2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season

2017 NCAA Division I FCS season
Regular season
Duration	August 26 – November 18
Playoff
Duration	November 25 – December 16
Championship date	January 6, 2018
Championship site	Toyota Stadium, Frisco, Texas
NCAA Division I FCS football seasons
«2016 2018»

The 2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season, part of college football in the United States, is organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level.

Conference changes and new programs

Membership changes

School	Former conference	New conference
Coastal Carolina Chanticleers	FCS Independent	Sun Belt (FBS)

In addition, this will be the final year for Campbell in the Pioneer Football League. In November 2016, the school announced that it would transition to scholarship football, and would add the sport to its existing membership in the Big South Conference in 2018.

This will be the final season for Idaho as a football member of the Sun Belt Conference, and will also be Idaho's final FBS season. Following the 2016 decision of the Sun Belt not to extend its football membership agreements with Idaho after their 2017 expiration, Idaho announced that it would downgrade to FCS football, adding the sport to its full but non-football membership in the Big Sky Conference. This is the first time in Division I that a school has voluntarily descended from FBS to FCS.

It will also be the final season for Liberty in the Big South (see below).

Other headlines

Offseason

• January 26 – The Missouri Valley Football Conference announced that North Dakota will join the league in 2020. The school's other sports, except for men's ice hockey, will move from the Big Sky Conference to the non-football Summit League in 2018, but the football team will remain a Big Sky member until 2020.
• February 16 – Liberty announced plans to undergo the two-year transition period join the Division I FBS as a football independent, while remaining in the Big South Conference in all other sports. While normally against NCAA rules to transition to FBS without a conference invite, Liberty was granted a waiver. Liberty will join the FBS in 2018, but will not become a full member and eligible for post-season play until 2019.
• April 14 – The NCAA Division I Council approved a suite of rule changes affecting the recruiting process. The changes most significant to FCS football were:
  • Effective with the 2017–18 school year, a national early signing period for high school players was to be introduced, at a time in December to be announced later.
  • Effective with the 2017–18 recruiting season, FCS programs will no longer have any restriction on the number of new players that may be signed to letters of intent or financial aid agreements. Previously, FCS teams were limited to signing 30 new players per year.
• May 8 – The Collegiate Commissioners Association, which controls the letter of intent program, approved the recruiting changes approved last month by the Division I Council. The early signing period for high schoolers was fixed as the first three days of the midyear signing period for junior college players; in 2017, this window falls on December 20–22.

Kickoff games

• Guardian Credit Union FCS Kickoff (aka Montgomery Kickoff Classic)
  • Jacksonville State defeated Chattanooga 27–13 at the Cramton Bowl (Montgomery, Alabama) on August 26.
• Other Week Zero games:
  • FBS opponent BYU defeated Portland State 20–6 at home on August 26.
  • Colgate traveled to Cal Poly August 26, coming away as 20–14 winners.
  • Florida A&M hosted Texas Southern on August 26, winning 29–7.

New stadiums

• East Tennessee State defeated Division II Limestone 31–10 in the opener for William B. Greene Jr. Stadium on September 2. The team had played its first two seasons since reinstating football at local high school venue Kermit Tipton Stadium.
• Abilene Christian opened Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium on September 16 with a 24–3 win over Houston Baptist, following 57 seasons at Shotwell Stadium.

FCS team wins over FBS teams

(FCS rankings from the STATS poll)

• August 31:
  • Tennessee State 17, Georgia State 10

• September 2:
  • No. 1 James Madison 34, East Carolina 14
  • Liberty 48, Baylor 45
  • Howard 43, UNLV 40

• September 9:
  • No. 12 New Hampshire 22, Georgia Southern 12
  • South Dakota 35, Bowling Green 27

• September 16:
  • No. 25 North Carolina A&T 35, Charlotte 31
  • Idaho State 30, Nevada 28

