Outside of the top 5 teams Week 5 saw quite a bit of movement based mostly on previously ranked squads going into a freefall which gave some other teams hefty bumps basically by default. The top 5 remained mostly unchanged except for the fact that Sam Houston State swapped places with Chattanooga with each coming in at #4 and #5, respectively. North Dakota State, Jacksonville State, and Eastern Washington maintained their spots as the top 3 in that order.
The big risers of the week were the Samford Bulldogs, who moved up 9 spots to #19, and the North Dakota Fighting Hawks, who moved up 16 spots to #20. North Carolina A&T and McNeese State also made returns to the top 25 after being absent previous weeks coming in at #23 and #24, respectively.
The biggest drops belonged to Western Illinois, who dropped 10 spots to #16, and Cal Poly, who dropped 9 spots to #17. Eastern Illinois and Illinois State also each dropped 6 spots to #22 and #25, respectively. Southern Utah, Indiana State, William & Mary, and Sacred Heart all dropped out of the top 25 after sustaining losses last week.
The MVFC hung on to the top spot in terms of representation with 6 teams in the top 25. The CAA and Big Sky were next with 4 each. They were followed by the Southern Conference and the Southland Conference who each had 3.
Full results below:
| Rank | Team: | Total Points | First Place Votes | Previous Wk. |
| 1 | North Dakota State Bison | 2199 | 87 | 1 |
| 2 | Jacksonville State Gamecocks | 2025 | 2 | |
| 3 | Eastern Washington Eagles | 2023 | 1 | 3 |
| 4 | Sam Houston State Bearkats | 1919 | 5 | |
| 5 | Chattanooga Mocs | 1852 | 4 | |
| 6 | James Madison Dukes | 1698 | 7 | |
| 7 | The Citadel Bulldogs | 1547 | 9 | |
| 8 | Montana Grizzlies | 1480 | 11 | |
| 9 | Richmond Spiders | 1458 | 10 | |
| 10 | Charleston Southern Buccaneers | 1278 | 12 | |
| 11 | Northern Iowa Panthers | 1220 | 13 | |
| 12 | South Dakota State Jackrabbits | 1207 | 17 | |
| 13 | Youngstown State Penguins | 1061 | 15 | |
| 14 | Albany Great Danes | 1060 | 14 | |
| 15 | Villanova Wildcats | 1046 | 18 | |
| 16 | Western Illinois Leathernecks | 1031 | 6 | |
| 17 | Cal Poly Mustangs | 925 | 8 | |
| 18 | Central Arkansas Bears | 622 | 23 | |
| 19 | Samford Bulldogs | 491 | 28 | |
| 20 | North Dakota Fighting Hawks | 413 | 36 | |
| 21 | Harvard Crimson | 388 | 24 | |
| 22 | Eastern Illinois Panthers | 266 | 16 | |
| 23 | North Carolina A&T Aggies | 253 | 29 | |
| 24 | McNeese State Cowboys | 242 | 31 | |
| 25 | Illinois State Redbirds | 174 | 19 | |
| ORV: | ||||
| 26 | New Hampshire Wildcats | 154 | NR | |
| 27 | Southern Utah Thunderbirds | 129 | 20 | |
| 28 | Tennessee State Tigers | 127 | 38 | |
| 29 | Stony Brook Seawolves | 91 | 32 | |
| 30 | Cornell Big Red | 50 | NR | |
| 31 | Indiana State Sycamores | 32 | 21 | |
| 32 | Grambling State Tigers | 23 | NR | |
| 33 | Missouri State Bears | 21 | NR | |
| 34T | Sacred Heart Pioneers | 15 | 25 | |
| 34T | William & Mary Tribe | 15 | 22 | |
| 36 | Lehigh Mountain Hawks | 14 | NR | |
| 37T | Dartmouth Big Green | 10 | 30 | |
| 37T | Wagner Seahawks | 10 | NR | |
| 39 | Wofford Terriers | 9 | 35 | |
| 40 | Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks | 7 | 26 | |
| Fell Out Of Poll: | ||||
| Colgate Raiders | ||||
| Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens | ||||
| Elon Phoenix | ||||
| Fordham Rams | ||||
| Northern Arizona Lumberjacks | ||||
| Southern Illinois Salukis |
Most Significant Win: South Dakota State Jackrabbits
Most Significant Loss: Western Illinois Leathernecks (1 vote over CP)