FCS Football Top 25: Zach McKinnell's 2025 Week 9 Ballot

I'm honored to represent FCS Football Central on SI as one of the voters in the FCS Stats Perform Top 25 again for the 2025 season. I also submit this ballot for the Redshirt Sports Top 25 poll.

As I have over the past few years, I will release my weekly ballot and explain my reasoning behind my selections throughout the season. I believe it's important to be transparent as a voter, giving fans insight into how I analyze teams and build my ballot week-to-week.

Below is my ballot for the 2025 FCS football season.

25. Dartmouth

24. Austin Peay

23. Abilene Christian

22. Rhode Island

21. Western Carolina

20. Northern Arizona

19. Southern Illinois

18. Illinois State

17. Stephen F. Austin

16. Villanova

15. Youngstown State

14. Lamar

13. Southeastern Louisiana

12. Mercer

11. Monmouth

10. Harvard

9. UC Davis

8. Lehigh

7. Tennessee Tech

6. Montana State

5. South Dakota State

4. North Dakota

3. Tarleton State

2. Montana

1. North Dakota State

Honorable Mentions: Jackson State, West Georgia, UTRGV, Alabama State, Yale

Analysis:

The most notable change was South Dakota State dropping to No. 5 after a blowout loss to North Dakota State. The Jacks are still 7-1 overall, all against the FCS, including a head-to-head win over Montana State and a ranked win over Youngstown State. I kept SDSU ahead of Montana State because of the head-to-head win, but if the Jacks suffer another loss or look unimpressive the next few weeks, that head-to-head win won't be enough to keep Montana State from passing SDSU.

I also moved North Dakota to No. 4, jumping both Montana State and South Dakota State. The Hawks have looked impressive all season, with their only FCS loss being a one-point loss to Montana in Week 3. Since then, the Hawks have won five games, all by two or more scores, including two ranked wins over Southern Illinois and Youngstown State. There's even an argument to move the Hawks to No. 3, but the eye test still favors Tarleton State... For now.

Like I said last week, I understand the frustration of Montana State fans, but the message remains the same. Keep winning, and everything will work itself out. If the Bobcats beat UC Davis and Montana to end the season, there won't be any debate that this team deserves to be at No. 2 behind North Dakota State.

The conversation around Tarleton State has been interesting because some people have continued to discount this team. I still give Montana the edge at No. 2 due to the head-to-head win over North Dakota, but to act like the Texans haven't earned a Top 3 spot is disingenuous at best. The Texans have almost the same resume as Montana State did at this point last year. Each team had an FBS win, only one "quality" or Top 25 win, and was dominating every opponent on the schedule. Nobody questioned Montana State's placement inside the Top 3.

Despite missing multiple starters until last weekend, the Texans have won every FCS game by 10 points or more, outscoring their FCS opponents 378-119. Tarleton State will have a chance to add another ranked win this weekend against Abilene Christian, which is an extremely tough UAC matchup. A win could validate the Texans, but a loss would reinforce the idea that they don't belong in the Top 5.

Since we got all that out of the way, let's get to some other notable changes outside the Top 6. Presbyterian falls out of my ballot after an upset loss to Dayton. Yes, the Blue Hose are still 7-1, but they only have five Division I wins and the No. 124 strength of schedule in the country. That's not enough to remain in the Top 25 after Week 9.

Jackson State also dropped out of my ballot, sitting as the first team out after an upset loss to Grambling State. The Tigers have only four Division I wins, none against Top 25 teams, and the 114th-ranked strength of schedule, which is why they remain on the outside looking in for now.

I debated between Jackson State and Dartmouth for No. 25, but gave the edge to the Big Green. Dartmouth is 5-1 overall, all five wins against Division I opponents, including signature wins over New Hampshire and Yale. We'll find out how good this team is this weekend as they travel to Cambridge for a huge matchup against Harvard.

The only other new team in my ballot was Illinois State, which jumped back in after a ranked win over South Dakota. The Redbirds are 5-2 against the FCS, their two losses to Youngstown State and North Dakota State, both ranked teams. The eye test still concerns me for this team, but the resume keeps them in my ballot right now. I need to see dominance against Northern Iowa and Indiana State in the next two games to justify keeping them in the Top 20.