FCS Football Notes and Thoughts on College Football Every Day

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November 7th:

  • Tonight Delaware State gets another chance to showcase its program in front of a nationwide audience against rival Morgan State. This game was originally slated for tomorrow, but it was moved forward a day back in mid-September. The host Bears have won 10 of the last 11 meetings since 2013 so they will look to defend their home turf on this national stage.

  • The Ivy League game tonight features two of the three teams that shared the 2024 Ivy League title. Unfortunately for Columbia, they are 1-6 (0-4) this year, while Harvard (7-0, 4-0) is one of five undefeated FCS teams, and they come in having won six straight road games - longest current streak in the FCS. To make matters worse, the Crimson lead the all-time series 65-16-1.

  • After Harvard’s 31–10 victory over Dartmouth on Saturday, Yale now controls its path to the Ivy League’s automatic NCAA Tournament bid, needing to win its remaining games to clinch a spot. The Bulldogs take on Brown this week, a team they have beaten seven straight times - averaging almost 52 points per game during this stretch.

  • Yale’s victory over Columbia last week put the program at 948 all-time victories, the most wins by a program currently competing at the FCS level. Harvard trails their rivals by 32..

  • Penn and Cornell are meeting for the 131st time on Saturday in division I college football's sixth-most played rivalry series but it’s only the third-most played rivalry in Ivy history, trailing Yale-Princeton (146) and Harvard-Yale (140). . The Quakers and Big Red have met each year—with the exception of 2020 for COVID-19—since 1893 with Penn owning the overall record at 78-47-5. And since the Trustees’ Cup was introduced thirty years ago, Penn leads the trophy series 21-8 after having won 9 of the last ten meetings.

  • Heavy on the Ivy League today - I have to mention the Dartmouth-Princeton game, as this series was the first game I ever saw in person, 48 years ago! Dartmouth won that game 14-11, much to the dismay of my Uncle (a Marine Colonel in the Pacific theater) who had gone to Princeton The Big Green lead the all-time rivalry 53-46-4 in a series that dates back to October 30, 1897, and they have won seven straight home games over the Tigers - though one of them was at Yankee Stadium back in 2019.

November 6th:

  • Another big MVFC game this weekend - Southern Illinois at Youngstown State will put two teams competing for an at-large spot head-to-head. The Salukis are looking for their first win at Youngstown State since March 6, 2021, and they are 14-20-1 all-time vs. the Penguins (6-12 on the road). In their last meeting though on Nov. 9, 2024, the Salukis completed the largest comeback in program history, overcoming a 28-point deficit to win by a final score of 37-33.

  • Probably the most exciting game of the week will be Mercer at Western Carolina. With a victory, the visiting Bears would clinch at least a share of the Southern Conference title as well as an automatic bid to the FCS playoffs. The quarterback matchup is one of the biggest of the season as WCU redshirt sophomore Taron Dickens and Mercer freshman Braden Atkinson rank No. 2 and 3 in the FCS with 26 and 25 touchdown passes, respectively.

  • The best Southland conference game will pit No. 14 SE Louisiana (7-2, 5-0) at No. 18 Lamar (7-2, 4-1). Currently the Lions share first place with No. 21 Stephen F. Austin - a team they don’t play this year.

  • A solid St. Thomas (6-3, 4-2) team can complicate the Pioneer Football League title race as they head to two-time defending champ Drake (6-2, 5-0). And next week the Tommies host a title hopeful Presbyterian (8-1, 4-1).

  • And in the OVC-Big South, Tennessee Tech can clinch at least a share of the title with a win at Eastern Illinois. A win by the No. 5 Golden Eagles (9-0, 6-0) coupled with a UT Martin loss to Tennessee State also would clinch an automatic playoff bid. That’s only happened in 2011, and this year’s team is tied for the best start in program history.

November 5th:

  • The FCS Playoff Committee has released its first Top 10 rankings. I think that there can be some arguments made as to was in (UC Davis and South Dakota State) and who was out (Mercer, Villanova and Rhode Island), but there are probably three games left for each team - so things will sort out in the end.

  • Things couldn’t have been different last week for two rivals who are playing each other this week - South Dakota State and South Dakota. One week after having their 33-game home winning streak ended, the Jackrabbits lost another home game to the lowly Indiana State Sycamores. Meanwhile, the Coyotes had a big win over rival North Dakota to get back in playoff contention.

  • Saturday's game will mark the 119th all-time meeting between the Jackrabbits and Coyotes on the gridiron. The series dates back to a 6-6 tie back in 1889 in a game that was played in Sioux Falls. Overall, the Jackrabbits hold a 58-53-7 advantage in the series. The two programs were longstanding members of the North Central Conference and often played season home-and-home series during their days competing at the NCAA Division II level. SDSU has won 10 of the 12 meetings during the Division I era, including posting four victories in six games at the DakotaDome.

