LANCASTER, Pa. – Colorado State University Pueblo comes into the upcoming 2025 season ranked No. 7 in the D2Football.com Top 25 Preseason Media poll that was released online Sunday evening by the D2Football.com website.

In the preseason D2Football.com Top 25 Media poll, the ThunderWolves were one of two Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference schools ranked, with Western Colorado opening the season ranked just behind the Pack at No. 8. Both of those schools were ranked 11th and 13th in the final D2Football.com poll of the 2024 season.

Ferris State, who are the defending NCAA Division II National Champions, opens the season at No. 1 in the D2Football.com preseason poll, while Harding is ranked No. 2 and Central Oklahoma is ranked No. 3. Minnesota State and Kutztown (Pa.) round out the preseason Top 5 at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.

Grand Valley State is one spot in the front of the Pack at No. 6, and following the Pack and Western Colorado at No. 9 is Slippery Rock (Pa.), while Pittsburg State rounds out the Top 10 at No. 10.

West Florida headlines the next 10 at No. 11 and is followed by Angelo State at No. 12, Ouachita Baptist at No. 13 and Lenoir-Rhyne at No. 14. Indianapolis opens the season at No. 15, while Augustana (S.D.) is No. 16, Valdosta State, who are the defending Division II National Runners-up, is at No. 17 and California (Pa.) is at No. 18. Bemidji State (Minn.) is ranked No. 19 and Fort Hays State is ranked No. 20.

The final five teams in the poll are Virginia Union at No. 21, Charleston (W.Va.) at No. 22, and West Alabama at No. 23. Central Missouri is ranked No. 24, and Ashland is ranked No. 25.

Along with Western Colorado, both of the Pack's non-conference opponents are ranked in this year's Preseason D2Football.com poll as Fort Hays State, who plays at the CSU Pueblo ThunderBowl on Sept. 4, is ranked No. 20, and Central Missouri, which the Pack plays on the road on Sept. 11 in Warrensburg, Mo., is ranked No. 24.

The D2Football.com Top 25 poll will be updated every Monday from Sept. 1 to Nov. 17, with the final poll of the 2025 season scheduled to be released one day after the national championship game on Dec. 20.

CSU Pueblo, which is entering its third week of preseason camp, opens the 2025 season with a 6 p.m. home game in the ThunderBowl on Thursday, Aug. 28 against South Dakota Mines. The Pack opened the 2024 season with a 35-6 win in Rapid City, S.D., against the Hardrockers.