NDSU Football Number One in FCS Stats Preseason Poll
NDSU received 142 of the 160 votes
FARGO, N.D. – (NDSU Athletics) Two-time defending national champion North Dakota State was picked No. 1 in the STATS FCS Preseason Top 25 poll released Monday, Aug. 5. The Bison gained 142 of the 160 first-place votes in the national media poll, which features two NDSU opponents in the top five.
James Madison had 14 first-place votes and edged South Dakota State for the No. 2 spot, while national runner-up Eastern Washington was fourth and UC Davis fifth. NDSU hosts UC Davis on Sept. 21 and plays at SDSU on Oct. 26.
Three other Bison opponents are in the Top 25 including No. 15 Illinois State, 18th-ranked Northern Iowa, and No. 22 Delaware. The Missouri Valley Football Conference has five ranked teams with Indiana State checking in at No. 16. NDSU and Indiana State do not play this season.
North Dakota State returns seven full-time starters from last year’s 15-0 team under first-year head coach Matt Entz.
North Dakota State is scheduled to open the 2019 season against Butler University at 3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 31, at Target Field in Minneapolis presented by Pioneer. Gates open at 12 p.m. for a pregame concert featuring country star Jordan Davis hosted by Cenex. Tickets are available at TwinsBaseball.com/football.
| 2019 STATS FCS Preseason Top 25 | ||||
| Team (first-place votes) | W-L | Pts | Prev | |
| 1. | North Dakota State (142) | 15-0 | 3,971 | 1 |
| 2. | James Madison (14) | 9-4 | 3,635 | 9 |
| 3. | South Dakota State (1) | 10-3 | 3,631 | 3 |
| 4. | Eastern Washington (3) | 12-3 | 3,594 | 2 |
| 5. | UC Davis | 10-3 | 3,210 | 7 |
| 6. | Jacksonville State | 9-4 | 3,004 | 10 |
| 7. | Maine | 10-4 | 2,891 | 4 |
| 8. | Weber State | 10-3 | 2,827 | 6 |
| 9. | Wofford | 10-3 | 2,522 | 13 |
| 10. | Kennesaw State | 11-2 | 2,361 | 5 |
| 11. | Towson | 7-5 | 2,330 | 20 |
| 12. | Nicholls State | 9-4 | 2,156 | 14 |
| 13. | Colgate | 10-2 | 1,892 | 8 |
| 14. | Montana State | 8-5 | 1,866 | 17 |
| 15. | Illinois State | 6-5 | 1,432 | NR |
| 16. | Indiana State | 7-4 | 1,192 | NR |
| 17. | Southeast Missouri | 9-4 | 1,166 | 15 |
| 18. | Northern Iowa | 7-6 | 1,136 | 23 |
| 19. | Furman | 6-4 | 1,074 | NR |
| 20. | North Carolina A&T | 10-2 | 885 | 12 |
| 21. | Elon | 6-5 | 870 | 19 |
| 22. | Delaware | 7-5 | 798 | 24 |
| 23. | Sam Houston State | 6-5 | 564 | NR |
| 24. | Princeton | 10-0 | 432 | 11 |
| 25. | Montana | 6-5 | 413 | NR |
Others receiving votes: East Tennessee STate (8-4) 323, Stony Brook (7-5) 257, Duquesne (9-4) 235, San Diego (9-3) 209, Eastern Kentucky (7-4) 175, Dartmouth (9-1) 149, Central Arkansas (6-5) 125, McNeese State (6-5) 110, Monmouth (8-3) 110, IUW (6-5) 108, Alcorn State (9-4) 85, Yale (5-5) 52, New Hampshire (4-7) 42, Chattanooga (6-5) 38, South Dakota (4-7) 27, Northern Arizona (4-6) 16, Lamar (7-5) 14, Villanova (5-6) 14, Richmond (4-7) 8, The Citadel (5-6) 7, Mercer (5-6) 7, Rhode Island (6-5) 7, Abilene Christian (6-5) 6, Southeastern Louisiana (4-7) 6, 5, Idaho State (6-5) 5, Youngstown State (4-7) 4, Southern (7-4) 3, Samford (6-5) 2, North Dakota (6-5) 1, Sacred Heart (7-4) 1, Wagner (4-7) 1, Western Illinois (5-6) 1.