  • Back to North Dakota - they get to bounce back against No. 1-ranked North Dakota State, who can clinch the Missouri Valley Football Conference championship outright with a victory over UND this week. Fortunately for the Fighting Hawks, the Bison are 1-3 in the Alerus Center with their win coming in the 2021 season. This is the 118th meeting between North Dakota State and North Dakota dating back to 1894, the 11th most played rivalry among current FCS programs. UND leads the all-time series 63-51-3, but NDSU has a 6-1 edge as Division I opponents since 2015 including a 41-17 victory in Fargo last season.

  • The Big Sky Game of the Week: UC Davis at Idaho. The two teams had different results last week as the Vandals had a thrilling overtime victory over a ranked Northern Arizona team, while the Aggies lost a nail-biter to Idaho State at home. It’s possible for Idaho to get into the playoffs if they win their last three games.

November 1st:

  • Last night’s win over Brown gives Penn a 3-1 Ivy League record - their only blemish so far is a loss to Yale. After today’s matchups (Yale vs. Columbia and Princeton vs. Cornell), there could be four teams with a 3-1 conference record.

  • If Dartmouth upsets Harvard in Cambridge (again - why am I not there?), chaos will ensue, as that will make five teams with only one loss in Ivy League play.

  • In the Battle of the Bulldogs, Drake heads to Indianapolis for a crucial Pioneer League matchup with Butler. The Des Moines-based Bulldogs have won the last nine meetings with Butler's most recent victory coming in 2015.

  • No. 8/10 North Dakota will square off with South Dakota inside the DakotaDome. The Fighting Hawks enter the game at 6-2 overall and 4-0 in the MVFC after routing Indiana State, 46-17, inside the Alerus Center last weekend, but the last win for North Dakota in Vermillion was a 34-31 overtime victory on Nov. 23, 2008. These teams used to play for the Sitting Bull Trophy, but it was retired back in 2000.

  • VMI travels to Charleston for the annual Military Classic of the South game against The Citadel. The home team Bulldogs lead the all-time series (45-33-2) but the series has been even in recent years, with each team winning three of the last six and the last three matchups have been one-score games.

October 30th:

  • Idaho released their 2026 schedule yesterday. One thing that I noticed and was surprised at - Idaho has dominated the overall series against Montana with a 56-32-2 record against the Griz. And - the Vandals have recorded more wins against Montana than any other school in program history. 

  • Some view the Tarleton State at Abilene Christian game is the best FCS game this week. After all, the winner will take control of the race to the United Athletic Conference championship and six of the last seven meetings between the two schools have been one-score games. And lastly, the road team has won the last three meetings - by a combined ten points.

  • But, I believe that the FCS game of the week will be Dartmouth at Harvard. If it could be the Ivy League game of the year, then it’s certainly worthy of being the best game this week. The two programs have the most all-time titles (Dartmouth, 22; Harvard, 19), have been a part of three-way shares of the last two crowns and since 2013, 11 of their 13 meetings have been decided by eight or fewer points. Why am I not there???

  • Will the Crimson get their 300th all-time Ivy League win, the first team to do it, or will the Big Green (286 all-time Ivy wins) deny the milestone - at least for one week? By the way, Saturday’s game will be the 128th all-time meeting between Harvard and Dartmouth, with the first game having taken place back in 1882 (an 8-0 win for the Crimson).

October 29th:

  • The Big Sky released its schedule for next year, and they have six league games being played on August 29th. Guess we got our answer as to how big Week Zero will be for the FCS.

October 28th:

  • FBSchedules has a blog on Fordham’s “tentative” schedule for next year. Two things that stood out to me: 1) Patriot League teams will now have nine conference games, when in the past it was just six. 2) The Rams first game is on August 29th, the Saturday prior to Labor Day weekend - which is known as Week Zero. If this is the first playing date for FCS teams if they want to schedule 12 games, then Week Zero is now going to be a busy week - at least for the FCS.

  • On Thursday night in Philadelphia there is a big HBCU showdown when Delaware State faces off against Norfolk State. Two NFL icons and former teammates, DeSean Jackson and Michael Vick, will be leading their teams in this big MEAC rivalry game. I just hope the weather doesn’t impact the game…

  • I want to mention the Georgetown at Lehigh game because the Hoyas come to Goodman Stadium after having won two straight league games. With a win, Georgetown would be a serious threat for the league title (though their loss was to Lafayette - who is 3-0 in league play), and it would get them one step closer to their first winning season in twelve years. A strong Mountain Hawks team does stand in the Hoyas way though, as Lehigh is 21-2 against Georgetown since the Hoyas joined the Patriot League back n 2001.

