RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) football program is receiving votes in the Preseason
Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll, marking the first time the Vaqueros have ever received votes in a preseason poll.
UTRGV is receiving the 10
th most points of any team receiving votes outside the top 25.
The Vaqueros received votes in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) FCS Coaches Poll 10 times last season, including the last nine polls of the year, while also appearing in the Stats Perform Top 25 Poll twice.
At 9-3, UTRGV was the first of the 11 football programs to start from scratch at the NCAA DI-AA (1978-2005)/FCS (2006-Present) level since Division I college football split into two levels in 1978 to win nine games. No other team had ever won more than seven games or six while playing a schedule including NCAA Division I competition.
UTRGV was the first inaugural team to win six games against NCAA DI-AA /FCS competition, breaking the record of five set by Florida International in 2002.
UTRGV was the only inaugural to go undefeated at home, as the Vaqueros finished 7-0.
UTRGV's only losses were on the road against teams that made the FCS Playoffs, all three of which are ranked in the preseason poll, including No. 13 Stephen F. Austin, No. 19 Southeastern, and No. 20 Lamar.
Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll (2026 Preseason)
(2025 Record in Parentheses)
1. Montana State (14-2, 8-0 Big Sky)
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 OCV-Big South; rebranded to Ohio Valley Conference in 2026)
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 Ohio Valley; 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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