2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season

Last updated

2017 NCAA Division I FCS season
NCAA logo.svg
Regular season
Number of teams124
DurationAugust 26 – November 18
Payton Award Jeremiah Briscoe, QB, Sam Houston State
Buchanan Award Darius Jackson, DE, Jacksonville State
Playoff
DurationNovember 25 – December 16
Championship date January 6, 2018
Championship site Toyota Stadium, Frisco, Texas
Champion North Dakota State
NCAA Division I FCS football seasons
« 2016
2018 »

The 2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season, part of college football in the United States, was organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level. The FCS Championship Game was played on January 6, 2018, in Frisco, Texas. The North Dakota State Bison beat the James Madison Dukes, 17–13, to capture their sixth title in seven years.

Contents

Conference changes and new programs

For the first time since 2012 (and just the second time ever), there were no independent programs in FCS during the 2017 season.

School2016 conference2017 conference
Coastal Carolina FCS Independent Sun Belt (FBS)

Notable changes

On 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 to take effect with the 2017–18 school year. A national early signing period for high school players was to be introduced for FBS and FCS, at a time in December to be announced later, and FCS programs would 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. [1] [2]

FCS team wins over FBS teams

(FCS rankings from the STATS poll)

August 31: Tennessee State 17, Georgia State 10
September 2: Howard 43, UNLV 40
September 2: No. 1 James Madison 34, East Carolina 14
September 2: Liberty 48, Baylor 45
September 9: No. 12 New Hampshire 22, Georgia Southern 12
September 9: South Dakota 35, Bowling Green 27
September 16: Idaho State 30, Nevada 28
September 16: No. 25 North Carolina A&T 35, Charlotte 31
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 +^ 71  93 
No. 5 Weber State +^ 71  113 
Northern Arizona ^ 62  75 
No. 21 Eastern Washington  62  74 
Sacramento State  62  74 
Montana  53  74 
Montana State  53  56 
UC Davis  35  56 
Idaho State  26  47 
Northern Colorado  26  37 
North Dakota  26  38 
Cal Poly  17  110 
Portland State  08  011 
  • $ 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 $^ 50  122 
Monmouth ^ 41  93 
Charleston Southern  32  65 
Liberty * 23  65 
Presbyterian  14  47 
Gardner–Webb  05  110 
  • $ 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 $^ 80  141 
No. 11 Stony Brook ^ 71  103 
No. 20 Elon ^ 62  84 
No. 12 New Hampshire ^ 53  95 
Delaware  53  74 
Richmond  44  65 
Towson  35  56 
Villanova  35  56 
Maine  35  46 
Albany  26  47 
Rhode Island  26  38 
William & Mary  08  29 
  • $ Conference champion
  • ^ FCS playoff participant
Rankings from STATS Poll
2017 Ivy League football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
No. 24 Yale $ 61  91 
Columbia  52  82 
Dartmouth  52  82 
Penn  43  64 
Harvard  34  55 
Cornell  34  37 
Princeton  25  55 
Brown  07  28 
  • $ 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 $ 80  120 
Howard  62  74 
Bethune–Cookman  62  74 
North Carolina Central  53  74 
Hampton  53  65 
Norfolk State  44  47 
Savannah State * 35  38 
South Carolina State  26  37 
Florida A&M * 26  38 
Delaware State  26  29 
Morgan State * 17  110 
  • $ 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 $^ 71  141 
No. 3 South Dakota State ^ 62  113 
No. 19 Northern Iowa ^ 62  85 
No. 13 Western Illinois ^ 53  84 
No. 15 South Dakota ^ 44  85 
Illinois State  44  65 
Youngstown State  44  65 
Southern Illinois  26  47 
Missouri State  26  38 
Indiana State  08  011 
  • $ Conference champion
  • ^ FCS playoff participant
Rankings from STATS Poll
2017 Northeast Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
Central Connecticut $^ 60  83 
Duquesne  42  74 
Bryant  42  65 
Saint Francis (PA)  33  56 
Sacred Heart  24  47 
Wagner  24  47 
Robert Morris  06  29 
  • $ Conference champion
  • ^ FCS playoff participant
2017 Ohio Valley Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
No. 9 Jacksonville State $^ 80  102 
Austin Peay  71  84 
Eastern Illinois  53  65 
UT Martin  44  65 
Eastern Kentucky  35  47 
Southeast Missouri State  35  38 
Tennessee State  25  65 
Murray State  25  38 
Tennessee Tech  17  110 
  • $ Conference champion
  • ^ FCS playoff participant
Rankings from STATS Poll
2017 Patriot League football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
Colgate + 51  74 
Lehigh +^ 51  57 
Holy Cross  33  47 
Fordham  33  47 
Lafayette  33  38 
Bucknell  24  56 
Georgetown  06  110 
  • + Conference co-champions
  • ^ FCS playoff participant
2017 Pioneer Football League standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
No. 23 San Diego $^ 80  103 
Drake  62  74 
Jacksonville  53  74 
Campbell  53  65 
Valparaiso  53  65 
Butler  44  65 
Dayton  44  56 
Marist  35  47 
Morehead State  35  47 
Stetson  17  29 
Davidson  08  29 
  • $ Conference champion
  • ^ FCS playoff participant
Rankings from STATS Poll
2017 Southern Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
No. 6 Wofford $^ 71  103 
No. 18 Samford ^ 62  84 
No. 19 Furman ^ 62  85 
Western Carolina  53  75 
Mercer  44  56 
The Citadel  35  56 
Chattanooga  35  38 
East Tennessee State  26  47 
VMI  08  011 
  • $ 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 $^ 90  102 
No. 4 Sam Houston State ^ 81  122 
No. 25 Nicholls State ^ 72  84 
No. 22 McNeese State  72  92 
Southeastern Louisiana  63  65 
Northwestern State  45  47 
Stephen F. Austin  45  47 
Abilene Christian  27  29 
Incarnate Word  17  110 
Lamar  18  29 
Houston Baptist  09  110 
  • $ 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 52  75 
Alabama State  43  56 
Alabama A&M  34  47 
Jackson State  34  38 
Mississippi Valley State  16  29 
West Division
No. 16 Grambling State xy$ 70  112 
Southern  52  74 
Prairie View A&M  43  65 
Texas Southern  25  29 
Arkansas–Pine Bluff  16  29 
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

