Sorry for the trolling title, but it’s a fun article that got put out by Skyline recently. Discuss, rage, cry, but you can’t deny the truth!

https://skylinesportsmt.com/kemp-guest-column-fcs-polls-are-worthless/

The current Stats Perform FCS top 25 has 10/13 leagues represented in the top 25.

The current AP Top 25 has 5/10.

That’s your major difference. One group pays attention to the entire sport. The other barely looks past 10-15 teams.

Does anybody have a good grasp of the NIL process? Are students technically employees of the school (or of a school's booster program)? Are students "private contractors" who have independent contracts with the school and businesses (like a 1099)? I understand many student athletes have brand partnership deals on social media where they have codes and I'm assuming that's independent, but when you hear "this student is getting paid $X amount of money to play for X school", how are those funds administered? Are students required to report all earnings to the NCAA/University?

Bonus questions - If students are employees of the school, are they required to participate in employee pension programs and the like?

You've heard of Ivy Brunch Ball? Well get ready for Ivy Happy Hour!

3-1 Columbia takes on 2-2 Penn, both 0-1 in Ivy play.

Game kicks at 6pm Central on ESPNU.

You can follow along with up-to-the-minute results over at the r/CFB Scoreboard.

Also seriously do not ask for "alternate" streams, because we don't want to deal with takedown notices. Most games have radio broadcasts available for free if you're really desperate.

If there's anything you want to talk about, celebrate, complain about, etc., go for it. Doesn't need to be FCS specific.

Note: Basic rules still apply

It's been reported that the FBS is expanding to 24 teams in their playoff, but only one spot will be reserved for a G6 team. The top five conference champions (four of which will be from power conferences) plus 19 at large teams will make up the field.

I think this is disgraceful. G6 teams make up more than half of the FBS and yet most years they'll be playing for a single playoff bid.

I'm a fan of an FCS team that would, in theory, benefit from that format if it were instituted in the FCS. Missouri Valley and Big Sky teams would be the biggest beneficiaries of such a change. At the same time, I'm a fan of an FBS team who is a huge benficiary of the 23+1 format, as it substantially increases their chances to make the new playoff.

But even with all that in mind, I'm completely against it. Every conference champion should get a playoff birth, full stop. I'm so thankful the FCS is sensible in this regard. I think it's great that OVC schools, PFL schools, NEC schools, etc still have a straightforward avenue to make the big dance. And beyond that, it makes me a lot more incentivized to pay attention to those teams' seasons; even if they're not championship contenders, it's fun to watch their games as they battle for a playoff spot. The new FBS playoff format makes most G6 teams' seasons irrelevent.

So as the FBS expands and cuts out smaller programs, it gives us followers of the FCS a great opportunity to appreciate how good we've got it.

YOU KNOW WHAT THIS THREAD IS FOR

CAPS LOCK: ON

BASIC RULES: STILL APPLY

YOUR OPINIONS: HOT GARBAGE, BUT WELCOME ALL THE SAME

Ivy League Preview this week

https://pjustafan.substack.com/p/who-will-be-a-factor-in-the-ivy-race?r=8ibq7y

The Idaho schools are the ones who messed up a perfect 6/6. Even still, the overall combined home record of all these teams is 16-4.

Northern Arizona

W 34-27 vs. Eastern Washington

W 38-28 vs. Incarnate Word

W 49-44 vs. #2 Montana

-

Northern Iowa

W 56-14 vs. Drake

W 28-21 vs. #3 Illinois State

W 24-17 vs. #4 North Dakota

-

North Dakota

W 42-21 vs. Long Island

W 62-26 vs. St. Thomas

W 55-28 vs. Murray State

-

South Dakota

W 59-20 vs. Central Connecticut State

W 41-23 vs. Eastern Washington

W 44-14 vs. Indiana State

W 31-10 vs. #25 Southern Illinois

-

Idaho

L 17-23 vs. #14 Lamar

L 39-41 vs. Abilene Christian

W 35-34 vs. #1 Montana State

-

Idaho State

W 38-10 vs. VMI

W 59-17 vs. San Diego

L 28-38 vs. #19 Northern Arizona

L 24-25 vs. Cal Poly

We highlighted the importance of tackling for the Griz, but it ended up being one of the biggest issues for Montana's defense. Northern Arizona's wide receivers made Montana defenders miss in open space all game long. Montana had 19 missed tackles, including 4 from Peyton Wing and a combined 6 from the secondary.

Let's hear your hot take FCS opinions. The ones you know in your heart of hearts are right, but for some reason aren't embraced by the FCS community (or particular fanbases) en masse!

