Led by two-time national runner-up Colorado Mines, three Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference teams are ranked in the American Football Coaches Association preseason poll.
Colorado Mines, which has won or shared the RMAC title the past five seasons, is ranked fifth nationally in the AFCA poll as the Orediggers dropped their final 2023 contest 38-7 to Harding of Searcy, Ark., in the NCAA Division II championship contest.
Western Colorado, the 2023 RMAC runner-up and NCAA Division II qualifier, is ranked 15th nationally. The Mountaineers were 10-2 last season, with their only setbacks being to Colorado Mines in RMAC play and 16-13 in overtime to Central Washington in NCAA play.
Listed 35th in the AFCA preseason poll, CSU Pueblo (8-3) rebounded from early season setbacks to NCAA playoff schools Grand Valley State, Western Colorado, and Colorado Mines to win its last seven games to place third in the RMAC standings.
With Colorado State Pueblo opening the season with an RMAC game at South Dakota Mines on August 29, Colorado Mines host West Texas A&M on September 5, and Colorado Western entertains the Midwestern State of Wichita Falls, Tex., on September 7.
No. 21 Texas-Permian Basin (10-2) and No. 4 Grand Valley State (11-2) play at CSU Pueblo on September 7 and 14, respectively. Texas-PB won the Lone Star title last season before losing 10-3 to Bemidji State in the playoffs.
Grand Valley State won the Great Lakes crown and advanced to the national quarter-finals before losing 7-6 to Harding. Last season, GVS scored a 57-49 win at home over CSU Pueblo in double overtime.
