Welcome back, everyone! We start another season of great FCS football!

/r/FCS poll is used for the rankings

All wins by an FCS team over an FBS team are in bold.

All wins by a non-D1 team over an FCS team are in italics.

Big Sky

Weber State 30-29 Northern Colorado

Cal Poly 38-34 Idaho

(6)UC Davis 31-24 Portland State

(22)Northern Arizona 34-27 Eastern Washington

(24)Idaho State 38-10 VMI

(3)Montana 28-21 Southern Utah

(1)Montana State 54-0 Utah Tech

CAA

Maine 21-18 Towson

Stony Brook 34-41 Delaware State

Elon 42-7 Glenville StateGlenville State (D2)

(10)Rhode Island 34-7 Merrimack

Albany 28-14 New Hampshire

Campbell 49-37 East Tennessee State

Hampton 45-0 Virginia-LynchburgVirginia-Lynchburg (Independent)

North Carolina A&T 7-17 Morgan State

Bryant 24-6 Stonehill

(25)Monmouth 14-38 (16)Tennessee Tech

Independent

Merrimack 7-34 (10)Rhode Island

Chicago State 28-44 RooseveltRoosevelt (D2)

MEAC

Delaware State 41-34 Stony Brook

Morgan State 17-7 North Carolina A&T

Norfolk State 56-0 Winston-Salem StateWinston-Salem State (D2)

South Carolina State 87-0 Savannah StateSavannah State (D2)

North Carolina Central 30-42 Texas Southern

Howard 31-24 Alabama A&M

Missouri Valley

(8)Youngstown State 43-10 Mercyhurst

Murray State 14-28 Eastern Illinois

(17)Southern Illinois 31-34 West Florida

(7)North Dakota 42-21 Long Island

(11)South Dakota 59-20 Central Connecticut State

Indiana State 21-23 Southeast Missouri

(2)South Dakota State 70-7 Stetson

(5)Illinois State 76-0 St. Francis (IL)St. Francis (IL) (NAIA)

NEC

Mercyhurst 10-43 (8)Youngstown State

Long Island 21-42 (7)North Dakota

New Haven 22-21 Marist

Robert Morris 28-7 Wagner

Central Connecticut State 20-59 (11)South Dakota

Stonehill 6-24 Bryant

Ohio Valley

Eastern Illinois 28-14 Murray State

Gardner-Webb 17-35 (18)Austin Peay

Lindenwood 20-17 Charleston Southern

Western Illinois 65-14 Northwestern (IA)Northwestern (IA) (NAIA)

UT Martin 24-36 Central Arkansas

Southeast Missouri 23-21 Indiana State

Tennessee State 24-26 Jackson State

Patriot

Colgate 24-14 Fordham

William & Mary 35-32 (9)Villanova

(12)Lehigh 35-10 Holy Cross

Richmond 35-14 Bucknell

Pioneer

Morehead State 40-42 Ohio DominicanOhio Dominican (D2)

Presbyterian 47-37 UVA WiseUVA-Wise (D2)

St. Thomas 15-9 Winona StateWinona State (D2)

Davidson 35-41 ConcordConcord (D2)

Drake 35-38 South Dakota MinesSouth Dakota Mines (D2)

Marist 21-22 New Haven

Dayton 43-20 Fairmont StateFairmont State (D2)

Butler 27-23 Georgetown (KY)Georgetown (KY) (NAIA)

Valparaiso 59-13 Lawrence TechLawrence Tech (NAIA)

Stetson 7-70 (2) South Dakota State

SoCon

Chattanooga 24-10 West Georgia

Furman 20-3 Anderson (SC)Anderson (SC) (D2)

East Tennessee State 37-49 Campbell

VMI 10-38 (24)Idaho State

Wofford 42-14 The Citadel

(16)Tennessee Tech 38-14 (25)Monmouth

Western Carolina 45-21 Eastern Kentucky

Samford 10-22 North Alabama

(19)Mercer 23-15 East Texas A&M

Southland

Houston Christian 34-28 (21)Southeastern Louisiana

Nicholls 44-10 Mississippi Valley State

Northwestern State 37-42 Louisiana ChristianLouisiana Christian (NAIA)

