“The nature of our sport is that it’s all one-week deals,” Chip Kelly once said. That’s worth remembering before attempting something as ephemeral as a preseason football ranking. But we do it nonetheless.
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With FloCollege's D2 Football 2026 rankings debut, there's little suspense at the top. Ferris State opens the year at No. 1. That's one thing we can all be sure of, whether you're a fan of the Bulldogs, an adversary, a pundit, an analytics wonk, or just a D2 football writer. Ferris State still has to go win every week to stay at the top. Nothing has stopped the Bulldogs since 2024.
What sticks out to me, you ask, about the rankings below? First of all, thank you for asking. Second, here are a few teams I'm intrigued by in the Top 25, in no particular order: Pittsburg State, Findlay, Newberry, UTPB, Frostburg State, Albany State, Johnson C. Smith, Western Oregon, Slippery Rock, and Chadron State.
Some are new bloods. Some are blue bloods. Some are picking up the pieces, and some are challenging for titles.
Ask me again in a week.
D2 Football Rankings 2026: Preseason Top 25
- Ferris State
- Harding
- Kutztown
- Pittsburg State
- Central Washington
- CSU Pueblo
- Indianapolis
- Minnesota State
- Northwest Missouri State
- Virginia Union
- Findlay
- Western Colorado
- Ashland
- Newberry
- Minnesota Duluth
- UT Permian Basin
- Grand Valley State
- Frostburg State
- Albany State
- Johnson C. Smith
- Wingate
- Augustana (SD)
- Western Oregon
- Slippery Rock
- Chadron State
Also Received Votes:
Northwood, Delta State, Michigan Tech, Northeastern State, Upper Iowa, Kentucky State, Assumption, Emory & Henry, Benedict, UNC Pembroke
How The FloCollege D2 Football Rankings Are Determined
The FloCollege Division 2 football rankings are driven by a mix of objective data and input from voters.
Ranking factors include:
- Voter Points
- Wins
- Margin of Victory
- Away Wins
D2 Football Week 0 Schedule On FloCollege
Thursday, Aug 27
- 2026 Bluefield State vs Tusculum
- 2026 McKendree vs Saginaw Valley St.
- 2026 Emory & Henry vs Valdosta State
- 2026 Glenville State vs Elon
- 2026 Tiffin University vs Carson-Newman
Friday, Aug 28
Saturday, Aug 29
- 2026 Fort Hays State vs Angelo State
- 2026 Gannon vs Davenport
- 2026 Monroe-New Rochelle vs American International - Men's
- 2026 Missouri Southern State vs Midwestern State
Sunday, Aug 30
How To Watch D2 Football In 2026
Hundreds of Division 2 football games will stream live on FloCollege and the FloSports app.
Game replays, highlights and breaking news will also be available on both platforms.
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