FCS Football Insider: 5 Predictions For Week 5

The halfway point of the 2026 season will be here soon, and the first part of the campaign has not disappointed.. Here’s a look at five games this week.

Oct 1, 2026 by Matt Cannizzaro

Is UW-River Falls the BEST team in D3 Football AGAIN?9:23

The halfway point of the 2026 college football season will be here before we know it, and the first part of the campaign certainly has not disappointed.

There has been an entertaining balance of predictability and surprises, while the Football Championship Subdivision rankings have resembled a good ‘ol game of Chutes and Ladders.

This week alone, nine teams moved up or down seven or more spots, though they’re all still trying to chase down reigning FCS national champion Montana State, the No. 1 team in the polls and winner of a program-record 19 consecutive games.

The Week 5 FCS schedule includes nearly 60 games, a handful of which will be broadcast live on FloCollege and the FloSports app.

As always, we’re going to pick five of those contests, explain why they’re compelling and offer a prediction.

Last week, the information might have been solid, but the picks were. …not. That may be the most consistent aspect of the 2026 season so far.

FloCollege will be airing five FCS games throughout the day Saturday, so make sure to load up on the snacks and beverages, pull out your favorite jersey and clear off your most comfortable chair.

Also, make sure to find FloCollege or FloFootball on social media to share your own thoughts and predictions.

Here are our featured games and picks for Week 5 of the 2026 season:

North Carolina A&T (1-4, 1-1) at Bryant (3-1, 1-0)

Here are two teams with momentum coming into Week 5.

Host Bryant is having a turnaround season, and North Carolina A&T is coming off an epic win over Rhode Island.

The Bulldogs haven’t won more than two games since joining the Coastal Athletic Association for the 2024 season, but they’re already 3-1, with their loss coming on the road against a powerful FBS Army squad.

In 2024, Bryant was 2-10 overall and 0-8 in conference play. Last season, the Bulldogs improved to 3-9 and picked up their first CAA victory, a 27-24 win over UAlbany in November.

The Bulldogs have done more than enough to win this year's games handily, and before last Saturday, they probably felt pretty good about their chances against N.C. A&T.

However, the Aggies probably will arrive in Rhode Island this weekend brimming with confidence after upsetting two-time defending CAA champion and preseason favorite URI last week, 22-18.

The Rams entered the contest coming off a lopsided conference loss to Stony Brook, and N.C. A&T was able to double the damage. It was the second meeting between the two teams and evened the series at 1-1.

Statistically this season, Bryant and N.C. A&T aren’t too far apart in many categories.

The Bulldogs are averaging 19.8 points per game, and the Aggies are at 15. But N.C. A&T is outperforming Bryant in total offense, passing, kick returns, sacks, interceptions, forced fumbles and fumbles recovered.

This one could go either way, but based on history, whomever I pick to win will end up losing. Ha! Based on the numbers alone, I’ll take N.C. A&T.

*This game will be broadcast live on FloCollege on Saturday at 6 p.m. Eastern.

Prediction: N.C. A&T 24, Bryant 16

UPCOMING

2026 North Carolina A&T vs Bryant

Sat, Oct 3 · 10:00 PM UTC

WATCH

Other FCS Games On FloCollege This Week

All Times Eastern

Saturday, Oct. 3

No. 2 South Dakota State (4-1, 1-0) at No. 11 Illinois State (4-1, 0-1)

Illinois State is one of the teams that plummeted this week, falling from No. 4 to No. 11 in the AFCA poll after a 28-21 loss to unranked Northern Iowa. Oh, and it was a Missouri Valley Football Conference game, too, which is far worse than what happens in the polls.

The conference is loaded with talent and experience.

South Dakota State is on a three-game winning streak and one of four MVFC teams that are 1-0. Illinois State, the national runner-up in 2025, can’t afford to lose again this week.

SDSU won FCS national titles in 2022 and 2023 and has been creeping closer and closer to catching No. 1 Montana State in the rankings.

This is the 14th meeting between the Redbirds and Jackrabbits, with SDSU holding a 7-6 advantage in the series. Illinois State won last year in South Dakota (35-21), and SDSU won in Illinois in 2023 (40-21) while ranked No. 1.

It’s early, but I think Illinois State might already be in panic mode about falling behind early in the conference race and due to getting so close to a national title last year and wanting another opportunity. I believe the Redbirds will be pressing too hard to rebound against the Jackrabbits.

Outside of a loss to FBS Northwestern on Sept. 5, South Dakota State has been putting up some great numbers. That’s why the Jackrabbits are on the rise. That will continue this week.

