Each week, throughout the college football season, alumni, fans, media and the teams themselves look to the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll to see who is rising and moving within the national rankings. Montana State opens the 2026 season at No. 1.
Where the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll begins this season is where it ended last season.
With unanimous approval, too.
Defending national champion Montana State is the preseason No. 1 team in the national media poll, collecting all 57 first-place votes.
It’s not surprising considering much of the Bobcats’ nucleus returns this season, including a national-high eight preseason All-Americans. The Big Sky Conference champs defeated Illinois State 35-34 in the first FCS title game to be decided in overtime, and they enter the new season on a 14-game winning streak – also the national high.
“So how do we get motivated from success?” coach Brent Vigen said in an interview with Skyline Sports. “It’s recognizing that it’s not just about the end result. It’s how did we get there, and really being able to lean into last year or any previous years. It’s really about this is a new team going back to square one.”
Montana, which lost to Montana State in a national semifinal, has the No. 2 ranking, with the Big Sky claiming four spots overall. The Missouri Valley Football Conference has the most ranked teams with six, including No. 3 South Dakota State and No. 4 Illinois State. Tarleton State from the United Athletic Conference rounds out the top five.
The 2026 season kicks off on Aug. 27. The Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll will be released each Monday during the regular season and one day after the FCS championship game (scheduled for Jan. 11 in Nashville, Tennessee).
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.
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4 weeks ago Craig HaleyStats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll (2026 Preseason)
1. Montana State (14-2, 8-0 Big Sky in 2025)
Points: 1,425 (57 of 57 first-place votes); Final 2025 Ranking: 1; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 at Utah Tech
2. Montana (13-2, 7-1 Big Sky)
Points: 1,328; Final 2025 Ranking: 3; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 vs. Southern Utah
3. South Dakota State (9-5, 4-4 MVFC)
Points: 1,266; Final 2025 Ranking: 13; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 vs. Stetson
4. Illinois State (12-5, 5-3 MVFC)
Points: 1,231; Final 2025 Ranking: 2; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 vs. St. Francis (IL)
5. Tarleton State (12-2, 7-1 UAC)
Points: 1,100; Final 2025 Ranking: 6; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 vs. Prairie View A&M
6. UC Davis (9-4, 6-2 Big Sky)
Points: 1,063; Final 2025 Ranking: 8; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 at Portland State
7. Rhode Island (11-3, 8-0 CAA)
Points: 1,048; Final 2025 Ranking: 11; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 28 at Merrimack
8. Villanova (12-3, 7-1 CAA; Patriot League member in 2026)
Points: 1,008; Final 2025 Ranking: 4 (tie); 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 28 vs. William & Mary
9. Youngstown State (8-5, 5-3 MVFC)
Points: 946; Final 2025 Ranking: 18; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 27 vs. Mercyhurst
10. North Dakota (8-6, 5-3 MVFC)
Points: 945; Final 2025 Ranking: 14; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 27 vs. LIU
11. Lehigh (12-1, 7-0 Patriot)
Points: 826; Final 2025 Ranking: 10; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 at Holy Cross
12. South Dakota (10-5, 6-2 MVFC)
Points: 783; Final 2025 Ranking: 9; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 vs. Central Connecticut State
13. Stephen F. Austin (11-3, 8-0 Southland)
Points: 773; Final 2025 Ranking: 7; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 at McNeese
