KANSAS — The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) is proud to announce the 2026 KCAC Football Franklin “Gene” Bissell Division Preseason Team, as voted on by the division’s head coaches.
McPherson College leads the division with 12 players being named to the preseason all-division team, followed closely by Friends University with 11. The Falcons saw two players, Connor Tillman and Michael Lopez, named to multiple positions on the preseason team. Southwestern College is not far behind with nine honorees, followed by Kansas Wesleyan University with five players honored and Sterling College with one player honored.
Some of the standouts from the Preseason Team include Kyree Watkins of Friends University, Jalil Brown of McPherson College, and Kenneth Ray, also of McPherson College.
Watkins earned the 2025 KCAC Offensive Lineman of the Year award last season, was named to the All-KCAC first team, and was named an AFCA NAIA Football All-American for the second season in a row. Watkins was a key cog on a Friends offensive line that anchored the No. 1 scoring offense across all of four-year college football last season, averaging 54.2 points per game, and also broke its own NAIA single-season rushing record of 5,979 rushing yards.
Brown returns for the 2026 season after being named the KCAC Offensive Player of the Year in 2025. He was a first-team All-KCAC honoree a year ago, and also earned a spot on the AFCA NAIA All-America Second Team. Brown rushed for 1,222 yards a season ago, good for 122.2 yards/game and 7.3 yards/rush. He also pulled down 29 receptions for 333 yards, averaging 11.1 yards/catch.
Ray returns this season after accumulating All-KCAC First Team honors in 2025, as well as securing a spot on the AFCA NAIA All-America Third Team. He tallied 46 total tackles in 2025, including 12.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks.
