First, let's set a foundation. 

For most NCAA football teams, the season ends before Thanksgiving. (For those who do not partake in all things gravy and casserole-y, this year's Thanksgiving is on November 27.)

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This isn't to say that football isn't "24/7 365 my lyfe bro" but let's be honest, we only really have three months ahead of us, where each Saturday we are served a silver goblet of football goodness from dawn to dusk. 

This year, there are 162 Division 2- (pssst, remember New Haven).

This year, there are 161 Division 2 football teams. That means 129 football teams will be sent packing by gourd season. 

So, let's peel back the D2 football season before we dive in headfirst. Let's set the table, start with a primer -- call it an apéritif.

Here are two stories to keep an eye on heading into the D2 football season. 

D2 Football Playoffs Are Changing

There were some massive changes in the offseason that will affect the 2025-26 Division 2 Football season. Buckle up. 

Automatic Qualification

• For the first time in D2 football history, there will be automatic qualification for the D2 Football Playoffs. 
• It may seem strange, but DII football was the only team sport across all three NCAA Divisions that didn't divvy out automatic qualification to conference champions. 
• Somehow, only 60-percent of team-delegates voted in favor of automatic qualification, but it passed nonetheless. 

32-Team Playoffs

• The D2 football playoffs will also expand from 28 teams to 32 teams this season. 
• To make sure that only 50-percent of the bracket was made up of automatic qualifiers, the Division II Executive Board added four more teams. 
• That means 50-percent of the bracket will be conference champions and 50-percent of the bracket will be at-large bids. 

Bye-Bye Byes

• The last part of these trio of changes is earth-shattering in terms of parity. With the new playoffs, there will no longer be first-round byes for No. 1 seeds. 
• This statement might as well have been a footnote in the press release, but it is by far the thing that will have the largest effect.
• Since the implementation of first-round byes in 2004, only three teams have won the D2 National Championships without having a bye in the first round (Texas A&M-Commerce, West Florida, and Ferris State).
• Naturally, this game demands a lot of student athletes, and the bye system meant it was that much harder for teams without a bye to reach the championship. 
• This is great if you're a fan of parity.

D2 Football Champions (Since 2004)

• 2004 - Valdosta State (bye)
• 2005 - Grand Valley State (bye)
• 2006 - Grand Valley State (bye)
• 2007 - Valdosta State (bye)
• 2008 - Minnesota Duluth (bye)
• 2009 - Northwest Missouri State (bye)
• 2010 - Minnesota Duluth (bye)
• 2011 - Pittsburg State (bye)
• 2012 - Valdosta State (bye)
• 2013 - Northwest Missouri State (bye)
• 2014 - CSU Pueblo (bye)
• 2015 - Northwest Missouri State (bye)
• 2016 - Northwest Missouri State (bye)
• 2017 - Texas A&M-Commerce
• 2018 - Valdosta State (bye)
• 2019 - West Florida
• 2020 - n/a
• 2021 - Ferris State (bye)
• 2022 - Ferris State
• 2023 - Harding (bye)
• 2024 - Ferris State (bye)

WATCH: Highlights from day one of fall camp for the Bulldogs! @FerrisFootball pic.twitter.com/KFMaKtBaIj

— Ferris Athletics (@ferrisathletics) August 4, 2025

D2 Quarterback Turnover

The Division 2 quarterback landscape will look a bit different in 2025-26. 

With Zach Zebrowski (Central Missouri) and Sammy Edwards (Valdosta State) graduating and Trinidad Chambliss (Ferris State) transferring to Ole Miss after becoming a D2 National Champion, there is a bit of a vacuum at the top end of the QB spectrum.

First, a lament: 

• Gone are the golden days of Zach Zebrowski. 
• So long, Sammy Edwards.
• Farewell Trinidad Chambliss, we hardly knew ye. 

Of the quarterbacks that started in the D2 Football Championship quarterfinals last year, only two are left, Harding's Cole Keylon and Virginia Union's RJ Rosales -- but Rosales lost Jada Byers, who scored 27 touchdowns last year. 