ConferenceChampionRunner-upScoreOffensive Player of the YearDefensive Player of the YearCoach of the Year
SWAC Grambling State
11–1 (8–0)
Alcorn State
7–5 (5–2)
40–32Devante Kincade
(Grambling State)
De’Arius Christmas
(Grambling State)
Broderick Fobbs
(Grambling State)

Other conference winners

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

ConferenceChampionRecordOffensive Player of the YearDefensive Player of the YearCoach of the Year
Big Sky Southern Utah
Weber State
9–2 (7–1)
9–2 (7–1)
Keelan Doss
(UC Davis)
Taron Johnson
(Weber State)
Demario Warren
(Southern Utah)
Big South Kennesaw State 10–1 (5–0) Chandler Burks
(Kennesaw State)
Anthony Ellis
(Charleston Southern)
Brian Bohannon
(Kennesaw State)
CAA James Madison 11–0 (8–0) Kyle Lauletta
(Richmond)
Andrew Ankrah
(James Madison)
Curt Cignetti
(Elon)
Ivy Yale 9–1 (6–1)Chad Kanoff
(Princeton)
Matthew Oplinger
(Yale)
Al Bagnoli
(Columbia)
MEAC North Carolina A&T 11–0 (8–0)Lamar Raynard
(North Carolina A&T)
Shaquille Leonard
(South Carolina State)
Rod Broadway
(North Carolina A&T)
MVFC North Dakota State 10–1 (7–1) Chris Streveler
(South Dakota)
Brett Taylor
(Western Illinois)
Chris Klieman
(North Dakota State)
NEC Central Connecticut 8–3 (6–0)Tommy Stuart
(Duquesne)
Tom Costigan
(Bryant)
Peter Rossomando
(Central Connecticut)
OVC Jacksonville State 10–1 (8–0) Roc Thomas
(Jacksonville State)
Darius Jackson
(Jacksonville State)
Will Healy
(Austin Peay)
Patriot Colgate
Lehigh
7–4 (5–1)
5–6 (5–1)
Dom Bragalone
(Lehigh)
Abdullah Anderson
(Bucknell)
Dan Hunt
(Colgate)
Pioneer San Diego 9–2 (8–0)Anthony Lawrence
(San Diego)
Jonathan Petersen
(San Diego)
Dave Cecchini
(Valparaiso)
Southern Wofford 9–2 (7–1) Devlin Hodges
(Samford)
Ahmad Gooden
(Samford)
Clay Hendrix
(Furman)
Southland Central Arkansas 10–1 (9–0)Hayden Hildebrand
(Central Arkansas)
George Odum
(Central Arkansas)
Steve Campbell
(Central Arkansas)

