The field of 24 teams competing for the 2025 NCAA Division I Football Championship was announced today by the NCAA Division I Football Championship Committee. The top 16 teams were seeded in the bracket with each earning the ability to host their first playoff game.  

2025 NCAA Division I Football Bracket

During the previous 47 years of the championship, 23 schools have won a national title, six of which earned a place in this year’s historic bracket.  For the first time, the Ivy League will use their automatic bid and participate in the championship.  Additionally, this will be the first FCS playoff to feature two undefeated 12-win teams.

The 2025 championship field consists of 11 automatic qualifiers and 13 at-large qualifiers.  Unseeded teams are paired in the first round with teams seeded 9-16 primarily according to geographical proximity.

Teams from the same conference will not be paired for first round games (except for teams from the same conference that did not play against each other during the regular season; such teams may play each other in the first round).

2025 NCAA® DIVISION I FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP TEAMS

Team	Bid	Conference	W-L	Previous Appearances			Last Trip
				Years      Wins       Losses
Montana St.	AQ	Big Sky	10-2	14	17	13	2024
Rhode Island	AQ	Coastal	10-2	4	3	4	2024
Yale	AQ	Ivy League	8-2				First
North Dakota St.	AQ	MVFC	12-0	15	51	5	2024
Central Conn. St.	AQ	Northeast	8-4	3	0	3	2024
Tennessee Tech	AQ	Ohio Valley/Big South	11-1	1	0	1	2011
Lehigh	AQ	Patriot	12-0	12	7	12	2024
Drake	AQ	Pioneer	8-3	2	0	2	2024
Mercer	AQ	Southern	9-2	2	2	2	2024
SFA	AQ	Southland	10-2	7	4	7	2021
Abilene Christian	AQ	United	8-4	1	1	1	2024
Harvard	At Large	Ivy	9-1				First
Illinois St.	At Large	MVFC	8-4	9	10	9	2024
Lamar University	At Large	Southland	8-4	1	0	1	2018
Montana	At Large	Big Sky	11-1	28	39	26	2024
New Hampshire	At Large	Coastal	8-4	18	15	18	2024
North Dakota	At Large	MVFC	7-5	5	1	5	2023
South Dakota	At Large	MVFC	8-4	4	4	4	2024
South Dakota St.	At Large	MVFC	8-4	14	24	12	2024
Southeastern La.	At Large	Southland	9-4	5	4	5	2022
Tarleton St.	At Large	United	11-1	1	1	1	2024
UC Davis	At Large	Big Sky	8-3	3	2	3	2024
Villanova	At Large	Coastal	9-2	16	15	15	2024
Youngstown St.	At Large	MVFC	8-4	13	29	9	2023

Longest Consecutive Tournament Appearances in the Championship (Including 2025)
North Dakota State – 16
South Dakota State – 14
Montana – 5 
Montana State – 5

Schools by Conference 
Missouri Valley Football Conference – 6
Big Sky Conference – 3
Coastal Athletic Association – 3
Southland Conference – 3 

DATES/SITES/PAIRINGS-FIRST-ROUND GAMES - NOV 29
Illinois State (8-4) at Southeastern La. (9-3) at Hammond, Louisiana, 1 p.m. ET (ESPN+) 
Central Conn. St. (8-4) at Rhode Island (10-2) at Kingston, Rhode Island, Noon ET (ESPN+)
Harvard (9-1) at Villanova (9-2) at Villanova, Pennsylvania, Noon ET (ESPN+)
North Dakota (7-5) at Tennessee Tech (11-1) at Cookeville, Tennessee, 1 p.m. ET (ESPN+)
New Hampshire (8-4) at South Dakota State (8-4) at Brookings, South Dakota, 1 p.m. ET (ESPN+)
Drake (8-3) at South Dakota (8-4) at Vermillion, South Dakota, 1 p.m. ET (ESPN+)
Lamar University (8-4) at Abilene Christian (8-4) at Abilene, Texas, 1 p.m. ET (ESPN+)
Yale (8-2) at Youngstown State (8-4) at Youngstown, Ohio, Noon ET (ESPN+)

Television schedules and game times for all rounds of the 2025 championship will be updated at www.NCAA.com/fcs. All rounds of the FCS playoffs can be seen on ESPN’s family of networks with first-round games taking place Saturday, November 29 and concluding with the national championship game at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee, Monday, January 5 at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. 


MVFC -- Postseason By the Numbers
155 -- MVFC teams have an all-time 155-92 record in the playoffs (since 1985).  
107 --  Since 2010, the MVFC has a 107-48 (.690) playoff record, including games against one another.  The only other FCS leagues with winning playoff records since 2010 are the Coastal (62-55, .530) and the Southland (32-30, .516).
103 --  League schools are 103-22 (.824) in playoff games played at MVFC sites.
40 --  The MVFC has combined for a 40-20 record in the playoffs this decade.  The Big Sky is second in total playoff wins in that span, with a 21-21 mark.
37 --  The MVFC has 37 semifinal trips in the FCS playoffs.  That’s more than any other league (the Big Sky has 36.)
20 --  The MVFC has had 20 trips to the FCS title game in its history.  The league has a 14-6 record in the championship game.  The 14 titles are more than any other FCS league.
14 --  At least one MVFC school has appeared in an FCS-record 14-straight title games (2011-present).  The MVFC has 16 title-game appearances in that span -- no other league has more than four appearances during that timeframe.
6 --  The MVFC high-water mark for playoff teams in one season is six (accomplished in 2021 and 2023 and again in 2025).  The CAA established that FCS record with six teams in 2018.
5 --  Five or more teams have represented the MVFC in the post-season championship six times (2014, 2015, 2017, 2020, 2021, 2023).
4 --  Four MVFC teams represented the Conference in last year’s playoff field (three of those reached the semifinals, the first time an FCS league had three semifinal teams in the same season.
1 --  Since the playoffs expanded to 24 teams (2013), only one MVFC team with eight regular-season victories failed to earn a spot in the field (Youngstown State, 8-4, 2013).