2025 Missouri Valley Football Conference season

Last updated

2025 Missouri Valley Football Conference season
League NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision
Sport Football
DurationAugust 28, 2025
through January 5, 2026
Number of teams10
TV partner(s) ESPN College Football, ESPN+, Local TV partners
2026 NFL draft
Regular season
Football seasons
←  2024
2026 →
2025 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
Illinois State  0 –0   0 –0  
Indiana State  0 –0   0 –0  
Murray State  0 –0   0 –0  
North Dakota  0 –0   0 –0  
North Dakota State  0 –0   0 –0  
Northern Iowa  0 –0   0 –0  
South Dakota  0 –0   0 –0  
South Dakota State  0 –0   0 –0  
Southern Illinois  0 –0   0 –0  
Youngstown State  0 –0   0 –0  
As of March 4, 2025
Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2025 Missouri Valley Football Conference season will be the 40th season of college football play for the Missouri Valley Football Conference and part of the 2025 NCAA Division I FCS football season. This will be the MVFC's first season dropping to 10 teams since the 2019 season.

Contents

Previous season

In 2024, North Dakota State, South Dakota State, South Dakota won the conference with South Dakota State receiving the automatic bid to the 2024 playoffs. The second-seeded Bison would go on to win their tenth FCS Championship, beating top-seeded and previously undefeated Montana State. [1] South Dakota State and South Dakota would receive the second and third seeds, respectively, and each would fall in the semifinals. The Jacks would lose to the eventual champion Bison, [2] while the Coyotes would fall to Montana State. [3] Illinois State also made the playoffs as the twelve seed, part of the expanded seeding for the 2024 edition of the playoffs. The Redbirds would defeat Southeast Missouri State in the first round before falling to five seed UC Davis in the second round. [4]

Conference changes

After the conclusion of the 2024 college football season, Missouri State left the conference to reclassify to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and move to Conference USA after 39 years in the league as a charter member. This move matches the Bears' departure from MVFC's sister conference, the Missouri Valley Conference, which they also left after the 2024–25 collegiate season. [5]

Coaching changes

North Dakota

On December 8, 2024, Eric Schmidt was named the next head coach at North Dakota. [6] Schmidt takes over for Bubba Schweigert, who stepped down after the 2024 season. [7]

Northern Iowa

On December 3, 2024, Todd Stepsis was named the new head coach at Northern Iowa. [8] Stepsis takes over for longtime coach Mark Farley, who retired after the 2024 season. [9]

South Dakota

On January 16, 2025, Travis Johansen was named the next head coach at South Dakota. [10] Johansen steps in for Bob Nielson, who retired after the 2024 season. [11]

South Dakota State

On December 31, 2024, Dan Jackson was named the next head coach at South Dakota State. [12] Jackson was hired after Jimmy Rogers left the program to become the next head coach at Washington State. [13]


Rankings

Legend
  Improvement in ranking
 Drop in ranking
 Not ranked previous week
 No change in ranking from previous week
RVReceived votes but were not ranked in Top 25 of poll
тTied with team above or below also with this symbol
 PreWk
1		Wk
2		Wk
3		Wk
4		Wk
5		Wk
6		Wk
7		Wk
8		Wk
9		Wk
10		Wk
11		Wk
12		Wk
13		Final
Illinois StateSTATS
Coaches
Indiana StateSTATS
Coaches
Murray StateSTATS
Coaches
North DakotaSTATS
Coaches
North Dakota StateSTATS
Coaches
Northern IowaSTATS
Coaches
South DakotaSTATS
Coaches
South Dakota StateSTATS
Coaches
Southern IllinoisSTATS
Coaches
Youngstown StateSTATS
Coaches

Schedule

Index to colors and formatting
MVFC member won
MVFC member lost
MVFC teams in bold

All times Central time.