    Playoff qualifiers

    Automatic berths for conference champions

    ConferenceTeamAppearanceLast bidResult
    Big Sky Conference Southern Utah 3rd 2015 First Round (L – Sam Houston State)
    Big South Conference Kennesaw State 1st 
    Colonial Athletic Association James Madison 14th 2016 National Champions (W – Youngstown State)
    Missouri Valley Football Conference North Dakota State 8th2016Semifinals (L – James Madison)
    Northeast Conference Central Connecticut 1st 
    Ohio Valley Conference Jacksonville State 8th2016Second Round (L – Youngstown State)
    Patriot League Lehigh 11th2016First Round (L – New Hampshire)
    Pioneer Football League San Diego 3rd2016Second Round (L – North Dakota State)
    Southern Conference Wofford 8th2016Quarterfinals (L – Youngstown State)
    Southland Conference Central Arkansas 4th2016Second Round (L – Eastern Washington)

    At large qualifiers

    ConferenceTeamAppearanceLast bidResult
    Big Sky Conference Northern Arizona 6th 2013 First Round (L – South Dakota State)
    Weber State 6th 2016 First Round (L – Chattanooga)
    Big South Conference Monmouth 1st 
    Colonial Athletic Association Elon 2nd 2009 First Round (L – Richmond)
    New Hampshire 16th 2016 Second Round (L – James Madison)
    Stony Brook 3rd 2012 Second Round (L – Montana State)
    Missouri Valley Football Conference Northern Iowa 19th 2015 Quarterfinals (L – North Dakota State)
    South Dakota 1st 
    South Dakota State 7th 2016 Quarterfinals (L – North Dakota State)
    Western Illinois 11th 2015 Second Round (L – Illinois State)
    Southern Conference Furman 17th 2013 Second Round (L – North Dakota State)
    Samford 5th 2016 First Round (L – Youngstown State)
    Southland Conference Nicholls State 4th 2005 First Round (L – Furman)
    Sam Houston State 11th 2016 Quarterfinals (L – James Madison)

    Abstentions

    Postseason

    Bowl game

    GameDate/TVLocationHome teamAway teamScoreOffensive MVPDefensive MVP
    Celebration Bowl December 16
    ABC
    Mercedes-Benz Stadium
    Atlanta, Georgia
    North Carolina A&T Grambling State 21–14Marquell Cartwright
    (RB, North Carolina A&T)
    Franklin McCain III
    (DB, North Carolina A&T)

    NCAA Division I 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
    1 James Madison * 26
    Stony Brook * 59Stony Brook 7
    Lehigh 29 1 James Madison* 31
    Weber State 28
    8 Southern Utah* 13
    Weber State * 21Weber State30
    Western Illinois 19 1 James Madison* 51
    5 South Dakota State 16
    4 Central Arkansas* 15
    New Hampshire * 14New Hampshire21
    Central Connecticut 0 New Hampshire 14
    5 South Dakota State* 56
    5 South Dakota State * 37
    Northern Iowa * 46Northern Iowa 22
    Monmouth 7 1 James Madison 13
    2 North Dakota State17
    2 North Dakota State * 38
    Northern Arizona* 10 San Diego 3
    San Diego 412 North Dakota State* 42
    7 Wofford 10
    7 Wofford * 28
    Elon* 27 Furman 10
    Furman 282 North Dakota State* 55
    6 Sam Houston State 13
    3 Jacksonville State* 7
    Kennesaw State * 28Kennesaw State17
    Samford 17 Kennesaw State 27
    6 Sam Houston State* 34
    6 Sam Houston State * 54
    Nicholls State* 31 South Dakota 42
    South Dakota 38

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

    Kickoff games

    Awards and honors

    Walter Payton Award

    Buck Buchanan Award

    Jerry Rice Award

    Coaches

    New stadiums

    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.

    SchoolOutgoing coachDateReasonReplacement
    Alabama State Brian Jenkins October 6Fired Donald Hill-Eley [a]
    Holy Cross Tom Gilmore October 15Fired Brian Rock (interim)
    1. Interim for remainder of season; interim tag removed on December 7, 2017.

