2026 FCS Preview

Every FCS team gets a page: last season’s results, returning production, and the schedule with a win probability on every game. Plus the projected 24-team bracket, conference orders of finish, and where our number disagrees with the market.

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Big Sky 2026 Season Preview

Montana State's Race to Lose

Montana State sits atop the league at No. 1 nationally with a projected 10-2 mark, and nothing in this field looks built to knock it off that perch. Montana trails at No. 2 nationally and 9-3, close enough to make the rematch feel inevitable, with UC Davis (No. 10, 8-4) and Idaho State (No. 14, 8-4) forming a clear second tier rather than true threats to the top two. Southern Utah, Northern Arizona, Idaho and Cal Poly round out a bottom half separated by real distance in the ratings. This projects as a two-team race that ends exactly where it starts, with Montana State and Montana meeting again for the title.

Montana State's Preseason Haul

Montana State's 9 selections dwarf every other program on this list, and the defensive back room tells the story by itself: Tayden Gray, Colter Petre, Takhari Carr and Bryant Meredith all made first team, alongside linebackers Cole Taylor and Bryce Grebe and lineman Zac Crews. Montana counters on offense with quarterback Keali'i Ah Yat, running back Eli Gillman and receiver Brooks Davis, while Idaho State's Tsion Nunnally and Teilor Tuioti and Northern Arizona's Jeter Purdy give three other programs a presence up top. The rest of the league is scattered one or two picks deep, which points to a top-heavy conference built around one dominant roster rather than balanced power across the Big Sky.

Montana State's Room Advantage

Montana State holds down four of the seven top returning-production rooms in the league, with Zac Crews anchoring the defensive line, Cole Taylor at linebacker, Tayden Gray in the secondary and Taco Dowler leading the receivers. That spread across both sides of the ball says Montana State's returning talent is not concentrated in one unit but built into the trench and back-seven pieces that show up every week. Montana still controls the backfield picture with Keali'i Ah Yat and Eli Gillman both rating as the conference's top returners at quarterback and running back, giving it a puncher's chance up front offensively even without matching the room count. Northern Arizona's lone entry, Jeter Purdy at tight end, is the only crack in the two-team hold on the conference's returning production.

All 124 FCS team previews

Every team in the FCS book. Each one has its own preview: projected finish, what the roster returns, and the games that decide the season.

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2026 Edition · Out now2026 NFL Preview32 teams, everything you need for the season