Wayne Cavadi’s first DII football Power 10 rankings of the regular season

Well, Harding is back. The reigning DII football national champions came out and pummeled their opening opponent 59-0 while rushing for a combined 554 yards and seven touchdowns. The Bisons are off and running and to no one’s surprise, remain locked in at No. 1 in the first DII football Power 10 rankings of the regular season.

Your weekly reminder: These are my rankings. There is no committee or voting body coming up with these teams, just my spreadsheets, notes from coaches and a lot of deep diving into rosters and stats. I try to blend selection committee metrics — like strength of schedule, in-region record and RPI — along with what I am seeing for an overall look at the landscape of DII football’s top teams.

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Before we get into the Power 10, how about a quick shoutout to Anderson (SC) football. The Trojans won their first football game in program history 51-14. They went ahead for good just over two minutes into the season. The Trojans have one more non-division matchup next week before embarking on SAC play for the first time.

The DII football preseason Power 10

No. 1 Harding | Previous: 1: That was the 20th straight win for the Bisons, and it was a good one. It is hard to believe that Harding can continue to set program records after last season, but it did just that by allowing a mere 58 total yards to Southern Nazarene and posting its largest shutout in an opening-day victory — and the Bisons have shutout their opening opponents nine times, so that says something. Five different Harding players scored on the ground and all-purpose nightmare Braden Jay scored on a 21-yard reception. The Bisons once again look like an unstoppable force.

No. 2 Central Missouri | Previous: 2: Zach Zebrowski is still very good at football. The Mules’ quarterback and defending Harlon Hill trophy winner slung the rock for 503 yards and six touchdowns (and rushed for another score) in his 2024 debut as Central Missouri dropped 63 points. This offense, much like last year, looks to be unstoppable and will give every defense it faces arguably the biggest challenge of their season.

No. 3 Pittsburg State | Previous: 3: The Gorillas are off to a quick 2-0 start, having outscored their opponents 61-20 in the first two weeks. Alex Gaskill and Jack Barkley are going to make it tough for any team to score, leading this aggressive defense that has yet to allow any running back to rush for more than 40 yards in a game. Quarterback Chad Dodson Jr. erupted with a four-touchdown game and will look to keep that momentum going in a tricky matchup of 2-0 teams against Emporia State next weekend.

No. 4 Valdosta State | Previous: 5: Even with Newberry keeping Sammy Edwards in check (128 passing, 38 rushing and two total touchdowns) the Blazers had little trouble with Newberry, winning 27-14, a score much closer with a Newberry touchdown coming in the final minute of play. The Blazers continue their non-conference schedule in a favorable matchup against Fayetteville State.

No. 5 Grand Valley State | Previous: 7: The Lakers are back in the top five after a 58-0 Week 1 thrashing. They scored fast, jumping out to a 21-point lead after one quarter, and showed that Lakers’ depth, as three running backs — Khalil Eichelberger, Kenneth Jones and Derrick Woods — eclipsed the 100-yard mark and combined for five touchdowns. The defense allowed a mere 95 yards of total offense. The Lakers have their hands full next week with a surprisingly very strong CSU Pueblo, but this was a great momentum builder.

No. 6 Colorado School of Mines | Previous: 6: The Evan Foster era is alive and well. The Orediggers dominated West Texas A&M in every facet of the game: Foster threw for 269 yards and two touchdowns (130 of which went to All-American wideout Max McLeod) and Landon Walker averaged 10.3 yards per carry in a 154-yard, two-touchdown day. Joel Diaz led the defense with a pick and a sack. Short version of a long story: The RMAC is still Orediggers’ Country.

No. 7 Minnesota State | Previous: First five out: The Mavericks have played two weeks of football against two top-25 opponents and are now 2-0 after a thrilling 31-29 win over Bemidji State. They are the largest climbers of the week, jumping into the mix from the “first five out.” Quarterback Hayden Ekern has been an absolute machine already with eight total touchdowns, three of which went to TreShawn Watson in the big NSIC victory this weekend. It doesn’t get any easier next week as the Mavs head to face Wayne State (Neb) in their first road matchup of the season.

No. 8 Kutztown | Previous: 9: The Golden Bears are back in business after their big national semifinals run last season. Quarterback Judd Novak was efficient in all aspects of the game, leading the team in rushing (87 yards and a score) while passing for 129 yards, another touchdown and no interceptions. Last year’s top-scoring defense in the PSAC held Assumption to just six points and 132 total yards, so it appears the Golden Bears will be a threat once again.

No. 9 Slippery Rock | Previous: 10: The Rock came out and won a huge matchup against New Haven — a team that has made the DII football championship bracket three years running. It wasn’t the typical Slippery Rock offensive explosion, but a commanding 22-7 win against a tough defense is still impressive. Brayden Long threw for 129 yards and two scores and will look to keep it going in a PSAC showdown against Shepherd next week.

No. 10 Central Washington | Previous: 8: The Wildcats get a ding, but haven’t played any DII opponents yet, so they get to stay in the top 10 for now. They actually handled FCS San Diego rather well in the first half, taking a brief first-quarter lead and then trailing only 12-7 at the half. I think that speaks volumes for what this team is capable of this season.

First five out (in alphabetical order)

• Delta State: The Statesmen have racked up 102 points in two weeks… while only allowing 34. This team is on a tear early.
• Ferris State: The Bulldogs got back in the win column by piling up 654 yards of offense and 56 points, powered by a 35-point first quarter.
• UIndy: The Greyhounds were impressive in a balanced attack through the air and on the ground in a 42-16 victory.
• Lenoir-Rhyne: Zayvion Turner-Knox erupted for 204 yards and three touchdowns in his debut as feature back as the Bears rolled to a 32-19 victory.
• West Florida: The Argos were idle this week and are 1-0 on the season.

DII football 5 stars: Stats that stood out

That Michigan Tech/South Dakota Mines game may have been the most exciting of the week. The Huskies erased a 21-point deficit, stormed back to force overtime… and another overtime… and another overtime… and, well there were four overtimes all said, resulting in a 52-50 Michigan Tech win. Both quarterbacks topped 400 yards passing, both threw for five scores and the Huskies’ quarterback, Alex Fries, set the school record with 457 yards passing.

Here’s a look at five players from each offensive position that stuffed the box score.

(Please note: Though the games went final, several official box scores were not finalized at the time of publication. No player will be listed without an official box score posted on NCAA.com. This was the case last week when David Wright’s 423-yard, seven-touchdown performance was absent from stars of the week.)