Prediction: South Dakota State 54, Illinois State 24

No. 5 Stephen F. Austin (5-0, 2-0) vs. Incarnate Word (2-2, 1-0)

This time last year, it might’ve been fair to call Stephen F. Austin a bit of a dark horse while still trying to get comfortable in the Southland Conference.

But the Lumberjacks went on to double their conference win total from their debut SLC season and rolled into the FCS postseason with the league’s automatic bid.

SFA finished conference play at 8-0 and then bowed out of the national quarterfinals with a 44-28 loss to eventual champion Montana State.

Now, no one should have been surprised to see the Lumberjacks as the favorite to win the SLC, while piling on the wins and climbing the FCS rankings.

They have gone from No. 13 in the American Football Coaches Association Preseason Coaches Poll to No. 11 to No. 9 to No. 8 to No. 6 to No. 5 in the latest edition of the rankings.

This is the 14th consecutive week SFA has earned a national ranking, and it’s the Jacks’ first appearance in the top 5 since 2010. They reached No. 2 in the coaches poll that year.

On Saturday, SFA will face a University of the Incarnate Word team that’s going in the other direction.

The Cardinals were the ones atop the SLC standings and in the playoffs during the 2024 season. As Stephen F. Austin started heating up, UIW went from 11-3 (7-0) to 5-7 (3-5).

This season is going a little better. The Cardinals are 2-2 overall and 1-0 in conference play, meaning there’s still plenty of time and hope for a resurgence in 2026. But that would have to start this week against SFA.

The Cardinals are heading to Texas for the first of eight consecutive conference games and looking to rebound from a 63-10 loss to Texas State.

The host Lumberjacks have scored 30 or more points in four of their five games this year and are coming off a 63-14 victory over Northeastern State.

SFA has all the momentum in this one, plus the home crowd, plus the advantage in the all-time series with UIW.

The teams will meet for the 10th time, with SFA leading the series 6-3, including a 31-17 victory last season in San Antonio.

Prediction: Stephen F. Austin 49, Incarnate Word 13

No. 1 Montana State (5-0, 2-0 Big Sky) at Idaho (0-4, 0-1 Big Sky)

This week brings a huge opportunity for defending national champion Montana State – in the Big Sky Conference and in the FCS rankings.

The Bobcats have done enough this season to stay at the top of the polls, but other teams have been closing the gap at the top.

Not only will MSU be taking on winless conference foe Idaho, they’ll also be playing on Friday night to set the tone for the weekend.

The ultimate goal for Montana State will be a convincing win over the Vandals, which would elevate the Bobcats to 6-0 overall and 3-0 in the Big Sky Conference.

Idaho will be well-rested after a bye week and will have the home crowd on its side. Oh, and the Vandals are averaging almost 410 yards of offense per game against FCS opponents, so the Bobcats should be prepared for a challenge.

It will be the 49th meeting between MSU and Idaho, though their rivalry actually started 121 years ago with a 50-0 Vandals victory in Moscow, Idaho.

They met twice in 2024, and both games were won by Montana State. The Bobcats took the regular-season outing 38-7 and then bounced the Vandals from the national quarterfinals, 52-19.

Despite being in the same conference, they did not play each other in 2025. Idaho leads the series 26-21-1.

Regardless of who wins Friday, the Montana State players probably will have a close eye on the box scores to see how things are going throughout the day Saturday.

No. 2 South Dakota State has a tough matchup with a scorned No. 11 Illinois State squad, and that could shake things up nationally.

Earlier Saturday, Montana will host Northern Colorado in a Big Sky showdown. The Bears have the opportunity to play spoiler and hand the Grizzlies their first conference loss, while keeping their own Big Sky dreams alive.

Best case, MSU gets the job done Friday against an Idaho team having an off year and gets to have a relaxing weekend watching football for fun.

Prediction: Montana State 54, Idaho 12

No. 18 West Florida (3-1, 1-1): at Abilene Christian (1-4, 0-0)

You never can tell how a team is going to respond or perform when changing divisions or conferences, but expectations were high for West Florida's move from Division II to the Division I FCS level.

The optimism was based simply on the team’s fast rise to success, which included a Division II national championship in 2019.

The Argonauts flew out of the gate this year and needed just two weeks to make their way into the FCS rankings, though their momentum was slowed briefly with a conference loss to Austin Peay on Sept. 19.

Losing a league contest never is ideal, and UWF now has some work to do in its debut season in the United Athletic Conference.

The Argonauts are 1-1 in UAC play and the only one of the eight teams that has played two games. Austin Peay is 1-0, and Central Arkansas is 0-1 after losing to West Florida.

UWF will have a shot at some redemption this week on the road at Abilene Christian, a playoff team a year ago that’s now 1-4 in 2026 and coming off a 34-17 loss to Mercer last week.