† denotes Homecoming game
^ denotes AP Poll ranking for FBS teams

Regular season schedule

Week 1

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
August 28TBA McKendree Indiana State Memorial Stadium • Terre Haute, IN ESPN+    
August 285:00 PM Mercyhurst Youngstown State Stambaugh Stadium • Youngstown, OH ESPN+    
August 30TBA Illinois State Oklahoma Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK TBA   
August 30TBA Murray State East Tennessee State William B. Greene Jr. Stadium • Johnson City, TN ESPN+    
August 30TBA North Dakota Kansas State Bill Snyder Family Stadium • Manhattan, KS TBA   
August 30TBA North Dakota State The Citadel Johnson Hagood Stadium • Charleston, SC ESPN+    
August 30TBA Butler Northern Iowa UNI-Dome • Cedar Falls, IA ESPN+    
August 30TBA South Dakota Iowa State Jack Trice Stadium • Ames, IA TBA   
August 30TBA Sacramento State South Dakota State Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium • Brookings, SD ESPN+    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.
DateBye Week
August 30 Southern Illinois

Week 2

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
September 6TBA Morehead State Illinois State Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL ESPN+    
September 6TBA Eastern Illinois Indiana State Memorial Stadium • Terre Haute, IN ESPN+    
September 6TBA Southeastern Louisiana Murray State Roy Stewart Stadium • Murray, KY ESPN+    
September 6TBA Portland State North Dakota Alerus Center • Grand Forks, ND ESPN+    
September 6TBA North Dakota State Tennessee State Nissan Stadium • Nashville, TN ESPN+    
September 6TBA Northern Iowa Wyoming War Memorial Stadium • Laramie, WY TBA   
September 6TBA South Dakota Lamar Provost Umphrey Stadium • Beaumont, TX TBA   
September 6TBA South Dakota State Montana State Bobcat Stadium • Bozeman, MT ESPN+    
September 6TBA Southern Illinois Purdue Ross-Ade Stadium • West Lafayette, IN TBA   
September 61:00 PM Robert Morris Youngstown State Stambaugh Stadium • Youngstown, OH ESPN+    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.

Week 3

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
September 132:00 PM Illinois State Eastern Illinois O'Brien Field • Charleston, IL (Mid-America Classic) ESPN+    
September 13TBA Indiana State Indiana Memorial Stadium • Bloomington, IN TBA   
September 13TBA Murray State Georgia State Center Parc Stadium • Atlanta, GA TBA   
September 13TBA North Dakota Montana Washington–Grizzly Stadium • Missoula, MT ESPN+    
September 13TBA Southeast Missouri State North Dakota State Fargodome • Fargo, ND ESPN+    
September 13TBA Eastern Washington Northern Iowa UNI-Dome • Cedar Falls, IA ESPN+    
September 13TBA Northern Colorado South Dakota DakotaDome • Vermillion, SD ESPN+    
September 13TBA Drake South Dakota State Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium • Brookings, SD ESPN+    
September 13TBA Southern Illinois UT Martin Graham Stadium • Martin, TN ESPN+    
September 13TBA Youngstown State Michigan State Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI TBA   
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.

Week 4

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
September 20TBA North Alabama Illinois State Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL ESPN+    
September 20TBA Indiana State Montana Washington–Grizzly Stadium • Missoula, MT ESPN+    
September 20TBA Murray State Jacksonville State AmFirst Stadium • Jacksonville, AL TBA   
September 20TBA Valparaiso North Dakota Alerus Center • Grand Forks, ND ESPN+    
September 20TBA Northern Iowa Utah Tech Greater Zion Stadium • St. George, UT ESPN+    
September 20TBA Drake South Dakota DakotaDome • Vermillion, SD ESPN+    
September 20TBA Southern Illinois Southeast Missouri State Houck Stadium • Cape Girardeau, MO (War for the Wheel) ESPN+    
September 20TBA Youngstown State Towson Johnny Unitas Stadium • Towson, MD FloSports    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.
DateBye Week
September 20 North Dakota State South Dakota State

Week 5

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
September 27TBA South Dakota North Dakota State † Fargodome • Fargo, ND    
September 27TBA Mercyhurst South Dakota State Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium • Brookings, SD ESPN+    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.
DateBye Week
September 27 Illinois State Indiana State Murray State North Dakota Northern Iowa Southern Illinois Youngstown State

Week 6

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
October 4TBA North Dakota State Illinois State Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL ESPN+    
October 4TBA Indiana State Southern Illinois Saluki Stadium • Carbondale, IL ESPN+    
October 4TBA Murray State South Dakota DakotaDome • Vermillion, SD ESPN+    
October 4TBA North Dakota Northern Iowa UNI-Dome • Cedar Falls, IA ESPN+    
October 45:00 PM South Dakota State Youngstown State Stambaugh Stadium • Youngstown, OH ESPN+    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.

