The Cortland football team is ranked 10th nationally in the 2025 D3football.com preseason poll.

The Red Dragons finished 11-1 last season, including the program's third-ever 10-0 regular season. Cortland won its fourth straight Empire 8 title with a 7-0 league mark and earned a bye into the second round of the NCAA's expanded 40-team tournament. Cortland defeated Endicott, 17-9, before losing to Springfield, 40-28, in the third round to tie for ninth place nationally.
 
Under first-year head coach Tom Blumenauer, the Red Dragons will open the season at home on Sept. 6 versus nationally 23rd-ranked Grove City College. Cortland edged Grove City, 25-24, in Cortland in the second round of the 2023 NCAA Division III playoffs on its way to winning its first-ever national title.
 
Cortland will host Union College in a non-league game Sept. 13 before opening Empire 8 play Sept. 20 at Hartwick. Cortland's home conference games are Oct. 4 versus Utica, Oct. 18 against Alfred University and Nov. 8 against Brockport. The Red Dragons play league road games at Morrisville on Sept. 27, St. John Fisher on Oct. 25 and new league member Alfred State College on Nov. 1 in addition to the Hartwick game. The regular season closes Nov. 15 with the annual Cortaca Jug rivalry game at Ithaca College.
 
Cortland is a combined 45-5 over the past four seasons. The Red Dragons are the four-time defending Empire 8 champion, finishing 6-0 in 2021, 2022 and 2023 in addition to its 7-0 showing last year.