• September 23:
  • No. 19 Western Illinois 52, Coastal Carolina 10

Conference standings

2017 Big Sky Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 14 Southern Utah +^   7 – 1     9 – 3   No. 5 Weber State +^   7 – 1     11 – 3   Northern Arizona ^   6 – 2     7 – 5   No. 21 Eastern Washington   6 – 2     7 – 4   Sacramento State   6 – 2     7 – 4   Montana   5 – 3     7 – 4   Montana State   5 – 3     5 – 6   UC Davis   3 – 5     5 – 6   Idaho State   2 – 6     4 – 7   Northern Colorado   2 – 6     3 – 7   North Dakota   2 – 6     3 – 8   Cal Poly   1 – 7     1 – 10   Portland State   0 – 8     0 – 11   $ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll	2017 Big South Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 8 Kennesaw State $^   5 – 0     12 – 2   Monmouth ^   4 – 1     9 – 3   Charleston Southern   3 – 2     6 – 5   Liberty *   2 – 3     6 – 5   Presbyterian   1 – 4     4 – 7   Gardner–Webb   0 – 5     1 – 10   $ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant * Liberty ineligible for postseason due to FBS transition Rankings from STATS Poll	2017 Colonial Athletic Association football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 2 James Madison $^   8 – 0     14 – 1   No. 11 Stony Brook ^   7 – 1     10 – 3   No. 20 Elon ^   6 – 2     8 – 4   No. 12 New Hampshire ^   5 – 3     9 – 5   Delaware   5 – 3     7 – 4   Richmond   4 – 4     6 – 5   Towson   3 – 5     5 – 6   Villanova   3 – 5     5 – 6   Maine   3 – 5     4 – 6   Albany   2 – 6     4 – 7   Rhode Island   2 – 6     3 – 8   William & Mary   0 – 8     2 – 9   $ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll
2017 Ivy League football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 24 Yale $   6 – 1     9 – 1   Columbia   5 – 2     8 – 2   Dartmouth   5 – 2     8 – 2   Penn   4 – 3     6 – 4   Harvard   3 – 4     5 – 5   Cornell   3 – 4     3 – 7   Princeton   2 – 5     5 – 5   Brown   0 – 7     2 – 8   $ – Conference champion Rankings from STATS Poll	2017 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 7 North Carolina A&T $   8 – 0     12 – 0   Howard   6 – 2     7 – 4   Bethune–Cookman   6 – 2     7 – 4   North Carolina Central   5 – 3     7 – 4   Hampton   5 – 3     6 – 5   Norfolk State   4 – 4     4 – 7   Savannah State *   3 – 5     3 – 8   South Carolina State   2 – 6     3 – 7   Florida A&M *   2 – 6     3 – 8   Delaware State   2 – 6     2 – 9   Morgan State *   1 – 7     1 – 10   $ – Conference champion * Florida A&M, Morgan State and Savannah State ineligible for postseason due to APR violations Rankings from STATS Poll	2017 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 1 North Dakota State $^   7 – 1     14 – 1   No. 3 South Dakota State ^   6 – 2     11 – 3   No. 19 Northern Iowa ^   6 – 2     8 – 5   No. 13 Western Illinois ^   5 – 3     8 – 4   No. 15 South Dakota ^   4 – 4     8 – 5   Illinois State   4 – 4     6 – 5   Youngstown State   4 – 4     6 – 5   Southern Illinois   2 – 6     4 – 7   Missouri State   2 – 6     3 – 8   Indiana State   0 – 8     0 – 11   $ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll
2017 Northeast Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Central Connecticut $^   6 – 0     8 – 3   Duquesne   4 – 2     7 – 4   Bryant   4 – 2     6 – 5   Saint Francis (PA)   3 – 3     5 – 6   Sacred Heart   2 – 4     4 – 7   Wagner   2 – 4     4 – 7   Robert Morris   0 – 6     2 – 9   $ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant	2017 Ohio Valley Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 9 Jacksonville State $^   8 – 0     10 – 2   Austin Peay   7 – 1     8 – 4   Eastern Illinois   5 – 3     6 – 5   UT Martin   4 – 4     6 – 5   Eastern Kentucky   3 – 5     4 – 7   Southeast Missouri State   3 – 5     3 – 8   Tennessee State   2 – 5     6 – 5   Murray State   2 – 5     3 – 8   Tennessee Tech   1 – 7     1 – 10   $ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll	2017 Patriot League football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Colgate +   5 – 1     7 – 4   Lehigh +^   5 – 1     5 – 7   Holy Cross   3 – 3     4 – 7   Fordham   3 – 3     4 – 7   Lafayette   3 – 3     3 – 8   Bucknell   2 – 4     5 – 6   Georgetown   0 – 6     1 – 10   + – Conference co-champions ^ – FCS playoff participant
2017 Pioneer Football League standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 23 San Diego $^   8 – 0     10 – 3   Drake   6 – 2     7 – 4   Jacksonville   5 – 3     7 – 4   Campbell   5 – 3     6 – 5   Valparaiso   5 – 3     6 – 5   Butler   4 – 4     6 – 5   Dayton   4 – 4     5 – 6   Marist   3 – 5     4 – 7   Morehead State   3 – 5     4 – 7   Stetson   1 – 7     2 – 9   Davidson   0 – 8     2 – 9   $ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll	2017 Southern Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 6 Wofford $^   7 – 1     10 – 3   No. 18 Samford ^   6 – 2     8 – 4   No. 19 Furman ^   6 – 2     8 – 5   Western Carolina   5 – 3     7 – 5   Mercer   4 – 4     5 – 6   The Citadel   3 – 5     5 – 6   Chattanooga   3 – 5     3 – 8   East Tennessee State   2 – 6     4 – 7   VMI   0 – 8     0 – 11   $ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll	2017 Southland Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 10 Central Arkansas $^   9 – 0     10 – 2   No. 4 Sam Houston State ^   8 – 1     12 – 2   No. 25 Nicholls State ^   7 – 2     8 – 4   No. 22 McNeese State   7 – 2     9 – 2   Southeastern Louisiana   6 – 3     6 – 5   Northwestern State   4 – 5     4 – 7   Stephen F. Austin   4 – 5     4 – 7   Abilene Christian   2 – 7     2 – 9   Incarnate Word   1 – 7     1 – 10   Lamar   1 – 8     2 – 9   Houston Baptist   0 – 9     1 – 10   $ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS poll
2017 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   East Division Alcorn State xy   5 – 2     7 – 5   Alabama State   4 – 3     5 – 6   Alabama A&M   3 – 4     4 – 7   Jackson State   3 – 4     3 – 8   Mississippi Valley State   1 – 6     2 – 9   West Division No. 16 Grambling State xy$   7 – 0     11 – 2   Southern   5 – 2     7 – 4   Prairie View A&M   4 – 3     6 – 5   Texas Southern   2 – 5     2 – 9   Arkansas–Pine Bluff   1 – 6     2 – 9   Championship: Grambling State 40, Alcorn State 32 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from STATS Poll

