ST. LOUIS (PFL)  – For the first time since 2019, San Diego football has been tapped as the Pioneer Football League’s preseason favorite in the league’s 2025 Preseason Coaches Poll, released Monday.

The PFL will present its 2025 Preseason All-PFL Team on Tuesday.

San Diego picked up five first-place votes and was not ranked lower than third by any of the league’s head coaches to earn the poll’s top spot with 94 points.

Drake, the 2024 PFL Champion, was first on three ballots and was picked in the top three on six ballots to earn second in the poll with 78 points. St. Thomas, with 72 points, including a first-place vote, was third with 72 points.

Butler, Dayton, and Morehead State were tightly packed in the next three spots. Butler was fourth with 66 points thanks to five votes in the top three. Dayton was a point behind in fifth place at 65 points. Morehead State nabbed a first-place vote and was sixth in the poll with 65 points for its best preseason positioning since 2022, when it was picked fifth. 

Presbyterian had one vote for each of the top three spots and edged out Davidson for the No. 7 position in the poll with 55 points. Davidson was eighth with 53 points.
Marist, Valparaiso, and Stetson rounded out the PFL Preseason Coaches’ Poll, ranked ninth, 10th, and 11th, respectively.

The poll reflects the vastly different landscape in the PFL entering the 2025 season with five programs helmed by new head coaches: Kevin Lynch at Butler, Saj Thakkar at Davidson, Joe Woodley at Drake, Mike Jasper at Stetson, and Andy Waddle at Valparaiso.

The upcoming 2025 season marks the 33rd year of the Pioneer Football League. The league will feature 11 teams, each playing an eight-game schedule to determine the league champion and recipient of the automatic bid to the NCAA FCS Championship. The 2025 schedule gets underway Thursday, August 28, with Dayton, Drake, and St. Thomas set to kick off on opening night. Marist opens its season on Friday, August 29, followed by the league’s remaining seven teams on Saturday, August 30.

About the Pioneer Football League
The Pioneer Football League is the only non-scholarship, football-only NCAA Football Championship Subdivision conference. The PFL is a truly national conference with members on each coast and throughout the nation’s heartland. Butler University, the University of Dayton, Drake University, and Valparaiso University were among the league’s founding members in 1993, with Davidson College, Marist University, Morehead State University, Presbyterian College, the University of San Diego, the University of St. Thomas, and Stetson University joining to form the current 11-team league.
 

Avoli Further Solidifies Leadership in Women’s Volleyball, Driving Growth Through Strategic Athlete and Brand Partnerships

PORTLAND, Ore., July 28, 2025–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Avoli, the first and only athletic brand dedicated exclusively to the performance needs and aspirations of women and girl volleyball athletes, today announced its most significant collegiate NIL athlete signings to date: Andi Jackson (University of Nebraska) and Izzy Starck (Penn State University). These pivotal partnerships highlight Avoli’s unwavering commitment to empowering the sport’s top talent and its strategic position within the rapidly expanding landscape of women’s volleyball.

Joining Avoli’s elite roster are two of the NCAA’s most impactful and celebrated volleyball athletes:

• Andi Jackson, a dominant middle blocker entering her junior season at the University of Nebraska, is a First-Team AVCA All-American and a two-time All-Big Ten selection (First Team in 2024). She boasted a remarkable .448 hitting percentage, ranking 4th in Division I, during the 2024 season, and is a cornerstone of Nebraska’s championship program.

• Izzy Starck, entering her sophomore season at Penn State University, was the 2024 AVCA Freshman of the Year and a Second-Team All-American. She led Penn State to the 2024 National Championship with a record 1,483 assists, including the final point.

Avoli, recognized as the first footwear brand to sign women’s volleyball athletes to NIL deals, has been at the forefront of NIL since its launch in 2023. Having worked with high-profile athletes like Harper Murray and Anna DeBeer, Avoli proactively utilizes these elite talents to amplify its brand. Andi Jackson and Izzy Starck will be prominently highlighted across Avoli’s channels throughout the upcoming NCAA season and beyond.

“Bringing Andi and Izzy into the Avoli family is a natural extension of our commitment to empowering women and girls in volleyball,” said Rick Anguilla, Avoli Co-Founder. “They are exceptional athletes and inspiring role models to young volleyball players, and their decision to champion our brand underscores the real impact we’re having on the sport. We’re thrilled to welcome them to the Avoli team as we continue to innovate and support the sport’s incredible momentum.”

Avoli’s rapid success is strengthened by strategic partnerships, notably with top sports retailer SCHEELS. Since launching in select retail locations in 2024, Avoli has achieved remarkable growth, driven by its unparalleled innovation and high-quality footwear that is unique in the women’s volleyball space.

Story Continues

President Donald Trump issued an executive order on name, image and likeness (NIL) in college sports — the first major step toward placing regulations and guardrails on a system that has taken on a life of its own.

The order, according to a release directly from the White House is aimed to “protect student-athletes and collegiate athletic scholarships and opportunities, including in Olympic and non-revenue programs, and the unique American institution of college sports.

