KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The STADIONIC NAIA Football Coaches’ Top 25 Poll is here and the top eight teams and bottom ten teams are on the move once again. This week features a tie at No. 1, No. 7 through No. 15 holding steady, and a new team climbs in at No. 25 this week.
College of Idaho jumped two spots this week into a tie at No. 1 with the Keiser (Fa.) Seahawks thanks to a 4-0 start. Keiser (Fla.) held steady from last week, but isn’t along at the top any more. Morningside (Iowa), Friends (Kan.), Campbellsville (Ky.), St. Thomas (Fla.), Marian (Ind.), Lindsey Wilson (Ky.), Carroll (Mont.), Southeastern (Fla.), and McPherson (Kan.) all held steady from last week.
Cumberlands (Tenn.) entered the top 25 right at No. 25 this week with a 3-1 mark as Evangel slipped into the receiving votes.
College of Idaho made a statement Saturday with a 35-19 win over Montana Tech in a No. 2 vs. No. 3 matchup. Now 4-0, the Yotes host Simpson (Calif.) in a Frontier West matchup, Saturday at 1 p.m. MT. The Yotes vaulted to fourth in the NAIA in scoring, averaging nearly 49 points per game.
Keiser passed a previously unbeaten test Saturday, separating in the second half against Cumberlands (Ky.) in a 58-21 win over the Patriots, who were 4-0 going into the game. The Seahawks are 3-1 and they open conference play Saturday with a 26-game win streak in The Sun on the line at Thomas (Ga.).
Indiana Wesleyan is scoring at a historic rate in 2026, second in the NAIA at 55.8 points per game, coming off of a bye to host Judson (Ill.) at Noon ET. The Wildcats look to get to 5-0 in the game, led by Campbell Trophy semifinalist and quarterback Arjun Lothe, as well as Ryan Whitwell, who is one of two players in the NAIA with 10 or more touchdowns on the ground. Whitwell leads the NAIA with more than 178 yards per game on the ground, piling up 713 rushing yards through four games.
Benedictine pitched its first shutout of the season and improved to 4-1 with a 34-0 win on Family Day in Atchison over St. Ambrose (Iowa). Since dropping the season opener Aug. 29, the Ravens are holding opponents under eight points per game. Benedictine opens Heart South play Saturday, hosting nationally ranked Baker at 1 p.m.
Grand View bounced back from its first loss in 73 regular-season games by taking down MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) 35-13 in Olathe, Saturday. The Vikings open Heart North play on homecoming at Noon CT this week, hosting Clarke (Iowa). Grand View is one of five teams in the NAIA holding opponents to less than 10 points per game (fifth, at 9.6), and the Vikings are third nationally against the run, allowing opponents just 52 yards per game on the ground.
| TREND | RANK | LAST TIME | INSTITUTION [FIRST-PLACE VOTES] | RECORD | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ▲ | T1 | 3 | College of Idaho [5] | 4-0 | ||
| ● | T1 | 1 | Keiser (Fla.) [6] | 2-1 | ||
| ▲ | 3 | 4 | Indiana Wesleyan | 4-0 | ||
| ▲ | 4 | 5 | Benedictine (Kan.) | 5-1 | ||
| ▲ | 5 | 6 | Grand View (Iowa) | 4-1 | ||
| ▼ | 6 | 2 | Montana Tech | 4-1 | ||
| ● | 7 | 7 | Morningside (Iowa) | 4-1 | ||
| ● | 8 | 8 | Friends (Kan.) | 5-0 | ||
| ● | 9 | 9 | Campbellsville (Ky.) | 4-0 | ||
| ● | 10 | 10 | St. Thomas (Fla.) | 4-0 | ||
| ● | 11 | 11 | Marian (Ind.) | 3-1 | ||
| ● | 12 | 12 | Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | 4-1 | ||
| ● | 13 | 13 | Carroll (Mont.) | 3-1 | ||
| ● | 14 | 14 | Southeastern (Fla.) | 3-0 | ||
| ● | 15 | 15 | McPherson (Kan.) | 5-0 | ||
| ▲ | 16 | 18 | Midland (Neb.) | 5-0 | ||
| ▼ | 17 | 16 | Dordt (Iowa) | 2-2 | ||
| ▼ | 18 | 17 | Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) | 3-0 | ||
| ▲ | 19 | 20 | Louisiana Christian | 4-1 | ||
| ▼ | 20 | 19 | William Penn (Iowa) | 4-1 | ||
| ▲ | 21 | 22 | Northwestern (Iowa) | 3-2 | ||
| ▼ | 22 | 21 | Dakota State (S.D.) | 4-1 | ||
| ● | 23 | 23 | Baker (Kan.) | 4-0 | ||
| ▲ | 24 | 25 | Georgetown (Ky.) | 2-2 | ||
| ▲ | 25 | RV | Cumberland (Tenn.) | 3-1 | ||
| ▼ | Dropped from Top 25: Evangel (Mo.) | |||||
| Receiving Votes: Cumberlands (Ky.), Evangel (Mo.), Kansas Wesleyan, Montana Western, OUAZ (Ariz.), Southwestern (Kan.), Taylor (Ind.) | ||||||
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