Conference summaries

Championship games

Conference	Champion	Runner-up	Score	Offensive Player of the Year	Defensive Player of the Year	Coach of the Year
SWAC

Other conference winners

Note: Records are regular-season only, and do not include playoff games.

Conference	Champion	Record	Offensive Player of the Year	Defensive Player of the Year	Coach of the Year
Big Sky		(7–1)
Big South		10–1 (5–0)
CAA	James Madison
Ivy	Yale
MEAC	North Carolina A&T
MVFC	North Dakota State
NEC	Central Connecticut
OVC	Jacksonville State	10–1 (8–0)
Patriot
Pioneer	San Diego
Southern	Wofford	(7–1)
Southland	Central Arkansas

Playoff qualifiers

Automatic berths for conference champions

Conference	Team	Appearance	Last bid	Result
Big Sky Conference
Big South Conference		1st	–	–
Colonial Athletic Association
Missouri Valley Football Conference			2016
Northeast Conference	Central Connecticut	1st	–	–
Ohio Valley Conference	Jacksonville State	8th	2016	Second Round (L – Youngstown State)
Patriot League		11th
Pioneer Football League	San Diego	3rd	2016	Second Round (L – North Dakota State)
Southern Conference	Wofford	8th	2016	Quarterfinals (L – Youngstown State)
Southland Conference	Central Arkansas	4th	2016	Second Round (L – Eastern Washington)

Abstentions

• Ivy League –
• Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – North Carolina A&T
• Southwestern Athletic Conference –

Postseason

NCAA FCS Playoff bracket

First round November 25 Campus sites ESPN3

Second round December 2 Campus sites ESPN3

Quarterfinals December 8 and 9 Campus sites ESPN2, ESPN3

Semifinals December 15 and 16 Campus sites ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN3

National Championship January 6 12:00 pm Toyota Stadium, Frisco, Texas ESPN2

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* Home team   
 Winner
All times in Eastern Standard Time (UTC−05:00)

Bowl games

Game	Date/TV	Location	Winning Team	Losing Team	Score	Offensive MVP	Defensive MVP
Celebration Bowl	December 16 ABC	Mercedes-Benz Stadium Atlanta, Georgia

Awards and honors

Walter Payton Award

• The Walter Payton Award is given to the year's most outstanding offensive player.

Buck Buchanan Award

• The Buck Buchanan Award is given to the year's most outstanding defensive player.

Jerry Rice Award

• The Jerry Rice Award is given to the year's most outstanding freshman.

Coaches

• AFCA Coach of the Year:
• Eddie Robinson Award

Coaching changes

In-season

This is restricted to coaching changes that took place on or after May 1, 2017. For coaching changes that occurred earlier in 2017, see 2016 NCAA Division I FCS end-of-season coaching changes.

See also

• 2017 NCAA Division I FCS football rankings
• 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season
• 2017 NCAA Division II football season
• 2017 NCAA Division III football season