MOORHEAD, Minn.-- For the second straight season Concordia will start the season being placed in the top 25 in both major Division III preseason polls. The Cobbers are slotted in at no. 16 in the D3football.com poll and are ranked 15 in the Football Gazette selections.

Last year the Cobbers finished the season by being ranked eighth in the D3football.com poll and 16th in the Football Gazette poll.

Concordia is coming off its second consecutive trip to the NCAA playoffs. The Cobbers finished the 2005 season with a 10-2 record including a 7-1 mark in the MIAC. Concordia finished second in conference play and advanced to the second round of the NCAA playoffs for the second straight season before falling to defending national champion Linfield 28-14 in Oregon.

The Cobbers will return eight players on offense. The biggest hole will come from the graduation of two-time MIAC MVP Brian Schumacher. Schumacher amassed an impressive 21-3 record as the team's starting quarterback in his final two seasons of play.

Defensively the Cobbers will have to replace all three starting linebackers and three of the four starting defensive backs in a defensive unit that only returns three starting players.

Concordia will open preseason training on August 12 and begin the regular season when they play at MSU Moorhead in the annual Power Bowl game.

D3FOOTBALL.COM POLL (Preseason)

STERLING, Va. -- The D3football.com Top 25 for the 2006 preseason

# School (1st votes) Rec. Pts
1 Mount Union (23) 14-1 623
2 UW-Whitewater (2) 14-1 601
3 Rowan 11-2 518
4 St. John's 11-1 492
5 Capital 10-3 456
6 Mary Hardin-Baylor 9-2 452
7 Linfield 10-1 447
8 Wesley 12-2 432
9 Occidental 9-1 377
10 Union 11-1 290
11 Hardin-Simmons 8-2 283
12 Delaware Valley 12-1 275
13 Bridgewater (Va.) 10-2 273
14 Augustana 10-2 243
15 Wash. and Jeff. 9-2 221
16 Concordia-Moorhead 10-2 205
17 Ohio Northern 8-2 202
18 Central 9-2 169
19 Hobart 9-2 147
20 Wabash 11-1 141
21 North Central 9-2 140
22 Coe 9-2 131
23 Wilkes 8-3 120
24 Ithaca 8-3 104
25 Thiel 11-1 94
Others receiving votes: Trinity (Texas) 90, Whitworth 86, UW-La Crosse 58, UW-Oshkosh 55, RPI 44, Wheaton 43, Cortland State 43, Howard Payne 37, UW-Stout 30, St. John Fisher 29, UW-Eau Claire 27, Mt. St. Joseph 22, Trinity (Conn.) 20, Ferrum 17, Salisbury 14, Alfred 13, Monmouth 10, Christopher Newport 8, Alma 8, Adrian 7, Wartburg 4, Albion 4, Wooster 3, Hampden-Sydney 3, Cal Lutheran 3, Huntingdon 3, Baldwin-Wallace 2, Washington and Lee 2, Averett 1, East Texas Baptist 1, Thomas More 1, Wittenberg 1

FOOTBALL GAZETTE POLL (Preseason)
1 MOUNT UNION OH 14-1
2 WISC.-WHITEWATER 14-1
3 ST. JOHN'S MN 11-1
4 ROWAN NJ 11-2
5 DELAWARE VALLEY PA 12-1
6 LINFIELD OR 10-1
7 WESLEY DE 12-2
8 UNION NY 11-1
9 CAPITAL OH 10-3
10 WASH. & JEFF. PA 9-2
11 M. HARDIN-BAYLOR TX 9-2
12 BRIDGEWATER VA 10-2
13 OCCIDENTAL CA 9-1
14 HOBART NY 9-2
15 CONCORDIA-MOOR. MN 10-2
16 AUGUSTANA IL 10-2
17 CENTRAL COLLEGE IA 9-2
18 OHIO NORTHERN 8-2
19 ITHACA NY 8-3
20 NORTH CENTRAL IL 9-2
21 THIEL PA 11-1
22 CORTLAND STATE NY 7-3
23 TRINITY TX 9-1
24 WABASH IN 11-1
25 TRINITY CT 8-0
26 HARDIN-SIMMONS TX 8-2
27 WILKES PA 8-3
28 WISC.-LA CROSSE 5-4
29 COE IA 9-2
30 MONMOUTH IL 10-1
31 ST. JOHN FISHER NY 8-3
32 RENSSELAER TECH NY 8-2
33 WISC.-EAU CLAIRE 6-4
34 WISC.-STOUT 6-4
35 ALFRED NY 9-2
36 MT. SAINT JOSEPH OH 9-2
37 WHITWORTH WA 5-3
38 DE PAUW IN 7-2
39 ADRIAN MI 8-2
40 WHEATON IL 7-3