Fort Hays State received a final ranking of No. 22 in the final D2Football.com Poll for 2018. The Tigers mirror their final AFCA Poll ranking after finishing the season 9-3 overall.
Fort Hays State held a Top 25 ranking in 12 of the 13 polls released by D2Football.com this season. The only absence from the poll was after a Week 6 loss to Emporia State, but the Tigers jumped back in after their Week 7 win against Pittsburg State. FHSU was in the top 25 in 10 of the 11 weeks during the regular season, while also gracing the preseason and final polls. A No. 8 ranking following the first week of play was the highest for the Tigers in the D2Football.com Poll this year.
Fort Hays State earned its second-straight MIAA Championship in 2018, going 9-2 in the regular season. The Tigers were a perfect 11-0 in MIAA play in 2017. The Tigers also made their second-straight appearance in the NCAA Division II Playoffs.
Below is the final D2Football.com Top 25 Poll for 2018.
| Team | Record | Previous | |
| 1 | Valdosta State | 14-0 | 5 |
| 2 | Ferris State | 15-1 | 2 |
| 3 | Minnesota State | 13-1 | 1 |
| 4 | Tarleton State | 12-1 | 6 |
| 5 | Notre Dame | 13-1 | 12 |
| 6 | Ouachita Baptist | 12-1 | 3 |
| 7 | CSU-Pueblo | 11-2 | 8 |
| 8 | Northwest Missouri State | 10-3 | 14 |
| 9 | Texas A&M-Commerce | 10-3 | 18 |
| 10 | Lenoir-Rhyne | 12-2 | 19 |
| 11 | Grand Valley State | 10-2 | 7 |
| 12 | Indianapolis | 10-2 | 11 |
| 13 | Minnesota Duluth | 11-1 | 4 |
| 14 | West Georgia | 10-2 | 9 |
| 15 | Colorado School of Mines | 10-2 | 16 |
| 16 | Midwestern State | 8-2 | 15 |
| 17 | Slippery Rock | 11-3 | nr |
| 18 | Bowie State | 10-3 | 22 |
| 19 | LIU-Post | 10-1 | 13 |
| 20 | New Haven | 9-3 | 24 |
| 21 | West Chester | 10-1 | 10 |
| 22 | Fort Hays State | 9-3 | 17 |
| 23 | Hillsdale | 10-3 | 25 |
| 24 | Harding | 9-3 | 20 |
| 25 | Wingate | 9-4 | NR |