2025 D2 Quarterfinals Quarterbacks

• Brayden Long - Slippery Rock
• Davis Black - California PA
• Cole Keylon - Harding
• Trinidad Chambliss - Ferris State
• Sam McGath - Bemidji State
• Hayden Ekern - Minnesota State
• RJ Rosales - Virginia Union
• Sammy Edwards - Valdosta State

Who To Watch

• Transfers in D2 football are notoriously hard to track, and we really won't know who is on what team until every school posts their 2025 roster (Ferris State, for example, still has their 2024 roster up). 
• Furthermore, starting quarterbacks won't emerge, nor will coaches tell us who they are, until we get closer to Week 0. 
• What we do know is that someone will step up, the talent will shake out.

With that in mind, here are some questions I have.

Is it Jack Strand's time to shine?

• With Zebrowski gone, Jack Strand is the clear-cut best quarterback in D2, at least in terms of being a known quantity. 
• How far he takes MSU-Moorhead, and whether he has the chance to win a Harlon Hill Trophy will be something to keep an eye on. 

Who is the starting quarterback at Grand Valley State?

• Avery Moore or Cade Peterson helmed the ship for nearly the last five years, but both have graduated in the last two years. 
• The Lakers usually deploy multiple QBs, but there's always one who is the "guy."
• GVSU knows how to reload. 
• GVSU has five quarterbacks on their current roster, four are freshmen and one is a sophomore. 
• Brady Drogosh is one to watch. The QB/LB transferred from Cincinnati and is a former two-time Michigan state HS champion. 

Carson Gulker is back?

• Carson Gulker was injured two games into the season last year, paving the way for Trinidad Chambliss to show his worth and win a D2 Championship. 
• Ferris State started camp on August 4, and based on this two-minute hype, No. 12 is throwing passes in practice. He was also mentioned in a few interviews with Head Coach Tony Annese. 
• Gulker has 45 rushing touchdowns and 15 passing touchdowns in his career at FSU, if he's back, he's probably the starter and he should pick up where Trinidad, and Gulker, left off last year. 

Assorted Notes On LSC

• Braeden Fuller of Angelo State was named Preseason Offensive Player of the Year for the Lone Star Conference, and Angelo State took the top spot in the preseason poll. 
• There are 10 quarterbacks currently listed on the West Texas roster. The Buffs seem determined to find their next QB. 
• Sean Johnson got most of the game time last season, but as camp plays out, let's see how many opportunities transfers like Nathan Greek (Tyler JC) and RJ Martinez (Texas State) get. 
• UTPB announced their recruiting/transfer class with the kind of transparency I'd love to see from other D2 football programs. They're only two years removed from a 10-2 season, and it'll be interesting to see who lines up at QB.

D2 College Football Week 0 Games 2025

Thursday, August 28, 2025

• 4:00 p.m. ET – Colorado Mesa vs Central Washington (FloCollege)
• 6:00 p.m. ET – Northeastern State vs Saginaw Valley (FloCollege)
• 6:00 p.m. ET – MSU Moorhead vs Northern Michigan (FloCollege)
• 6:00 p.m. ET – Pittsburg State vs Ferris State (FloCollege)
• 6:00 p.m. ET – Bemidji State vs Michigan Tech (FloCollege)
• 7:00 p.m. ET – West Liberty vs Walsh (FloCollege)
• 7:00 p.m. ET – Central Missouri vs Delta State (FloCollege)
• 8:00 p.m. ET – New Mexico Highlands vs Eastern New Mexico (FloCollege)
• 6:00 p.m. ET – McKendree vs Indiana State
• 6:00 p.m. ET – Wheeling vs Clarion
• 6:00 p.m. ET – UIndy vs Marian (IN)
• 7:00 p.m. ET – Virginia State vs Barton
• 7:00 p.m. ET – Edinboro vs East Stroudsburg
• 7:00 p.m. ET – Fairmont State vs Seton Hill
• 7:00 p.m. ET – Livingstone vs Charleston (WV)
• 7:00 p.m. ET – Nebraska-Kearney vs Wayne State (NE)
• 7:00 p.m. ET – Northwest Missouri State vs Minnesota State
• 7:30 p.m. ET – Midland vs Mary
• 7:30 p.m. ET – Upper Iowa vs Drake
• 7:30 p.m. ET – Concordia-St. Paul vs Quincy
• 8:00 p.m. ET – Angelo State vs Fort Hays State
• 8:00 p.m. ET – South Dakota Mines vs CSU Pueblo
• 8:00 p.m. ET – Minot State vs Emporia State
• 8:00 p.m. ET – West Texas A&M vs Western Colorado
• 8:00 p.m. ET – Sioux Falls vs Black Hills State
• 8:00 p.m. ET – Winona State vs Minnesota Duluth