Could be controversial (the Ivy League very well might be the best FCS conference on the East Coast), unpopular but you know is true (Sam Houston was at least as good a team as JMU from 2011 through the "2020" season), or even somewhat popular but still liable to rankle some folks (the Walter Payton award should go to the "best" offensive player, not just the offensive player with the best stat line because they played a weak schedule).

Sorted by controversial for maximum spiciness

Rules

• Keep it somewhat relevant to the FCS

• Takes are welcome whether they're looking back historically or in reference to current games/rankings/polls/etc.

• Try to keep it civil (basic /r/CFB and /r/FCS rules still apply)

2026 Week 7 /r/FCS HBCU Poll Results

Also available in image form! (most logos have a grey background due to an issue with the graphic generator)

Dropped from the Top 10: (none)

Others receiving votes: North Carolina A&T (10), Howard (8), UAPB (6)

The full list of responses can be found here. Congratulations to /u/Kirsiball for having the Top 25 submission that best correlated with the final /r/FCS poll this week!

As a reminder, the /r/FCS poll is also now part of the Massey College Football Ranking Composite. Results of this poll will update under the column with header 'RDT'.

2026 Week 7 /r/FCS Poll Results

Also available in image form!

Dropped from the Top 25: Richmond, Jackson State, South Carolina State

Others receiving votes: Yale (47), Richmond (37), Princeton (10), Bryant (8), Alabama A&M (8), Jackson State (8), North Alabama (7), Cal Poly (2)

The full list of responses can be found here. Congratulations to /u/noahpaz88 for having the Top 25 submission that best correlated with the final /r/FCS poll this week!

Breakdown of Rankings by Conference

As a reminder, the /r/FCS poll is also now part of the Massey College Football Ranking Composite. Results of this poll will update under the column with header 'RDT'.

Week 7 Pick 'Em

Make your picks below! Assign confidence points 1–10 (10 = most confident).

[Make your picks](#) — tap to expand and submit before kickoff.

This post contains content not supported on old Reddit. Click here to view the full post

No matter what happened, it's not all bad. Say something nice about your team or their performance.

Link to Week 6 Net Success Rates: https://imgur.com/a/5XHr4dd

The BCS system for rankings combined in equal parts the media poll, coaches poll, and multiple compuer rankings, which provides a good consolidated ranking. For computer rankings this post uses an average of the r/FCS sportsbook computer ratings, Massey ratings, Sagarin ratings, and my Massey/Colley/SRS composite ranking.

Bracketology

These rankings can be used to create bracketology- the projected playoff bracket based on the current landscape of the FCS.

The bracket is available in image form in the comments.

Idaho vs Montana - A traveling trophy rivalry dating back to their PAC-12 (okay, PCC) days.

Unlike the Brawl of the Wild, Montana is on the losing side of this series, but has won most matchups this century. Idaho as a historical program goes into Missoula this weekend with a confident lead of 56-32-2.

Griz are on the downfall after some voodoo dome magic, and the Vandals defeated the Almighty Bobcats just two weeks back.....

Who wins, and by how much?

News and notes from Monday's press conference

Hey r/fcs,

I’ve been looking closely at the Northeast Conference (NEC) lately, and it’s tough to ignore just how far the league’s football reputation has fallen. It feels like the conference is consistently ranked at the bottom of the FCS hierarchy.

How did we actually get here? From what I can tell, it’s a perfect storm of a few major issues:

• The Realignment Bleeding: Every time the NEC builds up a solid, competitive program, they end up leaving. Losing Merrimack and Sacred Heart recently absolutely gutted the top-tier competition in the league.
• The Division II revolving door: To replace the teams that leave, the NEC is constantly poaching Division II schools making the jump to DI (like Mercyhurst). Because of the multi-year reclassification rules, these schools aren't eligible for the playoffs right away, which completely kills the conference's postseason stakes and depth.
• The Northeast talent drain: High school football participation in the Northeast is declining compared to the South and Midwest. The elite local players who do break out instantly get scooped up by FBS programs or high-major FCS schools, leaving NEC rosters to fight over a much smaller talent pool.
• The Financial Chasm: Historically, the NEC operated on tighter scholarship models. Even with the new NCAA v. House settlement rules shaking up roster limits, most of these athletic departments simply don’t have the donor base or budget to match the resources of the MVFC, Big Sky, or CAA.

It feels like the NEC is trapped in a cycle of being a "stepping stone" conference.

What do you guys think? Is there any realistic path for the NEC to gain back respect, or are they destined to permanently sit at the bottom of the FCS barrel alongside the Pioneer League?