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1. Harding - Should dominate the GAC again and have a good shot of entering playoffs undefeated. Will be breaking in new starters on the OL and will miss Wallace, Strickland and Mays on defense but DL should be dominant again and bring back whole backfield back on offense
2. Central Missouri - Smith will be a big loss but bring virtually everyone else back. Their offense will be elite once again. Can the defense get better enough to make the run to Texas?
3. GVSU - Will be a new era at QB for Grand Valley, can Avery Moore produce and stay healthy for the whole season? Will another QB step up to be part of a 2 QB system again? They graduate 2 OL but bring back 5 OL that started a lot of games this past season. DE is probably the biggest question mark on defense as both starting DEs are gone, King pulling out of the portal should help there. Outside of Swanson, who will leave a big hole, they bring back a ton of pieces in the back 7.
4. Ferris State - Like GVSU the QB position will look different for the Bulldogs. Does Gulker take the full time reins? I would think so, if the Bulldogs can get better at RB I would expect the offense to shift stylistically more to what it was in the JVL days. They lose a lot on the DL but Ferris has been able to reload there in the past, can they do it again?
5. Pitt State - A new regime in Pittsburgh, can they keep it rolling? Changes at GV and Mines had very little effect this past season, can Pitt do the same? Katsis heading to Northern Arizona is a big loss when you couple it along with Garrison’s graduation. Finding explosive plays on offense with those two gone will be a huge key. The defense should be able to build on a great season this year and be dominant once again.
6. UTPB - Had a tough showing in the playoffs, especially on offense but look for another jump like they had this past year. They lose a few pieces on defense and Cooley at WR but return a ton of other pieces. There will also be a new starter at QB but I don't expect them to miss much of a beat at that spot. With the backing the program has I see little doubt that they will continue to climb towards being one of the elite programs at the D2 level.
7. Angelo State - Will have a new starter at QB and do not have a whole lot of experience returning at the position, but they bring back 8 starters and 19 of 22 in the 2-deep on offense to surround a new starter at QB. They have more losses on defense than offense but I would still expect them to have one of the top defenses in SR4.
8. Lenoir-Rhyne - Bring back a lot of experience and playmakers from this year’s semi-final run. Should be a favorite to run the table in the regular season and be the 1 seed in SR2. Can they build on last year’s success and win more than just SR2?
9. Valdosta State - Return 8 starters on both offense and defense. The defensive backfield will feature 3 new starters for a defense that was good against the pass this year. They should be the favorites in the GSC, can they make another jump in year 3 like they did from 1 to 2 in the Jackson era?
10. Mankato - Had a tough end to the season with back to back losses to NSIC teams but Duluth, Augustana and Bemidji all had quite a few seniors. Mankato on the other hand brings back 21 of 22 players in the offensive 2-deep and 7 starters on defense. I think they are the clear favorites in the NSIC at this point
Disclaimer - I did not do a deep dive on portal losses, they only one I factored in was Katsis (Pitt).
2. Central Missouri - Smith will be a big loss but bring virtually everyone else back. Their offense will be elite once again. Can the defense get better enough to make the run to Texas?
3. GVSU - Will be a new era at QB for Grand Valley, can Avery Moore produce and stay healthy for the whole season? Will another QB step up to be part of a 2 QB system again? They graduate 2 OL but bring back 5 OL that started a lot of games this past season. DE is probably the biggest question mark on defense as both starting DEs are gone, King pulling out of the portal should help there. Outside of Swanson, who will leave a big hole, they bring back a ton of pieces in the back 7.
4. Ferris State - Like GVSU the QB position will look different for the Bulldogs. Does Gulker take the full time reins? I would think so, if the Bulldogs can get better at RB I would expect the offense to shift stylistically more to what it was in the JVL days. They lose a lot on the DL but Ferris has been able to reload there in the past, can they do it again?
5. Pitt State - A new regime in Pittsburgh, can they keep it rolling? Changes at GV and Mines had very little effect this past season, can Pitt do the same? Katsis heading to Northern Arizona is a big loss when you couple it along with Garrison’s graduation. Finding explosive plays on offense with those two gone will be a huge key. The defense should be able to build on a great season this year and be dominant once again.
6. UTPB - Had a tough showing in the playoffs, especially on offense but look for another jump like they had this past year. They lose a few pieces on defense and Cooley at WR but return a ton of other pieces. There will also be a new starter at QB but I don't expect them to miss much of a beat at that spot. With the backing the program has I see little doubt that they will continue to climb towards being one of the elite programs at the D2 level.
7. Angelo State - Will have a new starter at QB and do not have a whole lot of experience returning at the position, but they bring back 8 starters and 19 of 22 in the 2-deep on offense to surround a new starter at QB. They have more losses on defense than offense but I would still expect them to have one of the top defenses in SR4.
8. Lenoir-Rhyne - Bring back a lot of experience and playmakers from this year’s semi-final run. Should be a favorite to run the table in the regular season and be the 1 seed in SR2. Can they build on last year’s success and win more than just SR2?
9. Valdosta State - Return 8 starters on both offense and defense. The defensive backfield will feature 3 new starters for a defense that was good against the pass this year. They should be the favorites in the GSC, can they make another jump in year 3 like they did from 1 to 2 in the Jackson era?
10. Mankato - Had a tough end to the season with back to back losses to NSIC teams but Duluth, Augustana and Bemidji all had quite a few seniors. Mankato on the other hand brings back 21 of 22 players in the offensive 2-deep and 7 starters on defense. I think they are the clear favorites in the NSIC at this point
Disclaimer - I did not do a deep dive on portal losses, they only one I factored in was Katsis (Pitt).
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