The Argonauts already bounced back from their loss with a 20-17 win over Southeast Missouri State, and that helped them climb from No. 20 to No. 18 in the latest AFCA rankings.

This is the perfect opportunity for West Florida to take advantage of a struggling ACU team in the first meeting between the two programs and put some pressure back on Austin Peay and the other hopeful teams in the UAC.

Prediction: West Florida 42, ACU 21

How We Do With Our Predictions Last Week?

Campbell vs. Hampton

Prediction: Campbell 35, Hampton 9
Result: Campbell def. Hampton, 44-20

Northern Arizona vs. Montana State

Prediction: Northern Arizona 45, Montana State 35
Result: Montana State def. Northern Arizona, 28-14

Yale vs. Cornell

Prediction: Yale 24, Cornell 16
Result: Cornell def. Yale, 38-25

Montana vs. UC Davis

Prediction: UC Davis 24, Montana 21
Result: Montana def. UC Davis, 62-22

South Dakota vs. Youngstown State

Prediction: South Dakota 31, Youngstown State 19
Result: Youngstown State def. South Dakota, 47-28

New AFCA FCS Rankings After Week 4 Of 2026

As of Sept. 26

Montana St. (5-0) – 625 – Prev. 1
South Dakota St. (4-1) – 590 – Prev. 2
Tarleton St. (4-0) – 568 – Prev. 3
Montana (4-1) – 550 – Prev. 4
Stephen F. Austin (5-0) – 521 – Prev. 6
Lehigh (5-0) – 484 – Prev. 7
North Dakota (4-1) – 467 – Prev. 8
Tennessee Tech (4-0) – 429 – Prev. 10
Austin Peay (4-1) – 420 – Prev. 11
Youngstown St. (3-2) – 386 – Prev. 13
Illinois St. (4-1) – 370 – Prev. 4t
South Carolina St. (5-0) – 329 – Prev. 14
Lamar (3-1) – 322 – Prev. 15
Idaho St. (4-0) – 311 – Prev. 16
UC Davis (3-2) – 236 – Prev. 9
South Dakota (3-2) – 223 – Prev. 12
Richmond (4-1) – 196 – Prev. 19
West Florida (3-1) – 193 – Prev. 20
Northern Arizona (3-2) – 175 – Prev. 17
Colgate (4-1) – 155 – Prev. 23t
Mercer (3-2) – 117 – Prev. 23t
Harvard (2-0) – 82 – Prev. 25
Jackson St. (4-0) – 72 – Prev. NR
Campbell (4-1) – 71 – Prev. NR
Southern Illinois (3-2) – 57 – Prev. NR

Dropped Out: Yale (18), Rhode Island (21), Villanova (22)

Others Receiving Votes: Elon, 55; Yale, 22; Alabama St., 19; Prairie View A&M, 17; Southeastern Louisiana, 14; UT Rio Grande Valley, 7; Furman, 6; Monmouth (N.J.), 6; Chattanooga, 5; Stony Brook, 5; Cal Poly, 4; Dartmouth, 4; St. Thomas (Minn.), 4; Delaware St., 3; Villanova, 2; Bryant, 1; Northern Iowa, 1; UIW, 1.

