Pikeville, Reinhardt Earn Votes in NAIA Preseason Poll

1. Grand View (Iowa), 420 points

2024 Record: 14-0

This Week: IDLE

The defending NAIA football national champions open the season Sept. 6, in a top-five battle with No. 4 Benedictine. The Vikings are led into the 2025 season by quarterback Jackson Waring, who threw for 2,514 yards and 25 touchdowns, and was also GVU's second-leading rusher with 744 yards, adding 13 scores on the ground. The Vikings are the preseason favorite in the Heart North.

2. Keiser (Fla.), 406 points

2024 Record: 12-1

This Week: at No. 7 Indiana Wesleyan, Aug. 30, Noon ET (ESPN+)

The Seahawks seek a fourth-straight trip to the NAIA Football Championship Game and a second title in three years, claiming a Red Banner in 2023, led by Shea Spencer at quarterback in 2025 after throwing for more than 3,000 yards and 30 touchdowns a season ago, as well as Mauricio Porcha, who had eight scores and 681 yards receiving. Keiser opens the year on the road, Saturday (Aug. 30) at No. 6 Indiana Wesleyan.

3. Morningside (Iowa), 385 points

2024 Record: 12-2

This Week: at No. 4 Benedictine, Aug. 30, 1 p.m. CT

The Mustangs return 15 starters, including six on the defensive side that helped Morningside turn opponents over 23 times. Zach Schevalier is back under center after throwing for 4,682 yards and 45 touchdowns last season. He will have a pair of receivers—Drew Sellon and Lennx Brown—who combined for nearly 200 receptions and more than 2,700 yards, Sellon making 120 catches on his own for 1,813 and 17 scores. Morningside travels to No. 4 Benedictine to start the season, on Aug. 30.

4. Benedictine (Kan.), 382 points

2024 Record: 11-3

This Week: vs. No. 3 Morningside, Aug. 30, 1 p.m. CT

The Ravens are coming off a share of the Heart South title and an appearance in the NAIA Football Championship Series semifinals, returning five starters to the defensive side of the ball, along with signal caller Jackson Dooley, who threw for 4,153 yards and 41 touchdowns last season. He'll be joined in the backfield by Xavier Ugorji, who ran for 705 yards and eight touchdowns in 2024. BC opens with arguably one of the toughest two-game stretches in the NAIA, hosting No. 3 Morningside, Aug. 30, before traveling to No. 1 Grand View on Sept. 6. 

5. Montana Western, 363 points

2024 Record: 10-2

This Week: at No. 11 Montana Tech, Aug. 28, 6 p.m. MT

The Bulldogs will be tested out of the gate, traveling to No. 11 Montana Tech, the top pick in the Frontier East. Montana Western is favored to win the Frontier West, combining to return 11 starters between the offense and defense. One of those returners is All-American quarterback Michael Paladrini, a dual-threat who ran for nine touchdowns and threw for 34 more, completing 228 passes for 3,670 yards in 2024.

6. Indiana Wesleyan, 343 points

2024 Record: 11-2

This Week: vs. No. 2 Keiser, Aug. 30, Noon ET (ESPN+)

Indiana Wesleyan gets a tough test Saturday (Aug. 30) to start the season, hosting No. 2 Keiser at Noon (ET) on ESPN+. The Wildcats bring back five offensive starters, including running back Ryan Whitwell, who ran for more than 1,100 yards and scored 12 times on the ground, and Isaac Smith, who hauled in 86 receptions for 1,115 yards and 14 touchdowns. Smith will have a new quarterback throwing his way in 2025, as Arjun Lothe takes over after spending 2024 as a backup, throwing for 770 yards and eight scores.

7. Northwestern (Iowa), 327 points

2024 Record: 9-3

This Week: vs. Waldorf, Aug. 30, 6 p.m. CT

Quarterback Colby Duncan is back for the Red Raiders, who look for their first national championship since 2022, bringing back six starters on both sides of the ball. Duncan split time last season with Hayden Groos, throwing six touchdown passes, two in a playoff win over Montana Tech on Nov. 30, completing 6-of-17 for 130 yards. He'll have a familiar target to throw to, as Austyn Gerard returns 42 receptions, 872 yards, and eight receiving touchdowns from a season ago.

8. St. Thomas (Fla.), 307 points

2024 Record: 9-2

This Week: IDLE

All-American wideout David Hayes returns for the Bobcats after 60 catches, 1,115 yards and 16 scores last season, and he'll expect the ball from Keely Watson, who returns at quarterback after throwing for 2,759 yards and 31 scores in 2024. In all, eight starters are back for an STU offense that averaged nearly 44 points per game last season. St. Thomas is off until Sept. 6, when the Bobcats host the University of Fort Lauderdale in Miami Gardens. 

9. Georgetown (Ky.), 299 points

2024 Record: 9-3

This Week: vs. Pikeville, Aug. 30, 6 p.m. ET

Last season's Mid-South Conference champion, the Tigers are led on offense by All-American running back Darius Neal, who ran for 1,386 yards and 11 touchdowns. Defensively, Georgetown brings back six starters, including a pair on the defensive line, and the Tigers will begin the year Saturday night against Pikeville, a playoff team that won on the road, at Baker, in the first round. 

10. Texas Wesleyan, 291 points

2024 Record: 9-3

This Week: at Lindsey Wilson, Aug. 28, 6 p.m. CT

The Rams call Crowley ISD Stadium home, the site of the 2025 NAIA Football Championship Game, but Texas Wesleyan won't see its home field for a game until Oct. 4, beginning the year with four-straight games on the road. The Rams were 10-0 going into last season's playoff loss to Benedictine, and in 2025, Texas Wesleyan brings back eight starters on each side of the ball. The Rams are favored to win the Sooner Athletic Conference in 2025, and in that stretch of four on the road to begin the year, Texas Wesleyan plays at first-year FCS program UT-Rio Grande Valley. Carson Rogers returns at quarterback after throwing for 2,857 yards and 25 touchdowns last season.