COLUMBIA, S.C. — The
Benedict College Tigers are ranked No. 22 nationally in the D2football.com media poll following Saturday's 32-10 victory over Johnson C. Smith.
The Tigers received votes in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) top 25 poll, receiving 55 total points, to trail No. 25 Fort Hays State by seven points. Johnson C. Smith was ranked No. 23 in the AFCA preseason poll.
Benedict, 1-0, will look to keep its record unblemished and move up in both national polls when the Tigers travel to Rome, Georgia, this week to take on the Shorter Hawks. The game was originally scheduled for a 3 p.m. kickoff, but has been moved to a 5 p.m. kickoff due to weather and projected high temperatures.
D2Football.com Top 25 as of August 30, 2026
| 1. |
Ferris State |
(1-0) |
| 2. |
Harding |
(0-0) |
| 3. |
Minnesota State |
(1-0) |
| 4. |
Kutztown |
(0-0) |
| 5. |
Northwest Missouri State |
(1-0) |
| 6. |
Indianapolis |
(1-0) |
| 7. |
Grand Valley State |
(1-0) |
| 8. |
Central Washington |
(0-0) |
| 9. |
CSU Pueblo |
(1-0) |
| 10. |
Western Colorado |
(1-0) |
| 11. |
Pittsburg State |
(0-1) |
| 12. |
Ashland |
(0-0) |
| 13. |
Augustana |
(1-0) |
| 14. |
Western Oregon |
(1-0) |
| 15. |
Valdosta State |
(1-0) |
| 16. |
Frostburg State |
(0-0) |
| 17. |
Findlay |
(0-0) |
| 18. |
Northeastern State |
(1-0) |
| 19. |
Slippery Rock |
(1-0) |
| 20. |
Newberry |
(0-0) |
| 21. |
Lenoir-Rhyne |
(1-0) |
| 22. |
Benedict |
(1-0) |
| 23. |
Fort Hays State |
(1-0) |
| 24. |
Minnesota Duluth |
(0-1) |
| 25. |
Michigan Tech |
(1-0) |
AFCA D2 POLL
| Rank |
School (1st votes) |
Rec. |
Pts. |
Prev. |
| 1 |
Ferris St. (31) |
1-0 |
775 |
1 |
| 2 |
Harding |
0-0 |
743 |
2 |
| 3 |
Kutztown |
0-0 |
708 |
3 |
| 4 |
Minnesota St. |
1-0 |
671 |
5 |
| 5 |
CSU Pueblo |
1-0 |
645 |
6 |
| 6 |
Central Washington |
0-0 |
585 |
7 |
| 7 |
Grand Valley St. |
1-0 |
568 |
9t |
| 8 |
Northwest Missouri St. |
1-0 |
561 |
8 |
| 9 |
UIndy |
1-0 |
517 |
9t |
| 10 |
Pittsburg St. |
0-1 |
492 |
4 |
| 11 |
Western Colorado |
1-0 |
482 |
11 |
| 12 |
Ashland |
0-0 |
414 |
13 |
| 13 |
Newberry |
0-0 |
372 |
15 |
| 14 |
Frostburg St. |
0-0 |
310 |
17 |
| 15 |
Findlay |
0-0 |
296 |
16 |
| 16 |
Augustana (S.D.) |
1-0 |
262 |
20 |
| 17 |
Western Oregon |
1-0 |
258 |
22 |
| 18 |
Slippery Rock |
1-0 |
200 |
NR |
| 19 |
Minnesota-Duluth |
0-1 |
185 |
12 |
| 20 |
Ouachita Baptist |
0-0 |
161 |
24 |
| 21 |
Lenoir-Rhyne |
1-0 |
145 |
NR |
| 22 |
Indiana (Pa.) |
0-0 |
110 |
25 |
| 23 |
Valdosta St. |
1-0 |
94 |
NR |
| 24 |
Northeastern St. |
1-0 |
75 |
NR |
| 25 |
Fort Hays St. |
1-0 |
62 |
NR |
Dropped Out: Virginia Union (14), UT Permian Basin (18), Wingate (19), Albany St. (21), Johnson C. Smith (23)
Others Receiving Votes: Benedict, 55; UNC Pembroke, 47; UT Permian Basin, 41; Virginia Union, 38; Central Oklahoma, 36; Michigan Tech, 34; Albany St., 30; North Greenville, 22; Northwood, 18; Wingate, 18; California (Pa.), 11; Southern Arkansas, 9; East Stroudsburg, 6; Assumption, 5; Johnson C. Smith, 5; Davenport, 3; Carson-Newman, 2; Upper Iowa, 2; Charleston, 1; Virginia St., 1.
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ABOUT THE SOUTHERN INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETIC CONFERENCE (SIAC)
The SIAC is a NCAA athletic conference consisting primarily of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) with headquarters in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. The SIAC includes 15 member institutions (Albany State University, Allen University, Benedict College, Central State University, Clark Atlanta University, Edward Waters University, Fort Valley State University, Kentucky State University, Lane College, LeMoyne-Owen College, Miles College, Morehouse College, Savannah State University, Spring Hill College, and Tuskegee University), which are located within a contiguous seven-state footprint (Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, South Carolina, Tennessee and Ohio). The SIAC sponsors nine men's and eight women's sports and is a proud member of the NCAA Division II. For more information, visit
www.thesiac.com.