KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has released its fourth edition of the Netting Professionals NAIA Football Coaches' Top-25 Poll. Carroll College now appears tied at No. 14 in the national rating.
Coming off a dominant 34-12 win in the desert over Arizona Christian on Saturday, the Fighting Saints (4-1) have officially cracked the Top-15 in the NAIA Poll for the first time, midway through the 2025 season.
After starting the 2025 season at No. 25 in the coaches' poll, the Saints have now climbed 11 spots over the first five games of the year.
Carroll remains one of four teams in the Frontier Conference to appear within the NAIA Top-25. Montana Tech dropped two spots to No. 7, College of Idaho jumped three spots to No. 22, and this weekend's opponent Montana Western remained idle at No. 8 in the nation.
The Saints are tied at No. 14 with Indiana Wesleyan (4-2), a member of the Mid-States Football Association who have yet to play a conference game.
This is the first time since the NAIA began tracking its coaches' polls (1997) that Carroll has occupied the No. 14 spot in the poll, and the first time that they have been tied for a position as well.
The three-spot jump sets up a monumental game in the Frontier Conference - West this weekend, as the No. 14 Fighting Saints head to Dillon for a showdown with No. 8 Montana Western in a battle to remain unbeaten in conference play.
The Frontier Conference - West division champion will earn one of two automatic berths to the NAIA Football Championship Series in November, joining the divisional champion from the East.
Saturday's game will be the third ranked opponent of the season for the Saints (Week 2 - No. 11 Montana Tech, Week 4 - No. 11 Dickinson State).
The full fourth edition of the NAIA Coaches' Poll can be found below:
| Trend |
Rank |
Last Poll |
Institution [First-Place Votes] |
Record |
Points |
| ● |
1 |
1 |
Grand View (Iowa) [15] |
5-0 |
435 |
| ● |
2 |
2 |
Keiser (Fla.) |
4-0 |
421 |
| ● |
3 |
3 |
Benedictine (Kan.) |
5-1 |
404 |
| ● |
4 |
4 |
Morningside (Iowa) |
4-1 |
386 |
| ▲ |
5 |
6 |
Friends (Kan.) |
6-0 |
359 |
| ▲ |
6 |
7 |
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) |
5-0 |
354 |
| ▼ |
7 |
5 |
Montana Tech |
6-0 |
349 |
| ● |
8 |
8 |
Montana Western |
4-1 |
340 |
| ● |
9 |
9 |
St. Thomas (Fla.) |
3-1 |
316 |
| ▲ |
10 |
12 |
Campbellsville (Ky.) |
5-0 |
297 |
| ▲ |
11 |
13 |
Dordt (Iowa) |
4-0 |
293 |
| ▲ |
12 |
14 |
Marian (Ind.) |
4-1 |
280 |
| ▲ |
13 |
15 |
OUAZ (Ariz.) |
4-0 |
256 |
| ▲ |
14 |
16 |
Indiana Wesleyan |
4-2 |
221 |
| ▲ |
14 |
17 |
Carroll (Mont.) |
4-1 |
221 |
| ▲ |
16 |
18 |
Southwestern (Kan.) |
5-1 |
203 |
| ▲ |
17 |
19 |
Concordia (Neb.) |
4-0 |
197 |
| ▼ |
18 |
10 |
Southeastern (Fla.) |
3-1 |
190 |
| ▼ |
19 |
11 |
Georgetown (Ky.) |
3-2 |
169 |
| ▲ |
20 |
21 |
Texas Wesleyan |
3-2 |
155 |
| ▲ |
21 |
24 |
McPherson (Kan.) |
6-0 |
146 |
| ▲ |
22 |
25 |
College of Idaho |
4-1 |
140 |
| ● |
23 |
23 |
MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) |
5-1 |
129 |
| ▲ |
24 |
RV |
Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) |
3-1 |
88 |
| ▲ |
25 |
RV |
Saint Francis (Ind.) |
4-1 |
82 |
| Receiving Votes: William Penn (Iowa) 79; Cumberland (Tenn.) 35; Evangel (Mo.) 27; Bethel (Tenn.) 11; Kansas Wesleyan 11; Louisiana Christian 11; Taylor (Ind.) 10; Northwestern (Iowa) 7; Florida Memorial 5; Peru State (Neb.) 2 |
| Dropped out of Top 25: William Penn (Iowa), Northwestern (Iowa) |
Be sure to visit www.carrollathletics.com later this week for a preview of Saturday's Top-15 battle, and to stay up to date with everything going on in Carroll Athletics.
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