| Rank | Team | Comments | Prior |
| 1 |  | Jacksonville State | The Gamecocks (5-1) take care of business against Tennessee Tech. They control the top spot - for now. | 1 |
| 2 |  | Coastal Carolina | The Chanticleers (6-0) enjoy a bye week and move up in the rankings after North Dakota State's loss. | 3 |
| 3 |  | James Madison | James Madison (7-0) top their scoring average (48 points) with a 51-0 route of Elon. | 4 |
| 4 |  | Illinois State | The Redbirds (5-1) humble Missouri State, 38-2. Western Illinois visits next weekend. | 5 |
| 5 |  | Chattanooga | Not the Mocs (5-1) best effort as they struggle against VMI, 33-27. They visit Wofford next Saturday. | 6 |
| 6 |  | Eastern Washington | The Eagles (4-2) take care of Idaho State for their fourth straight win. They visit Northern Colorado next week. | 8 |
| 7 |  | Sam Houston State | The Bearkats (4-2) cruise past Abilene Christian, 49-21. That's four straight wins for Sam Houston State. | 9 |
| 8 |  | North Dakota State | The Bison (4-2) lose to South Dakota, 24-21, for the first time in Fargo, N.D., since 1978. | 2 |
| 9 |  | South Dakota State | South Dakota State (5-1) stun Youngstown State, 38-8. Big game with Northern Iowa next week. | 10 |
| 10 |  | Montana | The Grizzlies (3-3) enjoy a bye week. Their three losses have come by a total of 14 points. | 12 |
| 11 |  | Fordham | The Rams (6-1) survive Holy Cross' upset bid, winning 47-41 in overtime. Lehigh is up next. | 13 |
| 12 |  | Portland State | Portland State (5-1) takes care of Montana State, 59-42. Cal Poly is next. | 22 |
| 13 |  | Eastern Kentucky | The Colonels (4-2) beat Southeast Missoui State, 27-10. Tennessee State and Jacksonville State are up next. | 15 |
| 14 |  | McNeese State | McNeese State (6-0) is one of the few FCS unbeatens as they top a tough Central Arkansas team. | 16 |
| 15 |  | Harvard | The Crimson (5-0) continue to roll with an easy win over Lafayette. Too bad they're not eligible for the playoffs. | 17 |
| 16 |  | Richmond | The Spiders (5-1) take care of Rhode Island, 37-12. A huge game awaits next week at James Madison. | 20 |
| 17 |  | Montana State | Montana State (3-3) is finding the Big Sky to be a loaded conference this season. | 14 |
| 18 |  | Western Illinois | The Leathernecks (4-2) deserve some props with big win over Northern Iowa, but Illinois State looms. | 24 |
| 19 |  | Youngstown State | The Penguins (3-3) had no answers for South Dakota State. They'll try to regroup against Southern Illinois. | 11 |
| 20 |  | Indiana State | The Sycamores (4-2) top Southern Illinois, but the slate gets tougher: NDSU and Illinois State back to back. | 23 |
| 21 |  | William & Mary | The Tribe (4-2) win a big game against New Hampshire, 34-18. Hampton is up next. | NR |
| 22 |  | Northern Iowa | The Panthers (2-4) didn't expect to be 2-4. That's a big and important loss to Western Illinois. | 7 |
| 23 |  | Villanova | Villanova (3-3) wallop Albany, 37-0, and try to get back in playoff hunt without John Robertson. | NR |
| 24 |  | Charleston Southern | The Buccaneers (5-1) win their fourth straight with a 10-7 win over Presbyterian, but the slate gets tougher now. | NR |
| 25 |  | North Carolina A&T | The Aggies (5-1) win a big MEAC test against Bethune-Cookman. | NR |