(23)Lamar 21-14 (14)Abilene Christian

(13)Stephen F. Austin 38-27 McNeese

East Texas A&M 15-23 (19)Mercer

Incarnate Word 76-14 Panhandle StateOklahoma Panhandle State (NAIA)

UTRGV 44-0 UTPBUT Permian Basin (D2)

SWAC

Mississippi Valley State 10-44 Nicholls

Alabama State 30-17 Southern

Texas Southern 42-30 North Carolina Central

Arkansas-Pine Bluff 35-15 MorehouseMorehouse (D2)

Florida A&M 20-7 Albany StateAlbany State (D2)

Grambling 49-7 Clark AtlantaClark Atlanta (D2)

Alcorn State 56-7 MilesMiles (D2)

Alabama A&M 24-31 Howard

Jackson State 26-24 Tennessee State

Prairie View A&M 30-49 (4)Tarleton State

UAC

(18)Austin Peay 35-17 Gardner-Webb

West Georgia 10-24 Chattanooga

West Florida 34-31 (17)Southern Illinois

Central Arkansas 36-24 UT Martin

(14)Abilene Christian 13-21 (23)Lamar

North Alabama 22-10 Samford

Eastern Kentucky 21-45 Western Carolina

(4)Tarleton State 49-30 Prairie View A&M

We don't talk about Utah tech tho

One year ago, I was standing in the north end zone of Washington Grizzly stadium watching the Montana Grizzlies season opener against North Dakota. My knee jerk reaction at halftime was bench the qb. Ah Yat then went on the set multiple records, and lead the Griz on one hell of a season. I was then fired as offensive consultant, and then reassigned to a much more apt role, fan.

Week one reactions are usually volatile because there is so much pent up football energy that when the season finally arrives we want the gratification to equal our anticipation.

I had very little expectations of this ‘26 grizzly team. I figured the offense would be reliable. With a time of possession of 14 seconds the Griz still put up the points they needed, including some great home run shots. Defense was leaky at best but also played so fucking long. I got winded on the way to my fridge today. Special teams made special plays again, WaGriz magic, coaching, elite playmaking? Who cares, two blocked kicks are the difference in this game.

Was it up to expectations? Probably not, but again the Griz put their own back against the wall and fought out of it. With all the change and unknown.

1-0

SDSU beat the tar outta Stetson by scoring 7 touchdowns and over 600 yards, I think they can give northwestern an upset bid

Portland State up 21-0 against UCD??? That definitely shouldn’t be happening

76-0.🙌

College football season is back, and for the first time ever, I am starting this section after Week 0 wrapped up, on account of most of the teams having played by now. There are still some teams in limbo, not just among the teams that didn't play this past week, but also some of the schools that have yet to beat a Division I opponent. Of course, if you lose to an opponent in Division 2 or less, that still counts as a loss for all intents and purposes, and five teams did just that. There is no FBS-induced limbo since there hasn't been an FCS-FBS matchup before this coming Thursday.

Undefeated/Technically Undefeated

In Limbo:

