| Rank | Team | Comments | Prior |
| 1 |  | North Dakota State | Bison were down at the half to South Dakota. Woke up in the second half and cruised to a 34-17 win. Home game with Youngstown State next week. | 1 |
| 2 |  | Montana | Grizzlies jumped all over Portland State and cruised after halftime. A travel date to Idaho State precedes their bye. | 2 |
| 3 |  | South Dakota State | Jackrabbits picked up a ranked road win at Missouri State, 28-14. They'll come home to host Western Illinois next. | 3 |
| 4 |  | Delaware | Blue Hens hosted previously undefeated Hampton, shutting them out 'til the 4th, winning 35-3. Another home game vs. Towson. No looking ahead... | 6 |
| 5 |  | Weber State | Wildcats won a headbanger at UC-Davis. They'll get this week to clear the cobwebs before hosting a desperate Eastern Washington. | 7 |
| 6 |  | Montana State | Bobcats ignored the injuries and recorded a huge road win at Eastern Washington. They'll host UC-Davis next week, who plays everybody tough. | 5 |
| 7 |  | Sacramento State | Hornets made another giant statement, destroying FBS Colorado State. A third straight road game, this time to Cal Poly will open October. | 9 |
| 8 |  | Holy Cross | Crusaders stayed perfect, crushing Colgate 35-10. Next week, a short jaunt to the Ivies, at Harvard. | 14 |
| 9 |  | Jackson State | Tigers had no issues beating Mississippi Valley State. Looks more and more like an undefeated run is coming. Not losing next week - they have a bye. | 12 |
| 10 |  | Incarnate Word | Cardinals early success did not impress Southeastern Louisiana, losing 41-35. They'll return home to face a struggling McNeese. | 4 |
| 11 |  | Chattanooga | Mocs' Thursday nighter at FBS Illinois was not fun, losing 31-0. Now they travel northeast to play their in-state brothers, East Tennessee State. | 11 |
| 12 |  | Mercer | Bears had no problems in their road game at Gardner-Webb. Road game to winless Wofford next is one they need to approach the same way. | 15 |
| 13 |  | Missouri State | Bears fought hard against SDSU, but ran out of gas late. Need to refuel quickly, road trips in North Dakota are not easier. | 8 |
| 14 |  | Austin Peay | Governors may be in the ASUN driver's seat after beating Eastern Kentucky. They have a road game to Central Arkansas before a bye. Focus time! | 22 |
| 15 |  | Samford
| Bulldogs put the clamps on high-scoring Western Carolina, winning 35-12. Very important road game to fellow 3-1 Furman. SoCon heating up! | 17 |
| 16 |  | Southeast Missouri | Redhawks now have three straight wins after a solid home win vs. Central Arkansas. They get to be first OVC team to go to Lindenwood now. | 25 |
| 17 |  | Southeastern Louisiana | Lions offense is starting to look like last year's outfit. They get another home date next week, with the OVC's Murray State. | 23 |
| 18 |  | UT Martin
| Skyhawks welcomed Lindenwood into the OVC with a thorough second half beat down. Another home game, vs. Tennessee Tech next. | 16 |
| 19 |  | William & Mary | Tribe had their game with Elon under control. Then Elon wins the final quarter 19-0. Ouch! A road game to winless Stony Brook comes next week. | 10 |
| 20 |  | North Carolina Central | Eagles stay undefeated beating an undermanned Virginia-Lynchburg, 59-14. Next is a road date in-state to Campbell. | 24 |
| 21 |  | Southern Illinois | Salukis won pretty easily at home against North Dakota. Next week they start the MVFC Illinois series, playing at Illinois State. | NR |
| 22 |  | Eastern Kentucky | Colonels were dominating APSU most of their game, but a 4th quarter collapse did them in. A non-conference home date with Southern Utah next. | 21 |
| 23 |  | Elon | Phoenix used a huge 4th quarter to steal a win at William & Mary, 35-31. A home game against equally hot Richmond is next. | NR |
| 24 |  | Richmond | Spiders smashed Stony Brook, 51-7, helping continue their misery. As mentioned before, a huge mid-season date at Elon coming up. | NR |
| 25 |  | Idaho | Vandals are now 2-0 vs. FCS teams after winning at Northern Arizona. Home win next week against Northern Colorado would give some real momentum. | NR |
