So if North Dakota State is not the FCS champion in 2016...

Apologies to Alabama and Ohio State, but North Dakota State has been the standard in Division I football this decade.

It’s the FCS level of Division I, of course, and the Bison have won five straight national titles – an NCAA record.

Chris Klieman, who served as an assistant coach before he led the last two championships as head coach, has started looking toward filling his second hand with title rings.

NDSU, which has a 71-5 record over the last five seasons, is favored again. The Bison return 14 starters and terrific depth (see QB Easton Stick, who went 8-0 as the starter last season in place of an injured Carson Wentz, the No. 2 overall pick in this year's NFL Draft) in addition to having an incomparable winning mindset.

If the Bison are going to be denied a sixth straight FCS title, who will pull it off?

Here are six teams that are strong enough to dethrone them. They all have good game film on the reigning champs, having been dispatched by the Bison in the playoffs in at least one of the last two seasons.

— Written by Craig Haley, who is part of the Athlon Contributor Network. Haley has covered the FCS level since 1999 and is the national writer for www.fcs.football. He appears frequently on radio shows and podcasts to discuss everything FCS. Follow him on Twitter @CraigHaley.

(Photo by Richard Svaleson/NDSU)