This year's FCS playoff will have a bit of a different feel.
South Dakota State, the defending national champions, enter the bracket as the number one seed and will look to repeat under the leadership of first year head coach Jimmy Rogers. The former player turned coordinator took over the head coaching role following the retirement of John Stiegelmeier, who hung up his whistle following an iconic career after winning it all last fall.
They beat powerhouse North Dakota State 45-21 last season for all the marbles.
Speaking of the Bison, the FCS field will also be without the household name enjoying a first round bye.
For the first time since 2010, NDSU missed out on being one of the top 8 seeds that receive a bye, and will be playing in the first round against Drake.
The teams that earned a first-round bye with one of the top 8 seeds were:
- South Dakota State (11-0)
- Montana (10-1)
- South Dakota (9-2)
- Idaho (8-3)
- UAlbany (9-3)
- Montana State (8-3)
- Furman (9-2)
- Villanova (9-2)
The last four teams on the bubble that just made the cut were Mercer (GA), Chattanooga (TN), Sacramento State (CA) and Youngstown State (OH), while Eastern Illinois, UT Martin (TN), UC Davis (CA) and Holy Cross just missed the field.
The rest of the bracket, matchups, and path to be the last team standing, are laid out below.
The national title game will be played in Frisco, TX on Sunday, January 7th, 2024.