McLean County Times

Illinois State University’s football team has been ranked sixth in the preseason AFCA FCS Coaches Poll, matching their earlier No. 6 position in the Stats Perform FCS preseason Top 25.

The poll places defending national champion North Dakota State at the top with all 26 first-place votes. Montana State, last year’s runner-up, is ranked second, followed by South Dakota State at third, UIW at fourth, and South Dakota just ahead of Illinois State at fifth. The Missouri Valley Football Conference is represented by five teams in the poll, including Southern Illinois at No. 20.

The Redbirds will return 39 letterwinners and 16 starters from last season. Six players were recognized as preseason All-Americans by Stats Perform: junior linebacker Tye Niekamp and senior longsnapper Dylan Calabrese were First-Team selections; senior wide receiver Daniel Sobkowicz and senior running back Wenkers Wright made the Second Team; while senior quarterback Tommy Rittenhouse and junior defensive lineman Jake Anderson received Third-Team honors.

Four Illinois State players have also been included on national player of the year watch lists by Stats Perform. Niekamp and Anderson are on the Buck Buchanan Award watch list for defensive players, while Wright and Sobkowicz are named to the Walter Payton Award watch list for offensive standouts.

Illinois State was featured in every AFCA FCS Coaches Poll during the previous season, finishing as high as No. 10 in the final ranking. The AFCA FCS Coaches Poll will continue to be released weekly throughout the regular season with a final update after the championship game.

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