54 schools opted out of House- which are the most likely to leave Division 1 in the near future?

[shizzle787]

https://www.sportico.com/leagues/college...234863224/

This Sportico article lists the 54 schools that officially opted out.

Which are the most likely to drop out of Division 1 in the coming years?

There were some surprises among the opt outs including UC Davis and five schools in the Big Sky.

I understand why the service academies, Ivy League, and Patriot opted out, but the remaining 33 are interesting.

Based on a combination of who opted out and enrollment size, the following are my contenders to leave the division in the near future (list goes from largest to smallest school):

Portland State
CCSU
Tennessee State (school is having financial troubles)
Eastern Washington
NC Central
Manhattan
Charleston Southern
Stetson
Houston Christian
Fairleigh Dickinson
Saint Peter's
Gardner Webb
Wagner
Chicago State
Presbyterian

 

[Vowelguy]

ChicagoSt is one of the worst athletic programs in all of NCAA (including D2 & D3), and now they're studying whether to add FB. Hard to predict what their crazed leadership is going to do.

 

[DFW HOYA]

Chicago State announced they plan to play FCS football in the fall of 2026, and they hired a head coach in April. Only a few hurdles to climb, however.

As of July, it has...

Not hired a staff for the head coach
Has no inbound recruits this fall
Has no home stadium or practice facility
Has no S&C facility
Has no 2025-26 budget
And...
Has no 2026 schedule

 

[CL82]

Chicago State announced they plan to play FCS football in the fall of 2026, and they hired a head coach in April. Only a few hurdles to climb, however.

As of July, it has...

Not hired a staff for the head coach
Has no inbound recruits this fall
Has no home stadium or practice facility
Has no S&C facility
Has no 2025-26 budget
And...
Has no 2026 schedule

But other than that, they're ready to go.

 

[Hoophound]

Chicago State announced they plan to play FCS football in the fall of 2026, and they hired a head coach in April. Only a few hurdles to climb, however.

As of July, it has...

Not hired a staff for the head coach
Has no inbound recruits this fall
Has no home stadium or practice facility
Has no S&C facility
Has no 2025-26 budget
And...
Has no 2026 schedule

I want that job. That sounds like he’s collecting a paycheck and all he has to do is wait for the school to get their crap together so he can start working. Lunch is definitely the highlight of his day.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

I'm curious to see how Manhattan and St Pete's do in the MAAC over the next couple of years. I imagine if they don't drop much from where they have been, more MAAC schools will also opt out.

 

[ZooCougar]

Chicago State announced they plan to play FCS football in the fall of 2026, and they hired a head coach in April. Only a few hurdles to climb, however.

As of July, it has...

Not hired a staff for the head coach
Has no inbound recruits this fall
Has no home stadium or practice facility
Has no S&C facility
Has no 2025-26 budget
And...
Has no 2026 schedule

So what you are saying is that they are great candidates to join CUSA or the AAC.