STEPHENVILLE — The UAC picked Tarleton State Football to win the conference in 2025, and now FCS voters have tabbed the Texans as one of the top-10 teams in the nation entering the season.
Tarleton State is ranked No. 10 in the Stats Perform FCS Preseason Top 25 Poll, announced on Monday. Last year, the Texans were ranked No. 21 in the preseason poll, rose as high as No. 7 at the end of October, and finished No. 13 in the final Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll. The Texans were ranked in both the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 poll and AFCA FCS Coaches Poll every single week of the 2024 campaign, one of just 11 teams nationwide to never leave the polls.
This year, Tarleton State is the highest ranked UAC team in the poll, one of two representatives, with Abilene Christian No. 16. North Dakota State is No. 1 with 1,398 points, Montana State No. 2 with 1,335 points, South Dakota State No. 3 with 1,266 points, South Dakota No. 4 with 1,227 points, Incarnate Word No. 5 with 1,138 points, Illinois State No. 6 with 1,015 points, Montana No. 7 with 1,004 points, UC Davis No. 8 with 938 points, Rhode Island No. 9 with 928 points, and Tarleton State No. 10 with 912 points.
On July 16, Tarleton State was voted to win the United Athletic Conference, receiving eight of the possible nine first-place votes and a total 80 points. Abilene Christian was voted to finish second with 68 points, receiving the other first-place vote.
Last year, the Texans went 10-4 overall and 6-2 in United Athletic Conference play, winning their FCS Playoffs debut against Drake before dropping a tight contest at No. 4 South Dakota in Vermillion in the second round. The Texans became the fifth team in the history of the FCS Playoffs (Division I-AA Playoffs), which goes back 46 years, to win their first playoff game at the FCS level in their first year eligible after reclassifying from NCAA Division II. The Texans earned the No. 13 seed in the FCS Playoffs among the 24-team field across 129 FCS programs in just their first year of championship eligibility. They had become just the first team fresh off of reclassification to make the playoffs since 2009 (South Dakota State).
Entering 2025, Tarleton State returns veteran quarterback Victor Gabalis, who is the unanimous Preseason UAC Offensive Player of the Year. Four other Texan returners who earned Preseason All-Conference honors are offensive lineman Hunter Smith, defensive lineman Brandon Tolvert, linebacker Ty Rawls and defensive back Kasyus Kurns.
The full Stats Perform FCS Preseason Top 25 Poll:
1. North Dakota State (14-2, 7-1 MVFC in 2024)
Points: 1,398 (54 of 56 first-place votes); Final 2024 Ranking: 1; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 at The Citadel
2. Montana State (15-1, 8-0 Big Sky)
Points: 1,335 (1); Final 2024 Ranking: 2; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 at Oregon
3. South Dakota State (12-3, 7-1 MVFC)
Points: 1,266; Final 2024 Ranking: 3; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 vs. Sacramento State
4. South Dakota (11-3, 7-1 MVFC)
Points: 1,227 (1); Final 2024 Ranking: 4; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 at Iowa State
5. UIW (11-3, 7-0 Southland)
Points: 1,138; Final 2024 Ranking: 6; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 23 at Nicholls
6. Illinois State (10-4, 6-2 MVFC)
Points: 1,015; Final 2024 Ranking: 11; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 at Oklahoma
7. Montana (9-5, 5-3 Big Sky)
Points: 1,004; Final 2024 Ranking: 10; 2025 Season Opener: Sept. 6 vs. Central Washington
8. UC Davis (11-3, 7-1 Big Sky)
Points: 938; Final 2024 Ranking: 5; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 23 vs. Mercer (in Montgomery, Alabama)
9. Rhode Island (11-3, 7-1 CAA)
Points: 928; Final 2024 Ranking: 9; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 29 vs. Campbell
10. Tarleton State (10-4, 6-2 UAC)
Points: 912; Final 2024 Ranking: 13; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 23 at Portland State
11. Mercer (11-3, 7-1 SoCon)
Points: 824; Final 2024 Ranking: 8; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 23 vs. UC Davis (in Montgomery, Alabama)
12. Idaho (10-4, 6-2 Big Sky)
Points: 747; Final 2024 Ranking: 7; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 at Washington State
13. Villanova (10-4, 6-2 CAA)
Points: 737; Final 2024 Ranking: 12; 2025 Season Opener: Sept. 6 vs. Colgate
14. Lehigh (9-4, 5-1 Patriot)
Points: 493; Final 2024 Ranking: 20; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 vs. Richmond
15. Sacramento State (3-9, 1-7 Big Sky)
Points: 492; Final 2024 Ranking: NR; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 vs. South Dakota State
16. Abilene Christian (9-5, 7-2 UAC)
Points: 436; Final 2024 Ranking: 14; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 at Tulsa
17. Jackson State (12-2, 8-0 SWAC)
Points: 336; Final 2024 Ranking: 18; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 vs. Hampton
18. Western Carolina (7-5, 6-2 SoCon)
Points: 335; Final 2024 Ranking: NR; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 vs. Gardner-Webb
19. Northern Arizona (8-5, 6-2 Big Sky)
Points: 312; Final 2024 Ranking: 22; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 at Arizona State
20. Southern Illinois (4-8, 2-6 MVFC)
Points: 310; Final 2024 Ranking: NR; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 vs. Thomas More
21. Tennessee Tech (7-5, 6-2 OVC-Big South)
Points: 284; Final 2024 Ranking: NR; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 vs. Cumberland
22. Monmouth (6-6, 4-4 CAA)
Points: 274; Final 2024 Ranking: NR; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 29 at Colgate
23. Stephen F. Austin (7-5, 4-3 Southland)
Points: 183; Final 2024 Ranking: NR; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 28 at Houston
24. Stony Brook (8-4, 5-3 CAA)
Points: 181; Final 2024 Ranking: NR; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 28 at San Diego State
25. Richmond (10-3, 8-0 CAA; now Patriot)
Points: 154; Final 2024 Ranking: 15; 2025 Season Opener: Aug. 30 at Lehigh
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