A day after D2Football.com released their preseason poll, the American Football Coaches Association has released theirs, and two Nebraska schools are receiving votes.
Chadron State is just outside the Top 25, and is at 27th with 83 points in the preseason poll. Nebraska-Kearney received 4 points in the preseason poll, tied with Angelo State and East Stroudsburg.
Ferris State was picked No. 1, followed by Harding, Kutztown, and Pittsburg State. Minnesota State – Mankato rounds out the Top 5. A total of 43 schools recieved a vote in the poll.
Yesterday, online publication D2Football.com announced their preseason Top 25, where Chadron State was ranked No. 21. Here is the recap of their preseason poll.
The AFCA Preseason Poll is below.
| Rank | School (1st votes) | 2025 Rec. | Pts. | 2025 Rank | Season Opener | Head Coach |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ferris St. (31) | 16-0 | 775 | 1 | Aug. 27 at No. 4 Pittsburg St. | Tony Annese |
| 2 | Harding | 15-1 | 738 | 2 | Sept. 3 vs. Northwestern Oklahoma St. | Roddy Mote |
| 3 | Kutztown | 14-1 | 684 | 3 | Sept. 3 at Assumption | Jim Clements |
| 4 | Pittsburg St. | 10-3 | 647 | 6 | Aug. 27 vs. No. 1 Ferris St. | Tom Anthony |
| 5 | Minnesota St. | 10-4 | 587 | 8 | Aug. 27 at Colorado Mesa | Todd Hoffner |
| 6 | Colorado St.-Pueblo | 10-2 | 581 | 11 | Aug. 27 vs. Central Missouri | Philip Vigil |
| 7 | Central Washington | 10-2 | 478 | 13 | Sept. 5 at Cal Poly | Scott Power |
| 8 | Northwest Missouri St. | 9-3 | 470 | 17 | Aug. 29 at Texas A&M-Kingsville | John McMenamin |
| 9t. | Grand Valley St. | 7-3 | 451 | NR | Aug. 27 at Charleston | Scott Wooster |
| 9t. | UIndy | 11-2 | 451 | 10 | Aug. 27 vs. Marian | Chris Keevers |
| 11 | Western Colorado | 10-3 | 379 | 12 | Aug. 27 at West Texas A&M | Jas Bains |
| 12 | Minnesota-Duluth | 10-2 | 372 | 16 | Aug. 27 at Slippery Rock | Curt Wiese |
| 13 | Ashland | 10-3 | 328 | 15 | Sept. 3 vs. No. 25 Indiana (Pa.) | Doug Geiser |
| 14 | Virginia Union | 9-3 | 318 | 21 | Aug. 28 at Lenoir-Rhyne | Alvin Parker |
| 15 | Newberry | 12-2 | 276 | 4 | Sept. 5 vs. Reinhardt | Todd Knight |
| 16 | Findlay | 10-2 | 250 | 19 | Sept. 5 at No. 9t UIndy | Tyler Johns |
| 17 | Frostburg St. | 11-3 | 228 | 14 | Sept. 5 at Shepherd | Eric Wagoner |
| 18 | UT Permian Basin | 11-3 | 197 | 5 | Aug. 29 at UT Rio Grande Valley | Chris Softley |
| 19 | Wingate | 9-3 | 183 | NR | Aug. 27 at UNC Pembroke | Rashaan Jordan |
| 20 | Augustana (S.D.) | 9-2 | 181 | 25 | Aug. 27 at Missouri Western | Jerry Olszewski |
| 21 | Albany St. | 12-2 | 172 | 7 | Aug. 29 at Florida A&M | David Bowser |
| 22 | Western Oregon | 8-3 | 165 | NR | Aug. 29 at Colorado Mines | Arne Ferguson |
| 23 | Johnson C. Smith | 10-2 | 159 | 18 | Aug. 29 at Benedict | Maurice Flowers |
| 24 | Ouachita Baptist | 7-4 | 146 | NR | Sept. 3 vs. East Central | Todd Knight |
| 25 | Indiana (Pa.) | 7-4 | 97 | NR | Sept. 3 at No. 13 Ashland | Paul Tortorella |
*– Ranking in final AFCA Division II Poll of 2025
Others Receiving Votes: Valdosta St., 86; Chadron St., 83; Central Oklahoma, 64; North Greenville, 61; Slippery Rock, 56; California (Pa.), 53; Northwood, 50; Delta St., 33; Michigan Tech, 31; Assumption, 29; Bentley, 27; Benedict, 25; Lenoir-Rhyne, 21; Colorado Mines, 18; Northeastern St., 16; Southern Arkansas, 14; Charleston, 13; Fort Hays St., 13; Truman St., 13; West Texas A&M, 10; UNC Pembroke, 8; Central Missouri, 7; Edward Waters, 7; Henderson St., 6; Angelo St., 4; East Stroudsburg, 4; Nebraska-Kearney, 4; Upper Iowa, 3; Davenport, 2; Carson-Newman, 1.