Week 5 Schedule For FCS Top 25

*Based on latest AFCA FCS Coaches Poll

All Times Eastern

No. 1 Montana State (5-0, 1-0 Big Sky) at Idaho (3-1, 1-0 Big Sky), 10:30 p.m.
No. 2 South Dakota State (4-1, 2-0 MVFC) at No. 11 Illinois State (4-1, 2-0 MVFC), 7 p.m.
No. 3 Tarleton State (4-0, 1-0 UAC) vs. Chicago State (1-4, 0-1 UAC), 7 p.m.
No. 4 Montana (4-1, 2-0 Big Sky) vs. Northern Colorado (2-2, 1-1 Big Sky), 4 p.m.
No. 5 Stephen F. Austin (5-0, 1-0 Southland) vs. Incarnate Word (3-1, 1-0 Southland), 11 p.m.
No. 6 Lehigh (5-0, 1-0 Patriot) vs. Fordham (4-1, 1-0 Patriot), noon
No. 7 North Dakota (4-1, 2-0 MVFC) vs. Murray State (1-4, 0-2 MVFC), 2 p.m.
No. 8 Tennessee Tech (4-0, 2-0 OVC) at Western Carolina (2-3, 1-1 SoCon), 6 p.m.
No. 9 Austin Peay (4-1, 2-0 UAC) vs. New Haven (1-4), 5 p.m.
No. 10 Youngstown State (3-2, 1-1 MVFC) at No. 25 Southern Illinois (3-2, 1-1 MVFC), 5 p.m.
No. 11 Illinois State (4-1, 2-0 MVFC) vs. No. 2 South Dakota State (4-1, 2-0 MVFC), 7 p.m.
No. 12 South Carolina State (5-0, 1-0 MEAC) vs. The Citadel (1-3, 0-1 SoCon), 2 p.m.
No. 13 Lamar (3-1, 1-0 Southland) vs. Northwestern State (0-5, 0-1 Southland), 7 p.m.
No. 14 Idaho State (4-0, 1-0 Big Sky) vs. No. 19 Northern Arizona (3-2, 1-1 Big Sky), 8 p.m.
No. 15 UC Davis (3-2, 1-1 Big Sky) vs. Eastern Washington (2-2, 1-0 Big Sky), 10:30 p.m.
No. 16 South Dakota (3-2, 1-1 MVFC) vs. Indiana State (2-3, 0-2 MVFC), 3 p.m.
No. 17 Richmond (4-1, 1-0 CAA) at Lafayette (2-2, 1-0 Patriot), 12:30 p.m.
No. 18 West Florida (3-1, 1-0 Gulf South) at Abilene Christian (3-1, 1-0 UAC), 8 p.m.
No. 19 Northern Arizona (3-2, 1-1 Big Sky) at No. 14 Idaho State (4-0, 1-0 Big Sky), 8 p.m.
No. 20 Colgate (4-1, 1-0 Patriot) at No. 22 Harvard (2-0, 1-0 Ivy), 7 p.m.
No. 21 Mercer (3-2, 1-0 SoCon) at VMI (2-2, 1-0 SoCon), 5:30 p.m.
No. 22 Harvard (2-0, 1-0 Ivy) vs. No. 20 Colgate (4-1, 1-0 Patriot), 7 p.m.
No. 23 Jackson State (4-0, 1-0 SWAC) vs. Alabama A&M (2-2, 1-0 SWAC), 6 p.m.
No. 24 Campbell (4-1, 1-0 CAA) at North Carolina Central (3-1, 1-0 MEAC), 6 p.m.
No. 25 Southern Illinois (3-2, 1-1 MVFC) vs. No. 10 Youngstown State (3-2, 1-1 MVFC), 5 p.m.

Some Things To Know About FCS Football

The FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) is the second tier of NCAA Division I football, with the top tier being the FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision).

While the FBS determines its national champion through a 12-team, committee-selected College Football Playoff, the FCS Championship includes 24 teams.

The FCS conference champions automatically qualify for the playoffs, and the remaining spots are filled via at-large selection.

This season, there will be 128 programs across 13 conferences. The regular season will begin in late August, and the playoffs will get underway at the end of November.

Who Won The Each Football National Championship For The 2025-2026 Season?

Division I FBS – Indiana def. Miami, 27-21
Division I FCS – Montana State def. Illinois State 35-34 (OT)
Division II – Ferris State def. Harding, 42-21
Division III – University of Wisconsin-River Falls def. North Central (Ill.), 24-14

When Do The 2026 NCAA Division I FCS Playoffs Start?

The first round of the 2026 NCAA FCS Playoffs will be Nov. 28.

The format includes 24 teams and five rounds of play – first round, second round, quarterfinals, semifinals and the championship game. Everything through the semifinals will be played at the site of the participating schools.

Round 2 is set for Dec. 5, the quarterfinals will be held Dec. 11 (one game) and Dec. 12 (three games) and the semifinals will take place Dec. 19.

The 2026 FCS national championship will be determined Jan. 11, 2027, at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee. Music City first hosted the title tilt in 2025 after 15 consecutive visits to Frisco, Texas.

Every game will be broadcast live on the ESPN family of networks.

How Do The FCS Playoffs Work?

The 24 FCS teams that advance to the playoffs are situated into a single-elimination bracket.

The top 16 teams are seeded, with the first eight earning byes into the second round. Seeds 9-16 must play in the opening round of action, but they get to play host, as do the higher seeds in each game through the semifinals.

The two semifinal winners then make the trip to Nashville to play for the national championship.

In 2025, Montana State defeated Illinois State 35-34 in overtime to claim the trophy.

Since 2011, North Dakota State had been dominating the FCS landscape, winning 10 national titles, but the Bison have now moved to a bigger pasture – the FBS level as part of the Mountain West Conference.

Hampton vs. Bryant Football Highlights | CAA Football Highlights

Watch the highlights from Bryant’s 31-3 win over Hampton on Sept. 12.

Coming into Week 5, Bryant is 3-1 overall and 1-0 in CAA play.

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 2026 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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