With player and coaching movement basically in the rear-view mirror, and reflecting on what’s ahead, Craig Haley updates his FCS football rankings heading toward the 2026 season.
The departure of North Dakota State from FCS football would stand to signal parity is just around the corner, but that notion may have to wait.
Defending national champion Montana State remains the team to beat in 2026, and the legitimate national title national contenders likely remains a customary small group, including Montana and South Dakota State, and most are surely from the Big Sky and Missouri Valley conferences.
Mid-January brought the Never-Too-Early FCS Top 25 Rankings, but there’s been change since then, of course, and none more important than the Bison deciding 10 national titles since 2011 were enough – that they’re off to the FBS.
There’s also been heavy movement in the NCAA transfer portal and spring practices since then, but the Top 25 preseason rankings have remained fairly consistent from their start, with the changes including Southeastern Louisiana and Idaho State in and Mercer and Southern Utah out since mid-January. Consider it the first ballot cast for the preseason Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll this summer (each team’s 2025 record is in parentheses).
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1. Montana State (14-2, 8-0 Big Sky)
3 Key Players: QB Justin Lamson, RB Adam Jones, S Caden Dowler 2 Pivotal Games: at Nevada (Sept. 12), Montana (Nov. 21) 1 Number to Know: An FCS program has captured at least two consecutive national titles eight different times, but none are from the Big Sky.2. Montana (13-2, 7-1 Big Sky)
3 Key Players: QB Keali’I Ah Yat, RB Eli Gillman, LB Peyton Wing 2 Pivotal Games: at UC Davis (Sept. 26), at Montana State (Nov. 21) 1 Number to Know: Gillman (3,677) needs only 393 rushing yards to match Yohance Humphrey (4,070) for the Grizzlies’ all-time record.3. South Dakota State (9-5, 4-4 MVFC)
3 Key Players: QB Chase Mason, OL Quinten Christensen, LB Cullen McShane 2 Pivotal Games: at Illinois State (Oct. 3), South Dakota (Oct. 31) 1 Number to Know: With NDSU ‘s departure, the Jackrabbits’ 14 consecutive appearances in the FCS playoffs will be the longest active streak.4. Illinois State (12-5, 5-3 MVFC)
3 Key Players: RB Victor Dawson, LB Tye Niekamp, S La’Shavion Brown 2 Pivotal Games: South Dakota State (Oct. 3), at North Dakota (Nov. 7) 1 Number to Know: Niekamp, who’s twice earned Stats Perform FCS All-America first-team honors, leads active FCS players with 346 career tackles.5. UC Davis (9-4, 6-2 Big Sky)
3 Key Players: RB Jordan Fisher, WR Samuel Gbatu Jr., SS Rex Connors 2 Pivotal Games: Montana (Sept. 26), at Idaho (Nov. 14) 1 Number to Know: The Aggies’ 69.0% completion percentage (642 of 930) over coach Tim Plough’s two seasons is the highest among programs still in the FCS.6. Rhode Island (11-3, 8-0 CAA)
3 Key Players: QBDevin Farrell, WR Marquis Buchanan, WR Rohan Davy 2 Pivotal Games: at Stony Brook (Sept. 19), at New Hampshire (Nov. 7) 1 Number to Know: Buchanan will seek to become the first FCS player with three straight seasons topping 1,000 receiving yards since Sam Houston’s Nathan Stewart from 2016-18.7. Villanova (12-3, 7-1 CAA)
3 Key Players: QB Ja’briel Mace, WR Braden Reed, LB Omari Bursey 2 Pivotal Games: Lehigh (Oct. 24), Richmond (Nov. 7) 1 Number to Know: The Wildcats’ average of 0.47 turnovers per game (seven in 15 games) was the FCS low last season.8. Tarleton State (12-2, 7-1 UAC)
3 Key Players: QB Braedyn Locke (Arizona), RB Tylan Hines, OT Aidan Moe 2 Pivotal Games: at Austin Peay (Oct. 10), Abilene Christian (Nov. 7) 1 Number to Know: While gaining 39 turnovers and surrendering nine, the Texans’ +2.14 turnover margin per game was eighth-best ever in an FCS season.9. North Dakota (8-6, 5-3 MVFC)
3 Key Players: QB Jerry Kaminski, RB Matt Lawson, DE Lance Rucker 2 Pivotal Games: South Dakota State (Oct. 17), at Youngstown State (Oct. 31) 1 Number to Know: The Fighting Hawks were best in the FCS in limiting opponents to a 30.3% conversion rate on third downs.10. Youngstown State (8-5, 5-3 MVFC)
3 Key Players: QB Beau Brungard, OT Desmeal Leigh, DE Mike Wells 2 Pivotal Games: at South Dakota State (Sept. 19), Illinois State (Nov. 14) 1 Number to Know: Brungard, the 2025 Walter Payton Award recipient, was just the third FCS quarterback to have both 3,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in a season.11. Lehigh (12-1, 7-0 Patriot)
3 Key Players: QB Hayden Johnson, RB Luke Yoder, S Nick Peltekian 2 Pivotal Games: at Holy Cross (Aug. 29), at Villanova (Oct. 24) 1 Number to Know: The Mountain Hawks ranked No. 1 in the FCS in rushing yards allowed, surrendering just 70.1 yards per game.12. Southern Illinois (7-5, 4-4 MVFC)
