FARMINGTON, Utah (Aug. 9, 2021) – Weber State led the way for Big Sky football in the latest round of preseason polls, as Stats Perform released its Preseason Top 25 on Monday.
For the full Stats Perform release, click here.
The defending Big Sky champions were slotted at No. 6, with the Wildcats seeking their fifth-straight conference title this fall. Montana (9th), Eastern Washington (11th) and Montana State (12th) rounded out the top-15, while UC Davis came in at 23rd. Sacramento State, who earned a share of the 2019 league title, was receiving votes in the preseason poll.
A national media panel selects the Stats Perform FCS Top 25. A first-place vote is worth 25 points, a second-place vote 24 points, all the way down to one point for a 25th-place vote.
STATS PERFORM FCS PRESEASON TOP 25
1. Sam Houston (10-0, 6-0 Southland), 1,228 points (39 first-place votes)
2. James Madison (7-1, 3-0 CAA), 1,180 (8)
3. South Dakota State (8-2, 5-1 Missouri Valley), 1,156 (3)
4. North Dakota State (7-3, 5-2 Missouri Valley), 1,116
5. Delaware (7-1, 4-0 CAA), 1,017
6. Weber State (5-1, 5-0 Big Sky), 927
7. Southern Illinois (6-4, 3-3 Missouri Valley), 888
8. North Dakota (5-2, 4-1 Missouri Valley), 886
9. Montana (2-0), 778
10. Jacksonville State (10-3, 6-1 Ohio Valley), 744
11. Eastern Washington (5-2, 5-1 Big Sky), 659
12. Montana State (2019: 11-4, 6-2 Big Sky), 654
13. Monmouth (3-1, 3-0 Big South), 618
14. Central Arkansas (5-4), 561
15. Southeastern Louisiana (4-3, 4-2 Southland), 559
16. Villanova (2-2 CAA), 440
17. VMI (6-2, 6-1 Southern), 397
18. Chattanooga (3-2, 3-1 Southern), 295
19. Kennesaw State (4-1, 2-1 Big South), 255
20. Austin Peay (4-5, 4-2 Ohio Valley), 227
21. Northern Iowa (3-4 Missouri Valley), 219
22. Nicholls (4-3 Southland), 173
23. UC Davis (3-2 Big Sky), 172
24. Missouri State (5-5, 5-1 Missouri Valley), 168
25. North Carolina A&T (2019: 9-3, 6-2 MEAC), 159
Others Receiving Votes (schools listed on two or more ballots): Murray State (5-2 Ohio Valley) 157, Richmond (3-1 CAA) 113, ETSU (4-2 Southern) 99, Sacramento State (2019: 9-4, 7-1 Big Sky) 57, Alabama A&M (5-0, 4-0 SWAC) 49, Florida A&M (2019: 9-2, 7-1 MEAC) 47, New Hampshire (0-1 CAA) 42, Alcorn State (2019: 9-4, 6-1 SWAC) 35, Holy Cross (3-1, 3-0 Patriot) 22, Samford (4-3 Southern) 20, UIW (3-3 Southland) 19, Sacred Heart (3-2, 2-1 Northeast) 17, Albany (1-3 CAA) 14, Illinois State (1-3 Missouri Valley) 10, Rhode Island (2-1 CAA) 10, South Carolina State (3-1) 10, Stephen F. Austin (6-4) 10, Duquesne (4-1, 4-0 Northeast) 4, Southeast Missouri (4-4, 4-3 Ohio Valley) 3