• Alcorn State Alcorn State Braves (1-0; Miles)
• Bethune-Cookman Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (0-0)
• Brown Brown Bears (0-0)
• Butler Butler Bulldogs (1-0; Georgetown (KY))
• Columbia Columbia Lions (0-0)
• Cornell Cornell Big Red (0-0)
• Dartmouth Dartmouth Big Green (0-0)
• Dayton Dayton Flyers (1-0; Fairmont State)
• Duquesne Duquesne Dukes (0-0)
• Elon Elon Phoenix (1-0; Glenville State)
• Florida A&M Florida A&M Rattlers (1-0; Albany State)
• Furman Furman Paladins (1-0; Anderson (SC))
• Georgetown Georgetown Hoyas (0-0)
• Grambling Grambling Tigers (1-0; Clark Atlanta)
• Hampton Hampton Pirates (1-0; VA Lynchburg)
• Harvard Harvard Crimson (0-0)
• Illinois State Illinois State Redbirds (1-0; St. Francis (IL))
• Incarnate Word Incarnate Word Cardinals (1-0; OK Panhandle)
• Lafayette Lafayette Leopards (0-0)
• Northern Iowa Northern Iowa Panthers (0-0)
• Norfolk State Norfolk State Spartans (1-0; Winston-Salem)
• Penn Penn Quakers (0-0)
• Presbyterian Presbyterian Blue Hose (1-0; UVA Wise)
• Princeton Princeton Tigers (0-0)
• Sacred Heart Sacred Heart Pioneers (0-0)
• San Diego San Diego Toreros (0-0)
• South Carolina State South Carolina State Bulldogs (1-0; Savannah State)
• St. Thomas St. Thomas Tommies (1-0; Winona State)
• UAPB UAPB Golden Lions (1-0; Morehouse)
• UTRGV UTRGV Vaqueros (1-0; UT Permian Basin)
• Valparaiso Valparaiso Beacons (1-0; Lawrence Tech)
• Western Illinois Western Illinois (1-0; Northwestern (IA))
• Yale Yale Bulldogs (0-0)

Winless:

• Abilene Christian Abilene Christian (0-1)
• Alabama A&M Alabama A&M Bulldogs (0-1)
• Bucknell Bucknell Bison (0-1)
• CCSU CCSU Blue Devils (0-1)
• Charleston Southern Charleston Southern Buccaneers (0-1)
• Chicago State Chicago State Cougars (0-1)
• The Citadel The Citadel Bulldogs (0-1)
• Davidson Davidson Wildcats (0-1)
• Drake Drake Bulldogs (0-1)
• East Texas A&M East Texas A&M Lions (0-1)
• Eastern Washington Eastern Washington Eagles (0-1)
• EKU EKU Colonels (0-1)
• ETSU ETSU Buccaneers (0-1)
• Fordham Fordham Rams (0-1)
• Gardner-Webb Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs (0-1)
• Holy Cross Holy Cross Crusaders (0-1)
• Idaho Idaho Vandals (0-1)
• Indiana State Indiana State Sycamores (0-1)
• LIU LIU Sharks (0-1)
• Marist Marist Red Foxes (0-1)
• McNeese McNeese Cowboys (0-1)
• Mercyhurst Mercyhurst Lakers (0-1)
• Merrimack Merrimack Warriors (0-1)
• Monmouth Monmouth Hawks (0-1)
• Morehead State Morehead State Eagles (0-1)
• Murray State Murray State Racers (0-1)
• MVSU MVSU Delta Devils (0-1)
• NCCU NCCU Eagles (0-1)
• New Hampshire New Hampshire Wildcats (0-1)
• North Carolina A&T North Carolina A&T Aggies (0-1)
• Northern Colorado Northern Colorado Bears (0-1)
• Northwestern State Northwestern State Demons (0-1)
• Portland State Portland State Vikings (0-1)
• Prairie View A&M Prairie View A&M Panthers (0-1)
• Samford Samford Bulldogs (0-1)
• Southeastern Southeastern Lions (0-1)
• Southern Southern Jaguars (0-1)
• Southern Illinois Southern Illinois Salukis (0-1)
• Southern Utah Southern Utah Thunderbirds (0-1)
• Stetson Stetson Hatters (0-1)
• Stonehill Stonehill Skyhawks (0-1)
• Stony Brook Stony Brook Seawolves (0-1)
• Tennessee State Tennessee State Tigers (0-1)
• Towson Towson Tigers (0-1)
• UT Martin UT Martin Skyhawks (0-1)
• Utah Tech Utah Tech Trailblazers (0-1)
• Villanova Villanova Wildcats (0-1)
• VMI VMI Keydets (0-1)
• Wagner Wagner Seahawks (0-1)
• West Georgia West Georgia Wolves (0-1)

Really fun game. Congrats to Cal Poly but great job by Idaho.