Week 7

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
October 11TBA Illinois State Murray State Roy Stewart Stadium • Murray, KY ESPN+    
October 11TBA South Dakota Indiana State Memorial Stadium • Terre Haute, IN ESPN+    
October 11TBA Youngstown State North Dakota Alerus Center • Grand Forks, ND ESPN+    
October 11TBA Southern Illinois North Dakota State Fargodome • Fargo, ND ESPN+    
October 11TBA Northern Iowa South Dakota State Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium • Brookings, SD ESPN    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.

Week 8

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
October 18TBA Youngstown State Illinois State † Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL ESPN+    
October 18TBA North Dakota State Indiana State Memorial Stadium • Terre Haute, IN ESPN+    
October 18TBA South Dakota State Murray State Roy Stewart Stadium • Murray, KY ESPN+    
October 18TBA North Dakota Southern Illinois Saluki Stadium • Carbondale, IL ESPN+    
October 18TBA South Dakota Northern Iowa UNI-Dome • Cedar Falls, IA ESPN+    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.

Week 9

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
October 25TBA Illinois State South Dakota DakotaDome • Vermillion, SD ESPN+    
October 25TBA Indiana State North Dakota Alerus Center • Grand Forks, ND ESPN+    
October 25TBA Murray State Youngstown State Stambaugh Stadium • Youngstown, OH ESPN+    
October 25TBA North Dakota State South Dakota State Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium • Brookings, SD (Dakota Marker) ESPN+    
October 25TBA Northern Iowa Southern Illinois Saluki Stadium • Carbondale, IL ESPN+    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.

Week 10

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
November 1TBA Northern Iowa Illinois State Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL ESPN+    
November 1TBA Indiana State South Dakota State Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium • Brookings, SD ESPN+    
November 1TBA Southern Illinois Murray State † Roy Stewart Stadium • Murray, KY ESPN+    
November 1TBA North Dakota South Dakota DakotaDome • Vermillion, SD ESPN+    
November 1TBA Youngstown State North Dakota State Fargodome • Fargo, ND ESPN+    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.

Week 11

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
November 8TBA Illinois State Indiana State Memorial Stadium • Terre Haute, IN ESPN+    
November 8TBA Murray State Northern Iowa UNI-Dome • Cedar Falls, IA ESPN+    
November 8TBA North Dakota State North Dakota Alerus Center • Grand Forks, ND (Nickel Trophy) ESPN+    
November 8TBA South Dakota State South Dakota DakotaDome • Vermillion, SD ESPN+    
November 81:00 PM Southern Illinois Youngstown State Stambaugh Stadium • Youngstown, OH ESPN+    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.

Week 12

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
November 15TBA Illinois State South Dakota State Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium • Brookings, SD ESPN+    
November 1511:00 AM Indiana State Youngstown State Stambaugh Stadium • Youngstown, OH ESPN+    
November 15TBA North Dakota Murray State Roy Stewart Stadium • Murray, KY ESPN+    
November 15TBA Northern Iowa North Dakota State Fargodome • Fargo, ND ESPN+    
November 15TBA South Dakota Southern Illinois Saluki Stadium • Carbondale, IL ESPN+    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.

Week 13

DateTimeVisiting teamHome teamSiteTVResultAttendanceRef.
November 22TBA Southern Illinois Illinois State Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL ESPN+    
November 22TBA Murray State Indiana State Memorial Stadium • Terre Haute, IN ESPN+    
November 22TBA South Dakota State North Dakota Alerus Center • Grand Forks, ND ESPN+    
November 22TBA St. Thomas North Dakota State Fargodome • Fargo, ND ESPN+    
November 22TBA Youngstown State Northern Iowa UNI-Dome • Cedar Falls, IA ESPN+    
#Rankings from Stats Perform. All times are in Central Time.
DateBye Week
November 22 South Dakota

MVFC records vs other conferences

2025–26 records against non-conference foes:

Awards and honors

Players of the week honors

WeekOffensiveDefensiveSpecial teamsFreshman
PlayerPositionTeamPlayerPositionTeamPlayerPositionTeamPlayerPositionTeam