October 26th:

  • I was shocked at how easily North Dakota State beat South Dakota State - on the road! Not sure anyone will get in the way of the Bisons 11th FCS championship.

  • With Dayton taking care of Presbyterian yesterday, it looks like the Pioneer Football League will come down to the Drake at Dayton game on 11/15.

  • Tennessee Tech beat Southeast Missouri State to extend their winning streak 13 games.

  • Attendance for the Magic City Classic between Alabama State and Alabama A&M in Birmingham: 69,372

  • That number isn’t the most shocking thing that happened in the SWAC yesterday. That belongs to Grambling stunning Jackson State 26-24 in Las Vegas with a 44-yard field goal with 21 seconds left to play.

  • Another big surprise: UIW dropping to 2-6 (0-4 in conference play) after losing to UTRGV 56-28. Vaqueros’ quarterback Eddie Lee Marburger accounted for seven touchdowns - throwing for six and running for another.

October 25th:

  • Montana took care of business in Sacramento, so it’s safe to say that the “Pandas” swatted the Hornets to stay unbeaten.

  • I do like Columbia, but I was smiling when Dartmouth scored just before halftime to take a 35-0 lead as the teams headed to their locker rooms.

  • After Southern fired Terrance Graves, Fred McNair will lead the Jaguars against Florida A&M today. McNair returns to head coaching for the first time after stepping down as Alcorn State’s head coach back in 2023. McNair won 37 SWAC games in eight years as the Braves’ head coach, and had an overall record of 48-33 in eight seasons.

October 24th:

  • Two of the three teams who shared the Ivy League title last season, Columbia and Dartmouth, kick things off tonight at 6:00pm on ESPNU. The Big Green would improve to 5-1 on the season with a win, while Columbia currently stands at 1-4 on the season. The Lions have had three different quarterbacks see significant time due to injuries, which has contributed to their slow start in 2025.

  • Saturday’s game between Furman and The Citadel will mark the 105th meeting between the two long-time Southern Conference rivals in a series that began in 1913 and has been contested every year since 1919, with the exception of a three-year break (1943-45) during World War II. Furman holds a 64-37-3 lead in the series and has won the last four meetings, including a 17-16 verdict in Charleston a year ago.

  • The Magic City Classic between Alabama A&M and Alabama State is played at Legion Field in Birmingham, Ala. (nicknamed the "Old Grey Lady"). The classic has become one of the highest attended FCS games in the nation and the largest event in Birmingham, with attendance averages over 60,000-plus annually. The first game was played in 1924 and it has been an uninterrupted annual tradition since 1945. This classic is the largest HBCU event in the nation

  • The second-longest active winning streak (11 games) in the FCS will be put to the test on Saturday afternoon as #16 Presbyterian College takes on Dayton in a crucial PFL matchup. One win away from becoming the first Blue Hose football team to make it to 8-0, PC is looking for their third consecutive win against Dayton.

  • Tennessee Tech owns the longest active FCS winning streak - as they have won 12 games without a loss. The #8 Golden Eagles look to stay undefeated in OVC-Big South as they host Southeast Missouri State. The Golden Eagles are 16-17 all-time against SEMO, and have dropped the last three matchups. Tech's last victory in the series came on Oct. 2, 2021.

October 23rd:

  • The six-team MEAC finally begins their conference schedule! The best game this week should be Delaware State at North Carolina Central.

  • Howard will play at home for the first time on Saturday, becoming the last FCS team to do so this season. Coach Larry Scott's team, which is 3-0 at neutral sites and 0-4 on the road, will host Beltway Rival Morgan State.

  • FCS teams that were expected to make a run for the playoffs, but instead will be staying home this year: UIW, Idaho, Stony Brook and Richmond.

  • Another disappointing team so far, Sacramento State, has had their school president (Dr. Luke Wood) reference tomorrow’s opponent, the Montana Grizzlies, as the Pandas. Should make for an interesting game…

  • Looks like Monmouth will be without their star quarterback Derek Robertson when they take on Hampton. The FCS passing leader is still in a sling after suffering a shoulder injury against Stony Brook.

October 22nd:

  • The FBS had their No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup in week 1, so now we are in Week 8 and we get that matchup in the FCS as North Dakota State takes on rival South Dakota State in Brookings, SD where SDSU carries a 33-game home winning streak. The 10th most-played rivalry in FCS, this is the 118th meeting between North Dakota State and South Dakota State since 1903. NDSU leads the series 65-47-5 and has won the last two meetings including a 13-9 victory in Fargo last October when SDSU was ranked No. 1 and NDSU was No. 2.