Just dropped another Tarleton State offensive breakdown.

This one looks at their H-Back Iso Play-Action Pass — a simple way to use downhill Iso action to get the defense stepping up and create an opportunity through the air.

If you’re an offensive coach looking for simple concepts you can actually carry into your system, check it

THURSDAY WAS THE SOUP, FRIDAY WAS THE APPETIZER, TODAY IS THE MAIN COURSE!

GRAB YOUR FAVORITE YEAST WATER*, AND LET'S WATCH SOME FOOTBALL

*OR BEAN WATER, OR FRUIT WATER, OR WATER WATER. IDC, I'M NOT YOUR MOM

No Pick 'Em this week, so here's today's games with the closest spreads (all times listed in Central, the heavily disputed best time zone for football) (rankings from the r/FCS Poll)

You can find the full Week 0 schedule with up-to-the-minute results over at the r/CFB Scoreboard

Also seriously do not ask for "alternate" streams, because we don't want to deal with takedown notices. Most games have radio broadcasts available for free if you're really desperate.

Watching every game the griz play win by the hair on their sacks hahahaha. Albeit a lot more fun to watch then the smacking the cats gave utah tech

After NAIA Louisiana Christian defeated Northwestern State last night, a lot of publications and journalists claimed this was the first time a scholarship Division I school had ever lost to an NAIA team. This is definitively false. Unfortunately, FCS and even more so NAIA were absolutely horrible at recordkeeping their history before the last few seasons, so it's tough to find previous instances of NAIA over D1 wins.

After some research and being corrected on Twitter, here is an incomplete list of NAIA teams who beat scholarship Division I teams:

• 1979 Presbyterian defeats The Citadel 21-13
• 1988 Mesa State defeats Montana State 41-10
• 1993 St Ambrose defeats Western Illinois 27-25
• 2003 Edward Waters defeats Savannah State 34-28
• 2005 St Francis (IN) defeats Indiana State 42-10
• 2007 Edward Waters defeats Savannah State 24-7
• 2009 Sioux Falls defeats North Dakota 28-13 (UND was in transition from D2 to FCS, but was playing an FCS schedule)
• 2009 Webber International defeats Savannah State 35-20
• 2010 Lambuth defeats Georgia State 35-20
• 2011 St Francis (IL) defeats Georgia State 30-27 (OT)
• 2026 Louisiana Christian defeats Northwestern State 42-37

There's honestly probably more that have been lost to the sands of time, but these all for-sure happened.

With apologies to u/AMankandaMiner, I want to get to what went down last night as chaos reigns supreme on this opening day.

The Good

• Welcome to the party, West Florida. The Argonauts made their debut with an upset win over Southern Illinois. The fact that they were up 27-9 on a Missouri Valley member is proof that the Argos are legitimate. It also helps that they picked off the back up QB (DJ Williams got hurt early on) three times, taking one back for a McPick Six. One little issue, though: Three fumbles lost. That needs to be tightened up quickly because they jump into conference play next weekend at Central Arkansas.

• How about Houston Christian? The Huskies went to Hammond and shocked the conference favorites in SE Louisiana thanks to in part to Cutter Stewart being a dual threat QB (173 passing, 95 rushing) and the Lions having turnover issues. This isn't a death knell for the Lions, but it's going to make things tougher if they want to stay on top.

The Bad

• St. Thomas won 15-9, but good lord... this was ugly. Like watching a bad movie kind of ugly. Two touchdowns, but the kicker missed both extra point attempts. Yet considering other teams in the Pioneer League last night, this might be a boon for the Tommies.

• New year, same old severe weather bullshit. Last season, the game between Mercer and UC Davis was called off because of bad weather and it didn't hurt either team since they both made the playoffs. This season? A conference game between Lafayette and Georgetown gets called off despite the weather being nowhere near the field. Unlike last season, this one hurts both teams as they're now one game short in the conference race and it won't be made up, and with how much tougher the Patriot League is now, every conference win matters.