Home attendance

TeamStadiumCapacityGame 1Game 2Game 3Game 4Game 5Game 6Game 7Game 8Game 9TotalAverage% of capacity
Illinois State Hancock Stadium 13,391%
Indiana State Memorial Stadium 12,764%
Murray State Roy Stewart Stadium 16,800%
North Dakota Alerus Center 12,283%
North Dakota State Fargodome 18,700%
Northern Iowa UNI-Dome 16,324%
South Dakota DakotaDome 9,100%
South Dakota State Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium 19,340%
Southern Illinois Saluki Stadium 15,000%
Youngstown State Stambaugh Stadium 20,630%

Bold - Exceed or met capacity
†Season High
‡FCS Playoff Game

2026 NFL Draft

The following list includes all MVFC players who were drafted in the 2026 NFL draft.

PlayerPositionSchoolDraft
round		Round
pick		Overall
pick		Team

Head coaches

Through February 28, 2025
All stats include 2025 season

TeamHead coachYears at schoolOverall recordRecord at schoolMVFC recordMVFC titlesFCS playoff appearancesFCS playoff recordNational titles
Illinois State Brock Spack 17111–74 (.600)111–74 (.600)71–54 (.568)268–6 (.571)0
Indiana State Curt Mallory 8 [a] 24–55 (.304)24–55 (.304)16–40 (.286)000–0 (–)0
Murray State Jody Wright 21–11 (.083)1–11 (.083)0–8 (.000)000–0 (–)0
North Dakota Eric Schmidt 10–0 (–)0–0 (–)0–0 (–)000–0 (–)0
North Dakota State Tim Polasek 214–2 (.875)14–2 (.875)7–1 (.875)114–0 (1.000)1
Northern Iowa Todd Stepsis 10–0 (–)0–0 (–)0–0 (–)000–0 (–)0
South Dakota Travis Johansen 10–0 (–)0–0 (–)0–0 (–)000–0 (–)0
South Dakota State Dan Jackson 10–0 (–)0–0 (–)0–0 (–)000–0 (–)0
Southern Illinois Nick Hill 1048–56 (.462)48–56 (.462)28–42 (.400)033–3 (.500)0
Youngstown State Doug Phillips 621–31 (.404)21–31 (.404)15–23 (.395)011–1 (.500)0
  1. ↑ Indiana State did not play football in the 2020–21 academic year

References

  1. ↑ "North Dakota State wins 10th FCS title with 35-32 win over Montana State". sports.yahoo.com. Yahoo!. January 6, 2025. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  2. ↑ "Lance and Miller team to send North Dakota State to FCS title game with 28-21 win over Jackrabbits". cbssports.com. CBS Sports. December 21, 2024. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  3. ↑ "Mellott leads Montana State over South Dakota 31-17 to reach FCS championship game". cbssports.com. CBS Sports. December 21, 2024. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  4. ↑ "Hastings, Larison account for 6 TDs, UC Davis rolls past Illinois State 42-10 in FCS second round". cbssports.com. CBS Sports. December 7, 2024. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  5. ↑ "Missouri State heads to FBS, joining Conference USA in 2025". espn.com. ESPN. May 10, 2024. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Eric Schmidt named head coach of North Dakota football". fightinghawks.com. North Dakota Fighting Hawks. December 8, 2024. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  7. ↑ "Head Coach Bubba Schweigert to step down, move into senior administrative role with UND Athletics". fightinghawks.com. North Dakota Fighting Hawks. November 30, 2024. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  8. ↑ "Todd Stepsis named University of Northern Iowa head coach". unipanthers.com. Northern Iowa Panthers. December 3, 2024. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  9. ↑ "UNI Football head coach Mark Farley to retire at conclusion of 2024 season". unipanthers.com. Northern Iowa Panthers. November 10, 2024. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  10. ↑ "Travis Johansen named head coach of South Dakota football". goyotes.com. South Dakota Coyotes. January 16, 2025. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  11. ↑ "Head football coach Bob Nielson steps down". goyotes.com. South Dakota Coyotes. January 16, 2025. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  12. ↑ "Jackson selected to lead Jackrabbit football". gojacks.com. South Dakota State Jackrabbits. December 31, 2024. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  13. ↑ "Rogers steps down to become Head Coach at WSU". gojacks.com. South Dakota State Jackrabbits. December 28, 2024. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
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