Critics of NIL have argued for years now how it will be the end of non-revenue sports on college campuses, and the very first goal on the list for the order is preventing that.

RELATED: Trump issues NIL executive order on same day SCORE Act passes in U.S. House committee

Trump’s executive order has the stamp of approval from two of the most important people in the state of Alabama, former Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban and current Alabama athletics director Greg Byrne.

Byrne released a statement of support on his X account on Thursday night, while Saban also praised the decision during an appearance on Fox News on Friday:

pic.twitter.com/eFYQnq6bax

— Greg Byrne (@Greg_Byrne) July 25, 2025

“The University of Alabama applauds this executive order from President Trump to help secure a long-term sustainable model of intercollegiate athletics,” Byrne said. “We are proud of our broad-based athletics programs and strongly support future regulatory and Congressional action that will preserve these opportunities for student-athletes.”

Nick Saban praises @POTUS‘ Executive Order protecting student-athletes & collegiate athletic scholarships:

“I think @POTUS‘ Executive Order takes a huge step in providing the educational model that has always been what we’ve tried to promote to create opportunities for players.” pic.twitter.com/kehXs6kGg5

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) July 25, 2025

“I think President Trump’s Executive Order takes a huge step in providing the educational model that has always been what we’ve tried to promote to create opportunities for players male and female, revenue and non-revenue,” Saban said. “I think we sort of need to make a decision here relative to do we want to have an education based model which the President made a huge step towards doing that, or do we want to have universities sponsor professional teams? I think most people would choose the former.”

RELATED: As new Alabama-driven NIL bill gains traction, Congress moves to rein in ‘Wild West’ of college sports

College athletics have been moving towards a model — especially in football and basketball — to where players are employees rather than students, and the constant hemming and hawing of which direction will be taken in that area has stalled anything definitive from happening.

With Trump’s Executive Order though, it sounds like that momentum is being halted, and as Saban mentions, preserving not only non-revenue sports, but an educational-based system.

One critic of the amount of impact this will actually have was one of the most prominent college football reporters on the topic in Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports, who appeared on Paul Finebaum Thursday upon the news coming out and downplayed exactly what impact there is going to be:

Instant reaction from @RossDellenger :

“I wish I could tell you that (Trump’s executive order) was some groundbreaking thing and everything’s going to change in college sports after this…but I don’t think that’s the case.” pic.twitter.com/WxfjJIemE8

— Paul Finebaum (@finebaum) July 24, 2025

Dellenger pointed out that Congressional legislation is a much more permanent solution rather than any sort of Executive Order

“I wish I could tell you that (Trump’s executive order) was some groundbreaking thing and everything’s going to change in college sports after this…but I don’t think that’s the case.”

RELATED: Shomari Figures making bipartisan play to address NIL with support from GOP leaders, Alabama AD Greg Byrne

Ironically, U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures’ SCORE Act passed out of U.S. House committee on the same day and is moving towards passing as well, so perhaps actual change can be seen. The SCORE Act has similar goals as the Executive Order and could be even more critical than any sort of Executive Order.

Clearly, there is still a long road to go in order to get any sort of control on what college sports have become. Momentum though is moving in the right direction, and it certainly seems like those who make the every day decisions in college sports are in favor of action which has already been taken.

When reports surfaced that Tyran Stokes, the No. 1 recruit in the class of 2026, is expected to take an official visit to Gonzaga, the college basketball world took notice. Since the recent House settlement and the legalization of direct revenue sharing, schools without football programs (and without sprawling athletic departments) are newly positioned to compete for elite talent that had in the last five years or so been reserved for schools with a large enough donor base to pay for their services. The revenue-sharing model directs more institutional support to athletes across all sports, giving basketball-first programs like Gonzaga the financial firepower to recruit top-tier players without competing against football for resources.

This is a program that has landed five-stars, developed lottery picks, and earned No. 1 seeds in the past. But the economics of the NIL made it increasingly difficult of late for basketball-first schools to operate in the same recruiting tier as revenue-heavy powerhouses. Stokes’ interest (and that of other top recruits currently being courted by the Zags) suggests that Gonzaga’s development model now has the economic allure to attract players previously boxed out and earmarked for Power-5 schools.

So, How Good Is He Really?

Well, he’s the top recruit in the country for very good reason. Physically, he’s built like a tank, six-foot-eight, somewhere between 235-245 lbs., seven-foot wingspan, and an explosive vertical leap. He certainly doesn’t look it, but the dude must be built out of cannonballs and moon rocks. Imagine if Michael Ajayi somehow put on 20 lbs of muscle. That’s Stokes. Offensively, he’s a downhill playmaker who finishes through contact, rebounds aggressively, and finds teammates in space. He averaged 21 points, 9.3 rebounds, and nearly 4 assists last season for Notre Dame High School in California. He then followed that up with a starring role for Team USA, where he became the first player in U19 history to record a triple-double and averaged 12.2 points in just 18 minutes per game. His EYBL numbers back it up too—20 points, 8.3 boards, and top-ten scoring across the entire circuit. Every level he touches, he produces.

