GUNNISON, Colo.  The preseason football polls for NCAA Division II have been released and Western Colorado's Mountaineers find themselves in a usual spot, ranked within the top 15.

The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) lists Western at No. 11 with 379 points, while D2Football.com also shows the Mountaineers in the No. 11 spot.

Western played into the second round of the NCAA DII tournament in 2025 and would finish the season ranked 11th in the final D2Football.com poll and at No. 12 in the AFCA final poll.

At the end of the 2024 season, which saw another advancement into the NCAA second round, the Mountaineers finished at No. 10 in the AFCA poll and 13th in the D2Football.com final rankings.

Including its Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference title in 2021, Western has posted double-digit wins in four of the past five seasons, making it to the NCAA tournament in each of those four seasons, and takes a five-year record of 48-13 into the 2026 campaign.

The Mountaineers open this season on the road at West Texas A&M in Canyon, Texas, on Thursday, August 27, then open the home schedule on Thu., Sept. 3 against visiting Angelo (Texas) State University in a 6 p.m. game at Mojo Field in Mountaineer Bowl at The Rady Family Sports Complex.