2026 FCS Football Season Preview: Championship Contenders and Potential Dark Horses

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With North Dakota State departing for the FBS, a new era dawns over the Division I Championship Subdivision. Defending national champion Montana State leads a reordered top tier, but a wide-open landscape leaves plenty of room for rising dark horses to make deep postseason runs. The 2026-27 FCS football season is underway and culminates in the NCAA Division I FCS National Championship Game, scheduled for Monday, January 11, 2027, at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.

Starting with the 2026 season, the NCAA officially adopted standardized legislation allowing all Division I FCS programs to play a permanent 12-game regular-season schedule every year. Previously, FCS teams were restricted to an 11-game cap—only expanding to 12 during rare calendar leap years with 14 Saturdays between Labor Day and Thanksgiving, or by utilizing specific Week Zero exemptions like traveling to Hawaii. By standardizing the season kickoff to the Thursday 13 weeks before playoff selection weekend, FCS schools now enjoy permanent scheduling flexibility, giving athletic departments a critical extra game to generate home-stadium revenue or lock in lucrative FBS guarantee paychecks without needing special NCAA waivers.

Team	Preseason Rank	Key Storyline	Primary Strength
Montana State Bobcats	No. 1	Defending national champs seeking repeat title	Returning championship core & coaching continuity
Montana Grizzlies	No. 2	Pushing for Big Sky dominance behind QB Keali’i Ah Yat	Explosive passing attack & high-pressure defense
South Dakota State Jackrabbits	No. 3	Looking to reclaim FCS throne in post-NDSU era	Perennial physical dominance in front seven
Illinois State Redbirds	No. 4	Following up 2025 national runner-up Cinderella run	Proven big-game playoff execution
Tarleton State Texans	No. 5	Rapid program rise entering national title conversation	Dynamic offense and high-profile transfer talent

Top Championship Contenders

Montana State: The unanimous preseason No. 1 Bobcats hold the crown after winning their first national championship since 1984 in an overtime thriller against Illinois State. They enter the year with zero personnel drop-off at key skill positions.
Montana: Ranked No. 2 nationally, the Grizzlies boast one of the most complete rosters in the country. QB Keali’i Ah Yat gives Montana a legitimate high-caliber distributor to match Montana State point-for-point in the Big Sky.
South Dakota State: With rival NDSU no longer in the Missouri Valley, the Jackrabbits are prime candidates to run the table in conference play and claim a top-two playoff seed.

Teams That Could Surprise

Youngstown State (No. 9): Dual-threat quarterback Beau Brungard bypassed transfer portal offers to return to YSU. Supported by four Preseason All-Americans, the Penguins feature the firepower to crash the semi-finals.
Lehigh (No. 11): The Mountain Hawks are coming off a 12-win campaign led by star running back Luke Yoder (1,409 rushing yards). Their veteran offensive line makes them a dangerous matchup for Big Sky and MVFC powerhouses.
Southern Illinois (No. 16): Quarterback DJ Williams returns after putting up 3,700 total yards in 2025. SIU’s aggressive defense makes them a dark horse to win the MVFC.
Yale (No. 18): After capturing a share of the Ivy League title and earning the conference’s first-ever automatic FCS playoff bid, Yale returns a deeply experienced core capable of another postseason disruption.