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.
2026 KCAC FOOTBALL FRANKLIN "GENE" BISSELL DIVISION PRESEASON TEAM
OFFENSE
| POSITION |
NAME |
INSTITUTION |
| QB |
Jamie Odom |
Southwestern College |
| QB |
Ryan Markarian |
McPherson College |
| RB |
Jalil Brown |
McPherson College |
| RB |
Christian Steward |
Southwestern College |
| RB |
E'derian Sykes |
Friends University |
| FB |
Nick Cordova |
Friends University |
| TE |
Mason Ross |
Kansas Wesleyan University |
| TE |
Dylan Gantz |
McPherson College |
| TE |
Sam Becker |
Friends University |
| WR |
Jamai Rutherford |
McPherson College |
| WR |
Bryce Chambers |
Southwestern College |
| WR |
Will Wilcox |
Kansas Wesleyan University |
| OL |
Kyree Watkins |
Friends University |
| OL |
Connor Herman |
Friends University |
| OL |
Maverick Segovia |
McPherson College |
| OL |
Caleb Phillips |
Southwestern College |
| OL |
Jacob McCaskill |
Kansas Wesleyan University |
| OL |
Austin Tener |
Southwestern College |
| OL |
Chris Foster |
McPherson College |
DEFENSE
| POSITION |
NAME |
INSTITUTION |
| DL |
Carl Malvo |
Southwestern College |
| DL |
Leshaon Davis |
Friends University |
| DL |
Kenneth Ray |
McPherson College |
| DL |
Lester Amos III |
McPherson College |
| DL |
Elijah Moroney |
Southwestern College |
| LB |
Myles Elam |
Kansas Wesleyan University |
| LB |
Isiah Yehudah |
Southwestern College |
| LB |
Cooper Skrobecki |
Friends University |
| LB |
Jonovan Asuncion |
McPherson College |
| LB |
Tyson Wallace |
Friends University |
| DB |
Taylor Collins |
Kansas Wesleyan University |
| DB |
Kirby Lewis |
McPherson College |
| DB |
Britt Wittschen |
Southwestern College |
| DB |
Sean Watson |
Sterling College |
| DB |
Wetu Kalomo |
Friends University |
SPECIAL TEAMS/ALL-PURPOSE
| POSITION |
NAME |
INSTITUTION |
| UTL/All-Purpose |
Michael Lopez |
Friends University |
| LS |
Michael Kuntz |
McPherson College |
| K |
Connor Tillman |
Friends University |
| P |
Connor Tillman |
Friends University |
| P |
Jack Finder |
McPherson College |
| Punt Return Specialist |
Michael Lopez |
Friends University |
—KCAC—