14. Tennessee Tech (11-2, 8-0 Ohio Valley; SoCon member in 2026)
Points: 594; Final 2025 Ranking: 16; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 vs. Monmouth
15. Abilene Christian (9-5, 7-1 UAC)
Points: 579; Final 2025 Ranking: 12; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 at Lamar
16. Southern Illinois (7-5, 4-4 MVFC)
Points: 509; Final 2025 Ranking: 25; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 27 at West Florida
17. Austin Peay (7-5, 4-4 UAC)
Points: 440; Final 2025 Ranking: NR; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 27 vs. Gardner-Webb
18. Yale (9-3, 6-1 Ivy)
Points: 418; Final 2025 Ranking: 15; 2026 Season Opener: Sept. 19 at Holy Cross
19. Southeastern Louisiana (9-4, 7-1 Southland)
Points: 392; Final 2025 Ranking: 19; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 27 vs. HCU
20. Lamar (8-5, 5-3 Southland)
Points: 380; Final 2025 Ranking: 24; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 vs. Abilene Christian
21. Mercer (11-3, 7-1 SoCon)
Points: 306; Final 2025 Ranking: 17; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 vs. East Texas A&M
22. Monmouth (9-3, 6-2 CAA)
Points: 200; Final 2025 Ranking: 22; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 at Tennessee Tech
23. UT Martin (6-6, 6-2 OVC-Big South; rebranded to Ohio Valley Conference)
Points: 144; Final 2025 Ranking: NR; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 27 vs. Central Arkansas
24. South Carolina State (10-3, 5-0 MEAC)
Points: 107; Final 2025 Ranking: 21; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 vs. Savannah State
25. Northern Arizona (7-5, 4-4 Big Sky)
Points: 103; Final 2025 Ranking: NR; 2026 Season Opener: Aug. 29 vs. Eastern Washington
Others Receiving Points (schools listed on two or more ballots)
Idaho State (6-6, 5-3 Big Sky) 100; Western Carolina (7-5, 6-2 SoCon) 75; Harvard (9-2, 6-1 Ivy) 72; New Hampshire (8-5, 6-2 CAA) 61; Alabama State (10-2, 7-1 SWAC) 59; Jackson State (9-3, 7-1 SWAC) 48; Southern Utah (7-5, 6-2 UAC; Big Sky member in 2026) 27; Prairie View A&M (10-4, 7-1 SWAC) 25; West Georgia (8-3, 5-3 UAC) 25; UTRGV (9-3, 5-3 Southland) 20; Richmond (7-5, 3-4 Patriot) 15; ETSU (7-5, 5-3 SoCon) 12; Elon (6-6, 4-4 CAA) 11; Southeast Missouri (4-8, 2-5 OVC-Big South; rebranded to Ohio Valley Conference) 10; William & Mary (7-5, 6-2 CAA; Patriot League member in 2026) 9; Delaware State (8-4, 4-1 MEAC) 7; Drake (8-4, 7-1 Pioneer) 7; Furman (6-6, 4-4 SoCon) 6
Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll Voting Panel
Stats Perform: Craig Haley. Big Sky Conference: Riley Corcoran, Tyson Rodgers, Larry Weir. CAA Football: Roger Brown, Matt Harmon, Rob Washburn. Ivy League: JJ Klein, Craig Larson. Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference: Isaiah Green, Kendrick Lewis. Missouri Valley Football Conference: Kyle Grooms, Tom Miller, Randy Reinhardt. Northeast Conference: Sarah Boissonneault, Brian Cleary. Ohio Valley Conference: Mike Bradd, Kyle Schwartz, Mark Simpson. Patriot League: Bob Black, Eric Malanoski, Ryan Sakamoto. Pioneer Football League: Cody Bush, Larry Hansgen. Southern Conference: Scott Keeler, Andrew Miller, Ralan Wardlaw. Southland Conference: Matthew Bonnette, James Dixon, Jasmine Washington. Southwestern Athletic Conference: Curtis Ford, Ronnie Johnson. United Athletic Conference: Claire Johnson, Benjamin Ray, Jake Withee. National Representatives: Sean Anderson, Stan Becton, Taylor Blue, Zack Carlton, Gene Clemons, Joe DeLeone, Matt Dixon, Steven J. Gaither, Sam Herder, Emory Hunt, Kyle Kensing, Brandon Lawrence, Zach McKinnell, Jon Passman, Omar Rashon Borja, Ryan Roberts, Timothy Rosario, Kent Schmidt, Phil Sokol, Reggie Thomas, Ralph Ventre, Jamie Williams.
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Defending National Champ Montana State a Unanimous No. 1 in FCS Preseason Top 25 Poll Opta Analyst.
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