FCS Football Top 25: Zach McKinnell's 2025 Week 8 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 Week 8 ballot for the 2025 FCS football season.

25. Austin Peay

24. Rhode Island

23. Abilene Christian

22. Western Carolina

21. Presbyterian

20. Northern Arizona

19. Southern Illinois

18. Youngstown State

17. Stephen F. Austin

16. Villanova

15. Lamar

14. Southeastern Louisiana

13. Jackson State

12. Mercer

11. Harvard

10. Monmouth

9. UC Davis

8. Lehigh

7. Tennessee Tech

6. North Dakota

5. Montana State

4. Tarleton State

3. Montana

2. South Dakota State

1. North Dakota State

Honorable Mentions: South Dakota, Illinois State, North Carolina Central, Duquesne, Penn

Analysis:

I had a long debate when building my ballot on whether Tarleton State or Montana deserved the No. 3 spot. The Texans are finally healthy and looked dominant against a good West Georgia team, demolishing them in a 45-10 blowout. They also have the strength of schedule argument, ranking No. 36 nationally, compared to Montana at No. 50.

I still lean the Grizzlies in a 1A-1B scenario due to the win over North Dakota. It's also worth noting, I know Idaho has fallen off, but the Grizzlies beat them before injuries altered the trajectory of their season. If the Texans win convincingly against Abilene Christian in two weeks, I may have to come back to this conversation, but both of these teams have a real argument to be ranked in the Top 3.

I understand the frustration of Montana State fans as well. The Bobcats are 5-1 against the FCS, their only loss coming in an overtime thriller against South Dakota State. I still think Tarleton State's win over Army and Montana's win over UND are better wins than Montana State's best win (NAU). The Bobcats shouldn't be worried. Wins over UC Davis and Montana would secure the Bobcats firmly in the Top 3.

Youngstown State dropped out of my ballot last week, just to immediately return after an impressive road win over Illinois State. The Penguins are 4-2 against the FCS, both losses coming against Top 6 opponents. This was the win they needed to solidify their resume, along with keeping their postseason hopes alive. It may be harsh, but I dropped Illinois State off my ballot for now. The Redbirds are the first team out, but the eye test and lackluster resume were too much for me to overlook. A win this weekend against South Dakota would change things, but it's a 'prove-it' week for the Redbirds.

What are we supposed to do with Abilene Christian? The Wildcats have three ranked wins, including an impressive victory over Stephen F. Austin. Unfortunately, the Wildcats also have two bad losses to Incarnate Word (2-5) and Southern Utah (2-5). I kept the Wildcats in the Top 25 due to their overall resume, but a blowout loss to Tarleton State could force me to move them outside my ballot. The Wildcats also need to finish 3-1 over their last four games to remain in the postseason race.

I'm keeping a close eye on Southern Illinois, which has fallen from the Top 10 to almost outside the Top 20 in the past two weeks. Have the Salukis just run into two of the best teams in the nation? Or do the Salukis have major issues that teams are taking advantage of? I need to see dominance against UNI and Murray State the next two weeks before the Salukis get tested again against Youngstown State on Nov. 8.

As usual, I completely reevaluate my ballot each week, leading to some big changes depending on the results. This led to a big jump for Southeastern Louisiana, which remains underrated in most Top 25 polls. The Lions are 5-0 against the FCS, winning those games by an average of 35 points per game. There's no signature win, but there's multiple teams receiving the same hype with no Top 25 wins. The eye test would tell you that this team may be the favorite to win the Southland, which is why I moved them into the Top 15.

I continue to doubt Lamar, but the Cardinals just keep finding ways to win. This week, it was a 57-yard field goal against UTRGV. The Cardinals are 6-0 against the FCS, including a signature win over South Dakota in Week 2. Even though the eye test may give me mixed signals, I can't penalize them for finding ways to win. I still put them behind SLU, which has been more dominant with a very similar resume.

I'm not sure why voters continue to ignore Western Carolina, which improved to 5-3 overall, but is 5-0 since quarterback Taron Dickens returned. The Catamounts have their flaws, mainly defensive, but it's hard not to argue that they are a Top 25 team with Dickens at quarterback. Both of their FCS losses without them were by six points or less, making them one of the most intriguing teams to watch over the next few weeks.

My expectations for Villanova were low entering this season, and I may have had them too low the past few weeks after a loss to Monmouth in Week 4. The Wildcats look like they've turned a corner since that game, winning four consecutive games, including a 56-14 rout of Hampton. They have solid wins over William & Mary and Elon in that span, which led to me pushing them into the Top 20.

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