved greatness.And with coaches like Marcello Lippi, Cesare Prandelli and Antonio Conte making stops in Bergamo, its also been on the road to managerial success.The clubs current fortune will be tested against Roma on Sunday and in games against Juventus and Milan -- the top three teams in the standings -- before the holiday break.Weve got a Tour de Force awaiting us until Christmas but weve got enthusiasm, Gasperini said. 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"It was nerve-wracking, but we pulled through," said Collaros, who threw four touchdown passes to lead the Toronto Argonauts (8-4) to a 33-27 win over the Calgary Stampeders (9-3) in front of 28,781 fans at McMahon Stadium. COOKEVILLE, Tenn. -- Michael Birdsong threw for 170 yards and a touchdown to help lift Tennessee Tech to a 21-20 win over Southeast Missouri State on Saturday.Dontez Byrd hauled in the 10-yard go-ahead touchdown throw from Birdsong with 3 minutes left in the opening half to put Tennessee Tech (3-5, 3-3 Ohio Valley Conference) up 21-17. Birdsong completed 14 of 23 passes and Byrd had 97 yards on eight catches to snap Techs two-game skid.Southeast Missouri State (2-5, 2-2) cut the gap to 21-20 inn the third quarter with a 30-yard field goal from Ryan McCrum, who hit a 51-yarder in the first quarter but missed a 30-yard attempt in the third.ddddddddddddTech also got a 2-yard touchdown run from Yeedee Thaenrat in the first quarter and took its first lead one play later when Elliott Normand intercepted a pass from Jesse Hosket and returned it 25 yards for a TD. Cheap Jerseys Store Cheap NFL T-shirts Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys China NFL Jerseys White Cheap NFL Jerseys Camo Wholesale Jerseys China NFL Jerseys Outlet Cheap Jerseys Wholesale China Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Hoodies Camo China NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Wholesale Cheap NFL Jerseys Camo NFL Jerseys China ' ' '