3 Key Players: QB DJ Williams, RB Edward Robinson, LB Chris Presto 2 Pivotal Games: Illinois State (Oct. 17), at North Dakota (Nov. 21) 1 Number to Know: With a two-touchdown increase from 2024, the Salukis’ 36.4 points per game last season marked their high since 2007.13. South Dakota (10-5, 6-2 MVFC)
3 Key Players: RB Charles Pierre Jr., LB Gabriel Hardman, DB Tim White 2 Pivotal Games: at Youngstown State (Sept. 26), at South Dakota State (Oct. 31) 1 Number to Know: In a program that dates to 1889, USD is coming off three straight seasons with at least 10 wins for the first time.14. Austin Peay (7-5, 4-4 UAC)
3 Key Players: Chris Parson, OL Joshua Sales Jr., TE Jackson Head 2 Pivotal Games: Tarleton State (Oct. 10), Abilene Christian (Nov. 14) 1 Number to Know: Parson ended the season with an APSU single-game record 487 yards of total offense on the road against Tarleton State.15. Lamar (8-5, 5-3 Southland)
3 Key Players: QB Aiden McCown, DT Peyton Christian, LB Andrew Huff 2 Pivotal Games: Abilene Christian (Aug. 29), Stephen F. Austin (Nov. 7) 1 Number to Know (OK, 2): In an odd twist to a playoff season, the Cardinals were outgained (21.3 yards) and outscored (0.5 points) on average by opponents.16. Stephen F. Austin (11-3, 8-0 Southland)
3 Key Players: C Erik Gray, WR/PR Bugs Mortimer, LB Eli Ennis 2 Pivotal Games: Southeastern Louisiana (Oct. 24), at Lamar (Nov. 7) 1 Number to Know: Mortimer’s four punt return TDs last season were the most in the FCS since 2016.17. Tennessee Tech (11-2, 8-0 OVC-Big South)
3 Key Players: QB Jax Leatherwood, RB MJ Flowers, WR Eric Weatherly 2 Pivotal Games: at Chattanooga (Sept. 5), at Western Carolina (Oct. 3) 1 Number to Know: Heading toward its first season in the Southern Conference, TTU announced a signing class in early February that included 41 transfers.18. Yale (9-3, 6-1 Ivy)
3 Key Players: QB Dante Reno, WR Jaxton Santiago, FS Abu Kamara 2 Pivotal Games: Rhode Island (Oct. 17), Harvard (Nov. 21) 1 Number to Know: The Bulldogs have posted four straight wins over archrival Harvard, with the last three preventing the Crimson from collecting an outright Ivy League title.19. Southeastern Louisiana (9-4, 7-1 Southland)
3 Key Players: QB Kyle Lowe, RB Deantre Jackson, DE Devan Aubrey 2 Pivotal Games: at UTRGV (Oct. 10), Lamar (Oct. 17) 1 Number to Know: The Lions surrendered 18.0 points per game last season, the second-best average of their FCS era (since 2003).20. Abilene Christian (9-5, 7-1 UAC)
3 Key Players: RB Rovaughn Banks Jr., RT Luke Roaten, NT Chris Herpin 2 Pivotal Games: Stephen F. Austin (Sept. 12), at Tarleton State (Nov. 7) 1 Number to Know: ACU has defeated seven nationally ranked teams in the last two seasons after posting just three of those wins in their first 11 FCS seasons (2013-23).21. UT Martin (6-6, 6-2 OBV-Big South)
3 Key Players: QB Aidan Glover, RB Tommy Ansley, LS Hayden King 2 Pivotal Games: Lindenwood (Nov. 14), at Southeast Missouri (Nov. 21) 1 Number to Know: No FCS team had a higher average time of possession (34:38) than the Skyhawks last season.22. Western Carolina (7-5, 6-2 SoCon)
3 Key Players: WR AJ Colombo, OL Zach Watson, NB Ken Moore Jr. 2 Pivotal Games: Tennessee Tech (Oct. 3), at Mercer (Oct. 10) 1 Number to Know: During the Kerwin Bell coaching era (2021-25), the Catamounts rank first in the FCS with an average of 485.1 offensive yards per game.23. Jackson State (9-3, 7-1 SWAC)
3 Key Players: QB Jared Lockhart, WR Joanes Fortilien, DB Kam Sallis 2 Pivotal Games: at Grambling State (Oct. 10), at Alabama State (Nov. 14) 1 Number to Know: For eight straight seasons, Jackson State has led the FCS in average home attendance.24. Monmouth (9-3, 6-2 CAA)
3 Key Players: QB Frankie Weaver, LB Charlie Sasso, DB Jaeden Jones 2 Pivotal Games: at Tennessee Tech (Aug. 29), at New Hampshire (Oct. 17) 1 Number to Know: The Hawks’ FCS-leading 498.7 offensive yards per game marked their second consecutive season with a program high.25. Idaho State (6-6, 5-3 Big Sky)
3 Key Players: QB Jordan Cooke, RB Dason Brooks, LT Stryker Rashid 2 Pivotal Games: at Southern Utah (Sept. 26), Idaho (Nov. 21) 1 Number to Know: While the Bengals won the 1981 FCS championship, it’s been 43 years since their only other playoff appearance in 1983.More FCS Top 25 Candidates
Alabama State (10-2, 7-1 SWAC) ETSU (7-5, 5-3 SoCon) Furman (6-6, 4-4 SoCon) Harvard (9-2, 6-1 Ivy) Idaho (4-8, 2-6 Big Sky) Mercer (11-3, 7-1 SoCon) New Hampshire (8-5, 6-2 CAA) Northern Arizona (7-5, 4-4 Big Sky) South Carolina State (10-3, 5-0 MEAC) Southern Utah (7-5, 6-2 UAC) Stony Brook (6-6, 4-4 CAA) UIW (5-7, 3-5 Southland) UT Rio Grande Valley (9-3, 5-3 Southland) West Georgia (8-3, 5-3 UAC)For more FCS football coverage, follow at X, Facebook, Instagram and Bluesky.
It’s Not Early Anymore: Craig Haley’s 2026 FCS Football Preseason Top 25 Rankings Opta Analyst.
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