KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has released its penultimate edition of the 2026 STADIONIC NAIA Football National Selection Committee Poll. The Carroll Football team slipped two spots to No. 14.

The Fighting Saints (7-2, 4-1) dropped their first game since September, falling 48-41 on the road to College of Idaho, and were subsequently dropped a pair of spots in this week's poll.

While the loss did knock the Saints down a couple of spots, their performance against the now-ranked No. 1 Yotes was impressive enough to hold them inside the Top-15. The Saints were the only team to stay within one score of the high-powered C of I offense, and the lone team to score more than 28 points against one of the nation's stingiest defenses.

Three Frontier teams remain ranked in the NSC Poll - No. 14 Carroll, No. 1 College of Idaho, and Montana Tech who remained idle at No. 5.

The Saints, still very much in play for a return to the NAIA Football Championship Series, have a must-win scenario on their hands this week. Carroll hits the road once more, wrapping up their season at Eastern Oregon, who has a matching 7-2 record, while also going 4-1 in Frontier-West play this season. Should the Saints win, it appears to be highly probable that playoff football returns to the Capital City next weekend.