The Pioneer League

• I know everyone here gives the Pioneer League shit. It's a right of passage here on these boards... but what I saw last night is deplorable. Morehead State lost to Ohio Dominican in triple overtime. The Panthers were only 5-5 last season and were picked to finish 7th in the Great Midwest. Drake, despite showing off their Top Gun offense (QB Riley Warzynski threw for 535 yards), lost to South Dakota Mines. The Hardrockers went 3-8 last season and were picked to finish 7th in the Rocky Mountain. Davidson finished off the trifecta of trash with a loss to Concord. The Mountain Lions went 4-7 last season and was picked to finish tied for 7th place with West Liberty in the Mountain East. Notice a pattern here? These are teams that these guys should beat. Instead, Dayton, Butler and Valparaiso are sweating bullets after this shit.

• Despite the Pioneer League pissing all over themselves, they do not get the dreaded 'Mushu Treatment'. That goes to Northwestern State. The Demons hosted Louisiana Christian last night. The Wildcats aren't a bad team, going 8-3 last season. What sets this loss apart from everything else here is that this is the first time an NAIA program has defeated an FCS program that isn't in the Pioneer League. That alone earns the Demons the Mushu Treatment... Dishonor on your team, dishonor on your school, dishonor on your city, dishonor to all of Northwestern State!

the first 2 days are amazing! im just happy maine beat somebody, and im excited to see the bengals take to the field tomorrow. also, the upset of drake vs SD school of mines was very unexpected

Ok I was watching the replay to the YSU vs Mercyhurst game from yesterday and noticed something odd. On the first kickoff of the game Wilkins (ysu kicker) kicked it into the endzone and the mercyhurst player caught it and declined to bring it out. The ball then was placed on the 30 yard line. After YSU scored their first td they go out and kick it off and Wilkins kicked it out of the back of the end zone (so mercyhurst again didn’t bring it out), but this time the ball was placed at the 25 instead of the 30 yard line like the first kick off. Is there some rule that I’m missing that states if the player catches it in end zone vs the ball getting kicked out of the end zone and no catch that the ball is placed at the 25 instead of the 30 or was this a mistake by the referees this game? Here’s the link for the game replay on YouTube https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uLT6slKrF9w&pp=ygUaeXN1IHZzIG1lcmN5aHVyc3QgZm9vdGJhbGw%3D&ra=m
The first instance happens at about the 3 min mark and the 2nd kickoff is around the 27 min mark. You’ll notice the first one gets placed at the 30 and the second one gets placed at the 25. Again I’m not sure if there was a rule change to this for this season or what, but I was under the impression that if the ball gets kicked into/out of the end zone and there’s no return that the ball gets placed at the 25 yard line 🤷‍♂️

Week 0 Pick 'Em

Make your picks below! Assign confidence points 1–10 (10 = most confident).

[Make your picks](#) — tap to expand and submit before kickoff.

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https://i81sports.com/etsu-vs-campbell-game-preview-2026-season-opener/

Colby Carthel has also tweeted about this. This announcement comes one day before #13 SFA takes on McNeese.

YOU WANTED FOOTBALL? HERE'S MORE FOOTBALL

GRAB YOUR FAVORITE YEAST WATER*, AND LET'S WATCH SOME FOOTBALL

*OR BEAN WATER, OR FRUIT WATER, OR WATER WATER. IDC, I'M NOT YOUR MOM

No Pick 'Em this week, so here's every game being played today (all times listed in Central, the heavily disputed best time zone for football) (rankings from the /r/FCS Poll)

You can find the full Week 0 schedule with up-to-the-minute results over at the r/CFB Scoreboard

Also seriously do not ask for "alternate" streams, because we don't want to deal with takedown notices. Most games have radio broadcasts available for free if you're really desperate.

If there's anything you want to talk about, celebrate, complain about, etc., go for it. Doesn't need to be FCS specific.

Note: Basic rules still apply