WACO, Tex. – Fairmont State climbed four spots to No. 18 in the final AFCA Coaches' Poll of the 2016 regular season after defeating rival Glenville State in last Thursday's edition of the "Battle for the Bit."

The Falcons (10-1, 9-1 MEC) will now prepare for their first-ever appearance in the NCAA Division II Playoffs when No. 11 Indiana (PA) visits Fairmont on Saturday in the opening round of the playoffs. Kickoff is set for 12 noon at Duvall-Rosier Field.

For a second year in a row, Northwest Missouri State ends the regular season at No. 1. The Bearcats beat Missouri Western State, 44-3, to give them an 11-0 record and earned a first-round bye in the 2016 NCAA Division II playoffs. Grand Valley State (Mich.), who also finished with an 11-0 record, sits at No. 2 and also received a first-round bye. Shepherd (W.Va.), Sioux Falls (S.D.) and Harding (Ark.) round out the top five. No. 6 California (Pa.) and No. 7 North Alabama were the other two top seeds in the 28-team field.

Twenty-five of the top 26 teams in the final regular season poll earned a spot in the playoffs. No. 16 Ashland (Ohio) was the only team left out of the playoffs.

Tuskegee (Ala.) fell out of the poll this week, but the Golden Tigers earned a playoff spot as they travel to No. 14 Newberry (S.C.). Both Florida Tech and Colorado Mesa jump back into the poll at No. 23 and No. 24t, respectively. The Panthers earned their first playoff appearance in school history and will host North Greenville (S.C.) while the Mavericks travel to No. 8 Texas A&M-Commerce.