The Midwest Conference (MWC) football 2025 preseason coaches’ poll, was announced on Thursday, July 31, 2025
The Monmouth Fighting Scots received six first-place votes to lead the polling. Monmouth has gone 32-4 in MWC play over the last four full seasons and is looking for its first NCAA Tournament berth since 2019.
In second place, Lake Forest College picked up the four remaining first-place votes. In 2024, the Foresters went 9-0 in league play to win their third MWC crown in the last four years. Lake Forest received a top-eight seed in the 2024 NCAA Division III Football Championship, earning a bye to the second round.
Illinois College and University of Chicago (Interesting tidbit: the Chicago Maroons were in the Big 10 until 1939 and the very first Heisman trophy Jay Berwanger played for the University of Chicago) tied for third place. Cornell College in Mt. Vernon Iowa was fifth with 51 points.
The poll has Iowa’s Grinnell College ranked in 8th with 27 points.
*Source Midwest Conference – July 31, 2025, Preseason Coaches Poll
The Cornell College Rams and Grinnell College Pioneers are gearing up for the Fall Season.
Cornell has a first-year head Curt Ritchie, who recently inducted into the Iowa Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame after a legendary Iowa High School Coaching career. It will be interesting to watch the Rams this fall as they have built a solid Midwest Conference program.
Coach Brent Barnes leads the Grinnell College Pioneers entering his 6th season and continues to build his Football program in the Midwest Conference.
In 2026 the Luther College Norse will be joining the Midwest Conference as they wrap up their final year in the American Rivers Conference. So, next year’s Midwest Conference preseason poll will have three Iowa schools in the mix.
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