Warner (Fla.) Bumps Ottawa (Kan.) From NAIA Flag Football's Top Spot After 17-0 Start
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Flag Football in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has a new No. 1.
Warner (Fla.) is off to a 17-0 start in 2026, bumping Ottawa (Kan.) off the top spot by claiming six of a possible seven first-place votes. Ottawa picked up the seventh first-place vote after an 11-1 start, while Keiser (Fla.) dropped one spot to No. 3.
Keiser and Warner will meet with regular-season championship implications on the line Saturday, at Warner, on Urban Edge Network at 1 p.m. ET.
Kansas Wesleyan was also a team on the move, up two spots to No. 4, while two teams - No. 5 Hope International (Calif.) and No. 10 Saint Francis (Ind.) - made their way into the top 10, knocking out Life (Ga.) and Thomas (Ga.). There's also one tie in the top 10, as Baker (Kan.) and St. Thomas (Fla.) received 21 points each, at No. 8.
They're behind the only other unbeaten team in the NAIA, Milligan (Tenn.), as the Buffs started 16-0 and moved up two spots to No. 7. Sixth-ranked Webber International (Fla.) also moved up a spot from No. 7 in the preseason poll.
One more release is scheduled, April 22, prior to the Inaugural NAIA Women's Flag Football Invitational, which will take place May 6-9 in Bradenton, Fla.
| Rank | Preseason | Institution [First-Place Votes] | W-L | Pts. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ▲ | 3 | 
|
Warner (Fla.) [6] | 17-0 | 69 |
| 2 | ▼ | 1 | 
|
Ottawa (Kan.) [1] | 11-1 | 63 |
| 3 | ▼ | 2 | 
|
Keiser (Fla.) | 12-1 | 57 |
| 4 | ▲ | 6 | 
|
Kansas Wesleyan | 8-1 | 45 |
| 5 | ▲ | NR | 
|
Hope International (Calif.) | 10-2 | 37 |
| 6 | ▲ | 7 | 
|
Webber International (Fla.) | 10-5 | 29 |
| 7 | ▲ | 9 | 
|
Milligan (Tenn.) | 16-0 | 26 |
| T-8 | ▼ | 4 | 
|
Baker (Kan.) | 11-2 | 21 |
| T-8 | ▼ | 5 | 
|
St. Thomas (Fla.) | 8-3 | 21 |
| 10 | ▲ | NR | 
|
Saint Francis (Ind.) | 8-4 | 10 |
Receiving Votes: Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) 4, Midland (Neb.) 2, Life (Ga.) 1.
Dropped out of Top 10: Life (Ga.), Thomas (Ga.).
Key: RV - Receiving Votes, NR - Not Ranked, ▲- Climbed, ▼- Dropped, ● - Steady
The NAIA preseason poll was voted on by a panel of coaches representing each conference in NAIA Women's Flag Football. The two regular-season releases are a poll of the NAIA Women's Flag Football National Selection Committee, a panel of administrators from NAIA campuses and conferences participating in NAIA Women's Flag Football.