Defensively, Stokes is versatile, handsy, and aggressive. He moves well laterally for his size, can wall up against slashers, and switches comfortably across positions. His energy rarely drops, and his rebounding is elite for a wing. If you’re a coach, you can plug him into almost any system. If you’re a scout, you’re watching the jumper. That’s the one real question left. He shot just over 30% from three last season, and his free-throw numbers (mid-60s) suggest the touch isn’t all the way there. But the mechanics are clean, the volume is increasing, and the upside as a league-average shooter is very real.

Still, what makes this visit to Spokane so significant isn’t just the talent on tape. It’s who’s calling. Besides Gonzaga, Stokes has already been courted by Kansas, Kentucky, Oregon, USC, and Louisville (his hometown). He’s seen Allen Fieldhouse. He’s visited Rupp. He’s played for Tommy Lloyd on Team USA (and if you like playing for Tommy, wait til you play for his mentor and all-time great basketball mind Mark Few).

These are destination programs that usually close on players like Stokes. So why is Gonzaga still on the list?

The answer starts with fit. And it ends with what the program has quietly become: a landing spot for elite players who see Spokane as the most direct pathway to the NBA. And with the program’s pending move to the Pac-12 and a rapidly shifting NIL structure post–House settlement, the gap between Spokane and the so-called Blue Bloods is closing faster than anyone expected.

Why Stokes Fits Gonzaga

Few prospects in recent memory would arrive to Gonzaga with the physical readiness, big game experience, and upside that Stokes already possesses. In terms of size he’s just fine pounds and a couple inches shy of Graham Ike, but he’s lethal in transition and facilitates floor spacing from the wing. His unique blend of force and feel would instantly thrive within Gonzaga’s high-IQ, movement-based offense, especially with a veteran floor-marshal like Braeden Smith running point.

In terms of development opportunities for Stokes, Gonzaga gets players to the pros, yes, but more importantly, it equips them with the coachability, versatility, and physical tools necessary to keep them around in the league. It’s why NBA GMs now view Gonzaga in the same light as Kentucky and Duke–a professional finishing school that develops character, professionalism, and a team-first mindset in tandem with athletic performance.

For a player with Stokes’ ceiling—and the national attention that comes with it—Gonzaga offers something rare: a grounded, basketball-first community that treats their players as more than their market value. It’s a place where the pressure to succeed is met with support, where expectations are matched by belief, and where becoming a pro begins with becoming the kind of person who can handle it.

Why Gonzaga Can Now Compete for Stokes

Under the new revenue-sharing model, Division I schools can allocate up to $20.5 million per year to athletes. At football-first schools, that sum gets carved up across sprawling rosters, athletic departments, and compliance operations. But Gonzaga operates with single-sport precision. That gives Gonzaga the ability to direct a larger share of available revenue toward a smaller number of players, with fewer trade-offs and no internal competition for resources.

In practical terms, that means a player like Tyran Stokes could command more direct, structured compensation at Gonzaga than at any other school currently recruiting him. His visits have included Louisville, Kansas, Kentucky, Oregon, and USC—all high-major programs with football obligations that absorb a meaningful share of institutional funding. Gonzaga stands alone in that group: the only school without a football program, and therefore the only one capable of consolidating its revenue-sharing resources entirely around men’s basketball. That distinction is vital in an era where compensation is legal and expected, Stokes’s potential commitment to Gonzaga would quite literally be proof of concept that the new revenue-sharing model can preserve parity across conferences in the NIL era.

Final Thoughts

Tyran Stokes is a program-shaping talent—physically imposing, instinctually polished, and already equipped with the poise and processing speed that translate to the next level. His recruitment reflects that. But Gonzaga offers more than opportunity. With no football program, a unified donor base, and a basketball identity that has produced durable, high-character professionals, the program now occupies a rare position in the post-House era: fully resourced, culturally grounded, and built around player development in its fullest sense. Somehow, Gonzaga can not only compete for players like Stokes, it might have the strongest pitch for his eventual commitment. Stokes would be Gonzaga’s second No. 1 overall recruit, joining a short lineage that begins and ends with Chet Holmgren—and we’ve already seen how well that trajectory holds up in the league. Gonzaga can give Stokes the platform to rise, the community to stay grounded, and the space to grow into everything his future already promises.

Although Kentucky seems to be gaining ground as the frontrunner for Stokes’ commitment, the stink of the Calipari era still clings to Rupp like cheap cologne: loud, sweaty, and impossible to ignore. Mark Pope has done his best to exorcise the place, but no amount of holy water or leadership-summit charisma can scrub out a decade of ego, turnover, and early tournament flameouts. For most college hoops fans, the Wildcats still play the villain, and his potential commitment to Kentucky could feel to Louisville fans in his own hometown like seeing the pride of their city held up as proof that the University of Kentucky still runs the state.

Under the House settlement, Kentucky and Louisville’s NIL revenue will be divided across every varsity sport. That includes massive football programs with constant overhead and endless booster expectations. At Gonzaga, the entire athletic department is built around the long-standing success of its basketball program alone. The money should be substantial, the exposure is guaranteed, and the NBA outcomes are proven. For a player like Stokes, the choice should be a clear one.