    End of season

    SchoolOutgoing coachDateReasonReplacement
    Alabama A&M James Spady November 19Fired [9] Connell Maynor
    Arkansas–Pine Bluff Monte Coleman November 19Resigned Cedric Thomas
    Central Arkansas Steve Campbell December 7Hired as head coach by South Alabama Nathan Brown
    Davidson Paul Nichols November 27Contract not renewed Scott Abell
    Delaware State Kenny Carter November 20Fired Rod Milstead
    East Tennessee State Carl Torbush December 8Retired Randy Sanders
    Florida A&M Alex Wood November 21Contract not renewed Willie Simmons
    Fordham Andrew Breiner December 5Hired as OC at Mississippi State Joe Conlin
    Hampton Connell Maynor November 20Fired Robert Prunty
    Holy Cross Brian Rock December 20Permanent replacement Bob Chesney
    Incarnate Word Larry Kennan November 27Fired Eric Morris
    Mississippi Valley State Rick Comegy November 20Contract not renewed Vincent Dancy
    Montana Bob Stitt November 20Contract not renewed [10] Bobby Hauck
    Morgan State Fred Farrier December 18Fired Ernest T. Jones (interim)
    North Carolina A&T Rod Broadway January 8Retired [11] Sam Washington
    North Carolina Central Jerry Mack December 8Hired as OC at Rice Granville Eastman (interim)
    Northwestern State Jay Thomas December 2Resigned Brad Laird
    Prairie View A&M Willie Simmons December 8Hired as head coach by Florida A&M Eric Dooley
    Robert Morris John Banaszak November 19Retired Bernard Clark
    Southeastern Louisiana Ron Roberts January 19Hired as DC by Louisiana Frank Scelfo
    Tennessee Tech Marcus Satterfield November 19Fired [12] Dewayne Alexander
    Western Illinois Charlie Fisher January 4Hired as WR coach by Arizona State Jared Elliott
    Wofford Mike Ayers December 13Retired Josh Conklin

    Attendances

    Top 30 teams by average home attendance:

    #TeamHome gamesTotal attendanceAverage attendance
    1 Montana Grizzlies 6141,21223,535
    2 James Madison Dukes 9195,51421,724
    3 Florida A&M Rattlers 476,19019,048
    4 Yale Bulldogs 594,69918,940
    5 Montana State Bobcats 6111,70218,617
    6 Jacksonville State Gamecocks 6110,32818,388
    7 North Dakota State Bison 9164,99618,333
    8 Prairie View A&M Panthers 589,01617,803
    9 Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens 699,89016,648
    10 North Carolina A&T Aggies 578,48615,697
    11 Grambling State Tigers 459,69914,925
    12 Alabama State Hornets 687,68914,615
    13 Southern Jaguars 457,26114,315
    14 Youngstown State Penguins 685,22014,203
    15 Alcorn State Braves 683,07813,846
    16 Jackson State Tigers 568,78013,756
    17 Tennessee State Tigers 448,32012,080
    18 South Dakota State Jackrabbits 895,95111,994
    19 South Carolina State Bulldogs 559,41411,883
    20 Illinois State Redbirds 557,20011,440
    21 Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks 556,88111,376
    22 New Hampshire Wildcats 666,14111,024
    23 Western Carolina Catamounts 552,73510,547
    24 Mercer Bears 552,72510,545
    25 Abilene Christian Wildcats 552,20410,441
    26 North Dakota Fighting Hawks 552,13910,428
    27 Harvard Crimson 552,05510,411
    28 Eastern Washington Eagles 550,61710,123
    29 McNeese Cowboys 549,6959,939
    30 Northern Iowa Panthers 658,1759,696

    Source: [13]

    See also

    References

    1. Kercheval, Ben (April 14, 2017). "NCAA DI Council approves early signing period for football, prohibits oversigning". CBSSports.com . Retrieved April 27, 2017.
    2. Stephenson, Creg (April 14, 2017). "NCAA adopts 10th assistant, restricts off-field staff hires, satellite camps in sweeping vote". The Birmingham News . Retrieved September 4, 2017.
    3. "Thomas had 190 yards, Jacksonville St tops Chattanooga 27–13". ESPN. Associated Press. August 26, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
    4. "Mangum, Canada lead BYU to 20–6 win over Portland State". ESPN. Associated Press. August 26, 2017. Retrieved August 27, 2017.
    5. "Colgate fends off Cal Poly 20–14 behind Holland". ESPN. Associated Press. August 26, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
    6. "Stanley accounts for 2 TDs, FAMU beats Texas Southern 29–7". ESPN. Associated Press. August 26, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
    7. O'Neill, Kane (September 2, 2017). "ETSU tops Limestone 31–10 in season opener at new stadium". Johnson City, TN: WJHL-TV . Retrieved September 17, 2017.
    8. "Abilene Christian inaugurates new stadium with 24–3 win". ESPN. Associated Press. September 16, 2017. Retrieved September 17, 2017.
    9. "Spady not returning to Alabama A&M as head football coach". Alabama A&M Athletics. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
    10. Nuanez, Colter (November 20, 2017). "Bob Stitt out as head coach of Griz football". Skyline Sports.
    11. "A&T's Broadway retires; Washington promoted". ESPN.com. ESPN. Retrieved January 9, 2018.
    12. "Head football coach Marcus Satterfield relieved of duties, national search to begin immediately". Tennessee Tech Athletics. November 19, 2017. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
    13. http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/Attendance/2017.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]