  • The two teams will also be playing for the Dakota Marker, something they have done since 2004 - the first season of Division I competition for both programs. With last year’s win, the Bison have a 11-10 edge in taking home the 75-pound trophy.

  • Staying in the MVFC for a moment, Illinois State is coming off a tough loss at home last week to Youngstown State, so they will be looking to get back on track this weekend in Vermillion, South Dakota, when the Redbirds (4-3, 1-2 MVFC) take on the South Dakota Coyotes (5-3, 3-1 MVFC) in a crucial contest for both squads. Playoff hopes might end for the team that loses.

  • Harvard opens the second half of its regular season on Saturday when it faces Ivy League tri-leader Princeton in The Garden State. The Crimson and Tigers, along with Penn, sit atop the conference standings at 2-0. This will be the 117th all-time meeting between Harvard and Princeton, with the first game having been played in 1877 (1-0 Harvard win). The Crimson trails the all-time series, 49-60-7, but the series is all-square since Ivy League play began in 1956 (33-33-2).

  • Harvard has lit up the scoreboard this season (4th nationally in scoring offense - 44.8 ppg), but it has been its defense that has impressed. The Crimson ranks second nationally in scoring defense, allowing just 11.0 points per outing, and second in total defense (238.6). North Dakota State ranks first in both categories at 10.0 and 229.0

  • Penn comes into their matchup with the Bulldogs with a 4-1 overall record and a 2-0 record in the Ivy League with wins over Dartmouth and Columbia. The Quakers finished sixth in the Ivy League Preseason Poll, ahead of only Cornell and Brown, but now they are receiving votes in the latest AFCA FCS Coaches Poll. After last year’s win, Yale owns the all-time record (51-37-1) between the pair dating back to 1879. 

October 8th:

  • Bucknell will head back on the road for the first time in a month to take on Patriot League rival Lafayette on Saturday at Fisher Stadium in Easton, Pa. This will be the 103rd meeting between the two teams, since they first met in the Bison's first program game in 1883. Lafayette holds the overall winning record over Bucknell 57-39-6, but the Bison did win last year’s game 21-14.

  • Patriot League co-leader (with Lafayette) will play their third straight Ivy League opponent this weekend. After beating Penn and Yale, the Mountain Hawks are heading to New York to take on the Columbia Lions. Last week’s win over the Bulldogs gives Lehigh their first 6-0 start since the 2012 team started 9-0.

  • Duquesne will be hosting their most played opponent (Saint Francis) this weekend for their homecoming game, but it will probably be their last meeting since the Red Flash will be reclassifying to Division III next year. The Dukes - Red Flash, playing for the 51st time, began their series in 1913 and the matchup has been played every full season since 2005 and all but 10 seasons since 1969.

September 20th:

  • The Ivy League’s season didn’t get off to a great start as Lafayette handled Columbia easily last night, 38-14. After playing their first three games on the road, the Leopards looked solid against the Lions, which will give them momentum going into next week’s game against Princeton at home.

September 4th:

  • Jumping ahead to 2027 for a moment, the Vegas Kickoff Classic will host a FCS game as well as the scheduled FBS matchup between Miami (FL) and Utah. The two opponents for this game in Allegiant Stadium: North Dakota State and Montana State.

  • This week’s FCS Game of the Week is South Dakota State at Montana State. The Bobcats got trounced by Oregon last week, but they were 9-0 at home last season, and have won 35 of their last 36 games in Bozeman. Nice preview of a potential playoff rematch in December.

  • Sacramento State is playing Nevada this week after getting manhandled (slam?) by South Dakota State. Funny to think that an FBS opponent will be easier for the Hornets than last week’s FCS opponent.

  • SWAC teams haven’t beaten an FBS program since 1985 (Grambling State over Oregon State, 23-6), but they have two decent chances this week with Jackson State taking on Southern Miss and Florida A&M heads down the state to play Florida Atlantic.

September 2nd:

  • Have to start off this new post/blog by congratulating Northwestern State on ending their 20-game losing streak by downing Alcorn State, 20-10 on Thursday night. Before this win, the Demons hadn’t won a game since November 5, 2022.

  • Meanwhile, by losing to the Demons, Alcorn State is now looking up at everyone in the HBCU power ranking that I found on the NCAA website…

  • When Presbyterian upset #11 Mercer, the Blue Hose beat it’s highest ranked opponent in program history. Last year they lost to these same Bears, 63-10 in last year’s opener.