The big-name programs tend to dominate the conversation in women's college basketball. That makes sense, because parity hasn't always been a key component of the women's side of things. Part of that was the lack of exposure for smaller schools, as places like UConn and Tennessee had far more televised games in the pre-streaming era. Part of it is also that the talent gap between the top conferences and lower conferences is greater than it is in men's basketball or football, the other major college sports.
That doesn't mean there aren't good mid-major programs, though. And while it'd be unlikely that any of these programs finds itself in a Final Four, that doesn't mean they aren't quality teams that could score an upset win or two come tournament time.
Here are six mid-major teams that fans should keep an eye on for the 2025-26 women's college basketball season.
Richmond
I've been working on women's basketball preseason content for a couple of weeks now and I keep writing about Richmond. I said they'd make the Sweet 16. I said Maggie Doogan should have been a preseason All-American. Now, I'm going to say even more things about the Spiders.
Richmond was one of the nation's best offensive teams last year, ranking 13th in offensive rating and first in effective field goal percentage. Doogan was a huge part of that, but she wasn't the only part. Rachel Ullstrom is back after leading the conference in 3-point field goal percentage at 42.3 percent last year. That duo is going to put up a ton of points this season.
Princeton
Not much was more fun than watching the Ivy League battle last year, with the conference eventually landing three bids, more than even the Big East. Maybe it's time to consider the Ivy a major conference?
Princeton was unfortunate, though, as it landed in a First Four game against Iowa State, where it saw its season end early with a 68-63 loss. However, there's plenty of reason to think Princeton can be even better this year. The team was picked first in the Ivy League's preseason poll, receiving 17 of the 21 first-place votes. Madison St. Rose is back after missing all but four games last year with a knee injury. She was averaging 17.0 points and 7.3 rebounds per game at the time of the injury.
South Dakota State
The Atlantic 10 isn't included in College Insider's list of mid-major conferences, which is why Richmond isn't No. 1 in the Womens Mid Major Top 25. That honor goes to South Dakota State out of the Summit League.
The Jackrabbits are led by Brooklyn Meyer, the Preseason Summit League Player of the Year. Meyer averaged 17.0 points and 5.9 rebounds per game last season and is joined on the All-Summit First Team by teammate Madison Mathiowetz, while Maggie Hartwig and Katie Vasecka made the All-Summit Second Team this preseason.
The Jackrabbits are also unafraid to play tough games. Their non-conference schedule includes Creighton, Murray State, Gonzaga, North Carolina, Columbia, Kansas State, Duke and Texas.
Fairfield
Carly Thibault-Dudonis took over as head coach for the Stags ahead of the 2022-23 season. After going just .500 in her debut season, her second team won a school-record 31 games, then followed that up with a 28-win campaign last season.
Don't be shocked to see the team do it again. Meghan Andersen, who has made the All-MAAC team in both of her collegiate seasons, is back after averaging 14.8 points per game last season and leading the MAAC in field goal percentage. Andersen plays a smart game, working to get to the basket or dropping back to shoot from deep. Last season, she took just 15 midrange attempts. In fact, part of Fairfield's success stems from the team's shot selection — the team averaged 48.1 attempts per game either at the rim or from 3-point range, the eighth-highest number in Division I.
James Madison
The Dukes won 30 games last season, but a Sun Belt tournament loss sent the team to the WBIT, where it advanced to the quarterfinals before losing to Belmont.
James Madison is the Sun Belt favorite this season, with Peyton McDaniel named the Preseason Player of the Year. McDaniel earns that honor for the second year in a row after averaging 6.0 points and 8.3 rebounds per game last season.
McDaniel and Ashanti Barnes form a great duo. The Dukes should have an easy path to winning the Sun Belt regular season title this year, but can the team avenge last year and win the conference tournament as well?
Green Bay
The battle between Green Bay and Purdue Fort Wayne in the Horizon League last year was so entertaining. Green Bay went 19-1 in conference play, with Purdue Fort Wayne right behind at 18-2. Green Bay got the final laugh with a 76-63 win in the Horizon tournament, and the team put up a good fight in an 81-67 first-round loss to No. 5 seed Alabama.
The team beefed up this season, adding two transfers who made the preseason all-conference team: Oakland's Maddy Skorupski and Milwaukee's Kamy Peppler. The Phoenix might not have the conference's best player — that would be Cleveland State's Colbi Maples — but they have the deepest roster.