SOU tops NAIA Coaches Poll

The Southern Oregon Raiders finished the 2014 season as the top-ranked team in NAIA football, and of course, national champions.

And the Raiders remained atop the NAIA in the first NAIA Coaches Poll of 2015. SOU is tied with Marion of Indiana for the top spot in the 2015 NAIA Preseason Coaches Poll, released Tuesday afternoon.

The Raiders are one of three Frontier Conference schools to be ranked in the poll, and one of two league teams in the Top 5.

As usual, Carroll College is also highly ranked. The Fighting Saints come in at No. 4 in the poll. Carroll, which captured the 2014 Frontier title but lost to SOU in the quarterfinals of the NAIA playoffs, was picked to win the Frontier crown this upcoming season.

Eastern Oregon, which was picked to finish third in the conference in 2015, is ranked No. 13 in the preseason poll, while UM-Western was one of four teams to receive votes, giving the Frontier a strong presence in the NAIA national rankings.