Mississippi is known for its football, and that especially rings true at the two-year college level.
The NJCAA released its preseason Division I top 15 on Monday and four Mississippi schools cracked the list.
Coming in at No. 3 was Northwest Mississippi Community College. The Rangers had a stellar 2025 campaign, amassing a 10-2 overall record, with the last loss occurring in the NCJAA playoff versus then-No. 1 Hutchinson. Northwest’s storied season featured a 16-13 victory over Mississippi Gulf Coast in the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference Athletics championship.
Mississippi Gulf Coast may have lost the state title game, but there is still a lot of hype surrounding the Bulldogs heading into week one. This is evidenced by the football team’s No. 5 ranking in the preseason poll. Mississippi Gulf Coast ended the 2025 season with a 9-2 overall record, with a MACCC playoff win over East Mississippi being the highlight.
Copiah-Lincoln was featured in the top 10 as the No. 9 placeholder. The Wolves, like both Northwest and Mississippi Gulf Coast, reached the MACCC playoffs last year. But unlike their rivals, they were a round-one exit, due to a loss to the Rangers. Nonetheless, Co-Lin went 8-2 overall and will look to maneuver deeper into the postseason this year.
Arguably the most storied junior college football program in Mississippi in recent years, East Mississippi was inked into the rankings at No. 11. Buddy Stephens ended his 18th season as the Lions’ head man with a 7-3 overall record and a playoff loss to Mississippi Gulf Coast. His team will all but assuredly be back in the playoff conversation at both the state and national level this year.
The full NJCAA Division I top 15 is as follows:
- Iowa Western
- Hutchinson
- Northwest Mississippi
- Tyler Junior College
- Mississippi Gulf Coast
- Georgia Military College
- Trinity Valley
- Coffeyville
- Copiah-Lincoln
- Garden City
- East Mississippi
- Navarro College
- Snow College
- Butler
- Iowa Central
Hinds and Itawamba community colleges did not land in the top 15, but did receive votes. The Eagles went 6-3 in year one of the Chris Jones era, while the Indians finished the most recent season with a 5-4 record. The two programs will face each other to begin the upcoming campaign. Hinds will host Itawamba on Aug. 27.
This year, Mississippi community colleges will have an additional opportunity to either boost their resumes, or potentially cripple playoff hopes, with an extra game being added to the regular season. Teams will now play 10 regular season matchups instead of nine.