South Dakota State took the No. 1 overall seed in the FCS football playoffs, the NCAA Division I Football Championship Committee announced Sunday along with the 24-team field. Here’s what you need to know:
- The other seven national seeds are Montana, South Dakota, Idaho, Albany, Montana State, Furman and Villanova.
- The first-round games will be played Saturday. The second round will be played on Dec. 2.
- The quarterfinals will be played Dec. 8-9, followed by the semifinals Dec. 15-16, and the national championship game will be played Jan. 7.
First round
Sacramento State vs. North Dakota, 1 p.m. ET
North Carolina Central vs. Richmond, 2 p.m. ET
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Lafayette vs. Delaware, 2 p.m. ET
Chattanooga vs. Austin Peay, 3 p.m. ET
Gardner-Webb vs. Mercer, 3 p.m. ET
Nicholls State vs. Southern Illinois, 3 p.m. ET
Drake vs. North Dakota State, 3 p.m. ET
Duquesne vs. Youngstown State, 5 p.m. ET
Here is your 24-team FCS playoff bracket for 2023: pic.twitter.com/mhecTOhkBA
— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) November 19, 2023
Second round
Gardner-Webb-Mercer winner vs. South Dakota State
Duquesne-Youngstown State winner vs. Villanova
Nicholls State-Southern Illinois winner vs. Idaho
North Carolina Central-Richmond winner vs. UAlbany
Lafayette-Delaware winner vs. Montana
Chattanooga-Austin Peay winner vs. Furman
Sacramento State-North Dakota winner vs. South Dakota
Drake-North Dakota State winner vs. Montana State
How to watch: First-round and second-round games will be broadcast by ESPN-plus. The broadcasts for the quarterfinals and semifinals are TBA. The national championship game will be broadcast by ABC.
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(Photo: Bailey Hillesheim / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
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