Friday, August 29, 2025

• 7:00 p.m. ET – Lenoir-Rhyne vs West Florida (FloCollege)

Saturday, August 30, 2025

• 11:00 a.m. ET – West Virginia State vs Carson-Newman (FloCollege)
• 1:00 p.m. ET – Lincoln (PA) vs Grand Valley State (FloCollege)
• 1:00 p.m. ET – Central Oklahoma vs Texas Permian Basin (FloCollege)
• 5:00 p.m. ET – Saint Anselm vs Pace (FloCollege)
• 5:15 p.m. ET – Fort Valley State vs West Alabama (FloCollege)
• 6:00 p.m. ET – UNC Pembroke vs Wingate (FloCollege)
• 6:00 p.m. ET – Concord vs UVA Wise (FloCollege)
• 6:00 p.m. ET – Ferrum vs Catawba (FloCollege)
• 8:00 p.m. ET – Adams State vs Western New Mexico (FloCollege)
• 11:00 a.m. ET – Davenport vs Gannon
• 11:00 a.m. ET – Anderson (SC) vs Shorter
• 1:00 p.m. ET – Albany State (GA) vs Shaw
• 1:00 p.m. ET – Kentucky State vs Central State (OH)
• 1:00 p.m. ET – Emory & Henry vs Glenville State
• 1:00 p.m. ET – West Virginia Wesleyan vs Post
• 1:15 p.m. ET – Clark Atlanta vs Valdosta State
• 1:00 p.m. ET – William Jewell vs Fort Lewis
• 1:00 p.m. ET – Washburn vs Truman State
• 1:00 p.m. ET – Missouri Western vs Augustana (SD)
• 2:00 p.m. ET – Chadron State vs Northern Colorado
• 2:00 p.m. ET – Morehouse vs Johnson C. Smith
• 6:00 p.m. ET – Edward Waters vs Savannah State
• 6:00 p.m. ET – Allen vs Morehead State
• 6:00 p.m. ET – Shepherd vs Frostburg State
• 6:00 p.m. ET – Elizabeth City State vs Chowan
• 7:00 p.m. ET – Thomas More vs Southern Illinois
• 7:00 p.m. ET – Tusculum vs Bluefield State
• 7:00 p.m. ET – Central Methodist vs Missouri S&T
• 7:30 p.m. ET – Lincoln (CA) vs Lincoln (MO)
• 8:00 p.m. ET – Midwestern State vs Missouri Southern State
• 8:00 p.m. ET – Sul Ross State vs UTRGV

Sunday, August 31, 2025

• 3:00 p.m. ET – Miles vs Virginia Union
• 7:00 p.m. ET – Tuskegee vs Winston-Salem

How To Watch D2 Football In 2025

Hundreds of Division 2 football games will stream live on FloCollege and the FloSports app. 

Game replays, highlights and breaking news will also be available on both platforms.

FloCollege D2 Football Rankings Coming Soon

FloCollege’s preseason Top 25 is on the way, offering a first look at the teams poised to shape the 2025 season.

With major playoff changes, new faces under center, and national contenders reloading, this year’s rankings will set the tone for what’s to come.

Watch 5 Hours Of D2 Football Highlights

Archived Footage On FloCollege

Video footage from all games will be archived and stored in a video library for FloCollege subscribers to watch for the duration of their subscriptions.

Watch The 2025 College Football Season On FloCollege

FloCollege is the home of the best FCS, Division II and Division III football action all season long. 

Don't miss the latest college football action by bookmarking the FloCollege schedule page for the latest games. 

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