WACO, TEX.– After back-to-back NCAA Division II national titles and winners of 30 straight games, Northwest Missouri State will start the 2017 season ranked No. 1 in the AFCA Division II Coaches' Top 25 Poll. This is the fifth time since the poll began in 2000 that the Bearcats start the season ranked No. 1. Grand Valley State who made a run to the quarterfinals of the Division II playoffs last season, begins this year at No. 2. The Lakers are followed by fellow Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference rival Ferris State at No. 3, with Emporia State (Kan.) and Texas A&M-Commerce rounding out the Top 5.
The Ashland Eagles are one spot outside the Top 25 with 130 points in 26th position.
The first week of action starts off with a bang with four Top 25 matchups. The first is a Top 5 tilt as No. 1 Northwest Missouri State hosts No. 4 Emporia State while No. 5 Texas A&M-Commerce travels to No. 6 North Alabama. The other two matchups have No. 10 Minnesota-Duluth hosting No. 17 Sioux Falls (S.D.) while No. 16 Colorado School of Mines travels to rival No. 12 Colorado State-Pueblo.
2017 American Football Coaches Association Preseason Division II Coaches' Poll – August 14, 2017
| RANK | SCHOOL | 2016 RECORD | POINTS | FINAL RANK |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Northwest Missouri St. (34) | 15-0 | 850 | 1 |
| 2 | Grand Valley St. (Mich.) | 12-1 | 765 | 4 |
| 3 | Ferris St. (Mich.) | 12-3 | 716 | 5 |
| 4 | Emporia St. (Kan.) | 11-2 | 652 | 10 |
| 5 | Texas A&M-Commerce | 10-2 | 634 | 9 |
| 6 | North Alabama | 11-2 | 622 | 2 |
| 7 | Shepherd (W.Va.) | 13-1 | 574 | 3 |
| 8 | California (Pa.) | 11-1 | 568 | 7 |
| 9 | Indiana (Pa.) | 10-2 | 500 | 12 |
| 10 | Minnesota-Duluth | 10-2 | 431 | 14 |
| 11 | Valdosta St. (Ga.) | 8-3 | 390 | 18 |
| 12 | Colorado St.-Pueblo | 8-3 | 349 | NR |
| 13 | Azusa Pacific (Calif.) | 9-3 | 302 | 25 |
| 14 | LIU-Post (N.Y.) | 12-1 | 288 | 11 |
| 15 | Harding (Ark.) | 13-1 | 281 | 6 |
| 16 | Colorado School of Mines | 10-3 | 254 | 15 |
| 17 | Sioux Falls (S.D.) | 12-1 | 235 | 8 |
| 18 | Southwest Baptist (Mo.) | 10-2 | 227 | 22 |
| 19 | North Carolina-Pembroke | 10-2 | 220 | 13 |
| 20 | Minnesota St. | 8-3 | 201 | NR |
| 21 | Central Missouri | 9-3 | 189 | 21 |
| 22 | Southern Arkansas | 9-3 | 157 | NR |
| 23 | Colorado Mesa | 9-3 | 154 | NR |
| 24 | Midwestern St. (Texas) | 8-3 | 138 | 24 |
| 25 | Bemidji (Minn.) | 9-3 | 133 | NR |
Others Receiving Votes: Ashland (Ohio), 130; Tuskegee (Ala.), 123; North Greenville (S.C.), 121; Winston-Salem St. (N.C.), 114; Newberry (S.C.), 107; Ohio Dominican, 86; West Chester (Pa.), 82; West Georgia, 75; Edinboro (Pa.), 57; Albany St. (Ga.), 45; Florida Tech, 43; Assumption (Mass.), 38; Texas A&M-Kingsville, 36; Fairmont St. (W.Va.), 19; Bowie St. (Md.), 16; Augustana (S.D.), 14; Carson-Newman (Tenn.), 14; Virginia Union, 12; Arkansas Tech, 11; Central Washington, 10; Pittsburg St. (Kan.), 10; Henderson St. (Ark.), 8; Charleston (W.Va.), 7; Indianapolis (Ind.), 7; Gannon (Pa.), 6; Ouachita Baptist (Ark.), 6; Truman St. (Mo.), 5; Fort Valley St. (Ga.), 4; Slippery Rock (Pa.), 4; Delta St. (Miss.), 3; East Central (Okla.), 3; Humboldt St. (Calif.), 2; Tusculum (Tenn.), 1; Wingate (N.C.), 1.
For more information on the AFCA and its programs, visit www.afca.com or follow us on Twitter @WeAreAFCA.
