cfb zeitgeistZeitgeist
Matchup SimulatorCompare Teams

DII CONFERENCE · 2025 SEASON

Great American

#42 overall#17 in DIIRR50 -4.2Upper strength -2.612 teamsTop 25 teams 0

THE LONG WAIT · 2025

The Arkansas Standard

The Great American Conference spans Arkansas and Oklahoma — two states with football traditions deeper than their DII profiles suggest. Ouachita Baptist has won eight GAC titles and produced NFL players from Arkadelphia, Arkansas. Harding University competes from a Church of Christ campus with a national championship in 2021. The conference has more national title appearances per team than any DII conference west of the Mississippi.

Ouachita Baptist and Harding have split the last four GAC titles. Does either program make the national championship game in 2026, or does a third program — Henderson State, Northwestern Oklahoma State — break into the top tier?

Division II12 teamsRace: Super Region

Great American · 2026 Season Preview

Three Things to Watch

The DynastyOuachita Baptist's Pipeline to the NFL

Ouachita Baptist has won eight GAC titles from Arkadelphia, Arkansas — a town of 10,000 with a Baptist university that has produced more NFL draft picks per enrollment than almost any DII program. Their program culture is built on development, retention, and a coaching staff that has been together longer than most Power Four programs. They enter 2026 as the conference's most complete program and the most likely to make a Super Region final run.

The RivalHarding's National Championship Model

Harding University won the DII national championship in 2021 — the first for a Church of Christ institution — and has been in the national conversation since. Their Searcy, Arkansas program recruits to a specific student: faith-committed, academically serious, football-invested. The combination has produced a program that challenges Ouachita for the GAC title every year and has demonstrated it can win the national championship.

Wild CardHenderson State's Physical Identity

Henderson State in Arkadelphia — Ouachita Baptist's literal next-door neighbor — plays a physical style of football that matches the region's identity. They recruit from the same Arkansas pipeline as Ouachita but have a different program culture: harder, more physical, built on the offensive and defensive lines. When Henderson is healthy and their line wins, they are the most dangerous program in the GAC behind the two perennial title contenders.

Conference Standings · Great American · 2025

Standings

# Team Conf Overall Pwr Last 5
1Harding University11–015–1-0.6
2Henderson State8–38–3-4.3
3Southern Arkansas8–38–3-4.7
4Ouachita Baptist7–47–4-4.3
5Arkansas Tech7–47–5-4.9
6Southwestern Oklahoma State6–56–5-4.2
7East Central (OK)6–56–5-5.1
8Southeastern Oklahoma State5–65–6-5.1
9Southern Nazarene2–92–9-6.2
10Oklahoma Baptist2–92–9-6.4
11Northwestern Oklahoma State2–92–9-6.5
12Arkansas-Monticello2–92–9-6.8

Conference record determines Super Region seeding. Power = neutral-field pts vs. all-level average.

Projected Standings · Great American · 2025

Win Projection

Odds of winning at least N conference games from current power ratings — full slate played out, not locked to results. AVG = expected wins; W–L = most-likely record.

# Team W–L PWR AVG ≥11≥10≥9≥8≥7≥6≥5≥4≥3≥2≥1
Favorites
1Harding University7–4+4.46.6312305476919799✓✓
2Southwestern Oklahoma State6–5+0.75.614133053759097✓✓
Challengers
3Ouachita Baptist6–5+0.75.714143256789298✓✓
4Henderson State6–5+0.65.614133053759097✓✓
5Southern Arkansas6–5+0.25.614123053759097✓✓
6Arkansas Tech6–5+0.05.613122851749097✓✓
The Field
7Southeastern Oklahoma State6–5-0.25.51311275073899799✓
8East Central (OK)5–6-0.25.4310254770889699✓
9Southern Nazarene5–6-1.35.228224366859599✓
10Oklahoma Baptist5–6-1.55.027193963839499✓
Rebuilding
11Northwestern Oklahoma State5–6-1.65.127204164849599✓
12Arkansas-Monticello5–6-1.94.916173660819499✓

Conference Power · Division II

Where We Stand

# Conference Avg Power vs Focal Top Team
1SIAC
+0.4
—Albany State GA
2GLIAC
-0.7
0–1Ferris State
3CIAA
-0.9
—Johnson C Smith
4Great Lakes
-0.9
—Indianapolis
5Gulf South
-1.2
—West Florida
6South Atlantic
-1.3
—Newberry
7Northeast 10
-1.6
—Assumption
8Lone Star
-1.6
1–1Western Oregon
9Northern Sun
-1.9
—Jamestown College
10Rocky Mountain
-2.0
—Chadron St
11Carolinas
-2.2
—North Greenville
12Great Midwest Athletic
-2.3
—Northwood (MI)
13Mountain East
-2.6
—Frostburg State
14Mid America
-3.3
2–0Pittsburg St
15Pennsylvania State Athletic
-3.7
1–0Kutztown University
16Great AmericanYou are here
-4.2
—Harding University

Round-robin power = strength of schedule-adjusted conference average, points vs. all-level average team. Record = Great American's record vs. that conference across all games this season.

Great American is outperforming its raw power profile. The league body of work is stronger than the market would expect.

Conference Snapshot

RR50-4.2
Upper Strength-2.6
Median Power-4.3
Resume Pulse40.0
Avg ATS--
Wins vs Market+0.00
Top-to-Middle Gap4.5
Combined Record70-68

`RR50`, `Upper Strength`, and `Median Power` are shown on the same public power scale as the rest of the site: points on a neutral field versus the average all-level NCAA team. Very small affiliations are gently regressed toward their subdivision baseline so a one-team outlier does not hijack the entire conference board.

Great American Team Board

The league stack, sorted by predictive strength. Power is shown as neutral-field points versus the all-level average team, while resume is shown on a 0-100 season score.

Rank Team Record Power Resume ATS Wins vs Market Recent Form
#318 Harding University 15-1 -0.6 92 -- +0.00 3-1 over the last 4 (W13 W14 W15 L17)
#398 Southwestern Oklahoma State 6-5 -4.2 68 -- +0.00 3-1 over the last 4 (W9 W10 L11 W12)
#400 Ouachita Baptist 7-4 -4.3 65 -- +0.00 3-1 over the last 4 (W9 W10 W11 L12)
#401 Henderson State 8-3 -4.3 62 -- +0.00 3-1 over the last 4 (L9 W10 W11 W12)
#413 Southern Arkansas 8-3 -4.7 43 -- +0.00 2-2 over the last 4 (L9 L10 W11 W12)
#420 Arkansas Tech 7-5 -4.9 40 -- +0.00 2-2 over the last 4 (W10 W11 L12 L15)
#422 Southeastern Oklahoma State 5-6 -5.1 31 -- +0.00 2-2 over the last 4 (W9 L10 L11 W12)
#424 East Central (OK) 6-5 -5.1 40 -- +0.00 1-3 over the last 4 (L9 W10 L11 L12)
#441 Southern Nazarene 2-9 -6.2 12 -- +0.00 1-3 over the last 4 (L9 L10 L11 W12)
#443 Oklahoma Baptist 2-9 -6.4 10 -- +0.00 0-4 over the last 4 (L9 L10 L11 L12)
#445 Northwestern Oklahoma State 2-9 -6.5 8 -- +0.00 2-2 over the last 4 (W9 L10 W11 L12)
#452 Arkansas-Monticello 2-9 -6.8 8 -- +0.00 0-4 over the last 4 (L9 L10 L11 L12)