SELINSGROVE, PA - The Susquehanna University football team reports for preseason in just a few days and have plenty of work ahead of them to remain at the top following last year's NCAA Semifinals run. The NCAA Division III pundits feel the same way as D3football.com's publishing of their Preseason Top 25 kept the River Hawks at number four, maintaining their end-of-year placement from last year. Susquehanna also recently hosted the Landmark Conference's Football Media Day, where the league unveiled their Preseason Poll that had the River Hawks again at number one for the third consecutive year.

Having won three consecutive conference championships and NCAA Tournament berths, the River Hawks avenged their abrupt first-round exits from 2022 and 2023 with three NCAA playoff victories in their 2024 run to reach the national semifinals for the first time since 1991, with eventual national champion North Central standing between them and the Stagg Bowl. The River Hawks celebrated a 9-1 regular season slate and another perfect 6-0 Landmark record to lock up the AQ, earning a first-round bye in the newly-expanded NCAA Tournament and defeating Hobart, Saint John's, and Bethel along the way. The River Hawks' 48-21 win over Wilkes on Oct. 26 marked the program's 500th overall win, while their 12-2 overall record marked the most single-season wins in team annals.

Head coach Tom Perkovich returns for his 11th season, compiling a 73-22 career mark for the second-most coaching wins in program history. Since 2019 Susquehanna has compiled a 51-7 record, never losing more than two games in a single season, and possess a 22-game conference win streak dating back to 2021. Quarterback Josh Ehrlich, linebacker Jesse Ruisch, and defensive lineman Brian Layton were named team captains ahead of their senior seasons. They represent three of the team's five returning All-Landmark selections alongside running back and return ace Rahshan La Mons and defensive lineman Tim Pherson Jr. Ruisch, Ehrlich, Layton, and La Mons were all First Team All-Landmark choices, with the latter three selected to D3football.com's All-Region 2 Team. Ehrlich was a semifinalist for the John Gagliardi Trophy Presented by Stearns Bank, which recognized the top player in Division III, while La Mons was chosen Third Team All-American by D3football.com. Perkovich and his staff were awarded D3football.com's Region 2 Coach of the Year. 

Susquehanna led NCAA Division III with a 19.95 punt return average, fielding 21 punts for 419 yards and three touchdowns. La Mons scored all three of those TDS and leading the return group with 360 punt return yards on 11 returns for a 32.73 average, with his longest being an 82-yard touchdown return at Wilkes on Oct. 26, while taking two punts back for touchdowns against Keystone on Oct. 12, covering 72 and 73 yards, respectively.The team also finished high up the ladder in the national stats with the ninth-highest total offensive yards with 484.5 per game, the tenth-highest ground game with 230.5 rushing yards per contest, 11th with a 52.2 third-down conversion rate, 16th in scoring offense at 42.3 points per game. La Mons continued to set records as the team's running back and occasional receiving threat, gathering a school-record 24 total touchdowns and ranking second all-time with 18 rushing touchdowns, while setting a school mark netting 1,650 rushing yards. Ehrlich also set new passing records with 33 passing touchdowns and the first 3,000 passing yard season with 3,092, along with 221 passing completions and 3,658 total yards, adding 629 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns, with his last serving as the game-winning touchdown to defeat Bethel in the national quarterfinals.