The playoffs are here in Division II, Division III and NAIA, and the FCS postseason begins next week.
The FCS playoff is a 24-team field, with the top eight seeds (not necessarily top eight conference champions) earning first-round byes. The FCS has 15 conferences but only 10 auto-bids: the Ivy League, MEAC and SWAC do not participate in the FCS playoffs, and the ASUN and WAC combined to form the United Athletic Conference, and the Big South and Ohio Valley merged to form the Big South-OVC Football Association.
Clear as mud? Here's a quick look at each conference with Selection Sunday now just hours away.
Big Sky
The game of the week in FCS is the Brawl of the Wild, as No. 3 Montana hosts No. 4 Montana State with most FCS bracketology sites projecting a No. 2 seed to the winner. The loser probably doesn't drop below No. 4, but in addition to winning a heated rivalry game and taking home the Big West title, the spoils of victory include avoiding defending national champ and unanimous projected No. 1 seed South Dakota State until the national championship game.
Champ: Montana/Montana State winner
At-large: Montana/Montana State loser (national seed), Idaho (national seed), Sacramento State
On the Bubble: None
Big South/OVC
UT-Martin's conference season is complete at 5-1, but Gardner-Webb, 4-1 and a 38-34 winner over the Skyhawks on Oct. 28, can take the conference title and AQ with a victory over 4-6 Charleston Southern on Saturday. At 8-2 on the season, UT-Martin is on the bubbliest of bubbles and likely needs a Gardner-Webb loss to get in. 6-4 Gardner-Webb has no shot at an at-large bid.
Champ: Gardner-Webb
On the Bubble: UT-Martin
CAA
Albany, Delaware, Richmond and Villanova are all 6-1. Delaware and Villanova play Saturday (which means 5-2 Elon has no shot at a co-championship); Albany faces 3-4 Monmouth, while Richmond gets 4-3 William & Mary. Assuming the Great Danes and the Spiders (man, FCS has some great nicknames), the AQ come down to the score of the Delaware-Villanova game; Delaware's point differential is +97 in conference games, Villanova's is +96, Albany's is +92, while Richmond is +58 (with a 21-point cap). Elon only appears on the bubble on one site.
Champ: Albany, Delaware or Villanova
At-large: Albany/Delaware/Villanova, Richmond
On the Bubble: None
Ivy League
They're not part of the FCS playoffs, but the Ivies still have a trophy to play for. The Game will serve as the de facto Ivy League Championship, with 5-1 Harvard visiting 4-2 Yale on Saturday (noon ET, ESPNU).
MEAC
If things break the "right" way, the MEAC could get a team in the Celebration Bowl and the FCS playoffs. Howard, North Carolina Central and Morgan State are all tied at 3-1, but NC Central was in the top-10 until last week's stunning 50-20 loss to Howard. If Howard beats Morgan State at home on Saturday, the Bison go to Atlanta for the Celebration Bowl while NC Central would go to the FCS playoffs as an at-large. If Morgan State wins, NC Central is likely your MEAC champ (NCCU plays last-place Delaware State on Saturday). Morgan State needs a miracle.
Champ: Howard
At-large: North Carolina Central
Missouri Valley
Hell has frozen over in Fargo. North Dakota State, winners of nine national titles from 2011-21 and the 2022 runners-up, is a bubble team. The Bison are just 4-3 in MVFC play, two of their three losses by 17-plus points.
At the top of the standings, defending champ South Dakota State has wrapped up the conference title and, in all expectation, the No. 1 overall seed. South Dakota is also a lock for a national seed.
Champ: South Dakota State
At-large: South Dakota (national seed), North Dakota, Youngstown State, UNI
On the Bubble: Southern Illinois, North Dakota State
Northeast
Duquesne (5-1) and Merrimack (4-2) meet in Andover, Mass., for the NEC title and the league's sole bid.
Champ: Duquesne/Merrimack winner
On the Bubble: None
Patriot League
The 159th edition of The Rivalry will decide the Patriot League crown. If 4-1 Lafayette beats 1-4 Lehigh, the Leopards are your Patriot League champs. If the Mountain Hawks pull the upset, Holy Cross wins the championship with a victory over Georgetown.
Champ: Lafayette/Holy Cross
On the Bubble: None
Pioneer
7-0 Drake wins the PFL with a win over 5-2 Butler or a 1-6 Dayton upset of 6-1 Davidson. 6-1 St. Thomas can forge a tie with a Drake loss and a win over Valpo. This is a 1-bid league.
Champ: Drake
On the Bubble: None
SoCon
Furman has clinched the SoCon championship and is a lock for a national seed, perhaps as high as No. 2.
Champ: Furman (national seed)
At-large: Mercer, Western Carolina
On the Bubble: Chattanooga
Southland
Nicholls has won the Southland Conference, essentially wrapping up the conference with a 45-32 upset of Incarnate Word earlier this month.
Champ: Nicholls
On the Bubble: Incarnate Word
SWAC
The SWAC plays for its own championship, with the winner meeting the MEAC champion in the Celebration Bowl (Dec. 16 in Atlanta). Florida A&M has won the East, while Prairie View A&M can take the West with a victory over a tough Alabama State team. If the Panthers lose, Alcorn State wins the division with a win against a solid Jackson State. If both teams lose, the Nov. 25 game between Grambling and Southern (both teams are one game back of PVAMU and Alcorn) could decide the West champ.
United Athletic Conference
The first UAC championship game will be decided when 5-0 Austin Peay hosts 4-1 Central Arkansas on Saturday. I haven't found one site that projects both teams in, so this looks like a win-or-stay home game.
Champ: Austin Peay/Central Arkansas winner
On the Bubble: None
So, there you have it. I have 27 teams competing for 24 spots, with 10 conference or division championships up for grabs and five trophies directly on the line in head-to-head matchups in the regular season's final Saturday.