Rankings Update and Playoff Outlook: William & Mary Football in Jeopardy

2023-10-23 16:31:29

William & Mary Football dropped to 4-3 in Week 8, its third-straight loss of the season, and put its hopes of winning a second CAA title in jeopardy.

But the Tribe didn’t fall out of the NCAA FCS Football Rankings on Oct. 23.

William & Mary clocked in at No. 24 in the rankings, down 20 spots from its highest ranking of the year.

William Mary lost to Towson 34-24 on Oct. 21 coming off its bye week. Earlier this month W&M lost to Elon and then to FBS opponent Virginia, who on Oct. 21 upset top-10 ranked North Carolina. W&M hosts Monmouth this week.

While William & Mary continues to slide in the rankings, Delaware climbed a spot during its bye week. The Blue Hens (6-1) went from No. 7 to No. 6.

Up next? It’s the same Towson Tigers that have wins over William & Mary and New Hampshire this season.

New Hampshire beat Stony Brook 45-14 in Week 8 to improve to 4-3 on the season and move to a tie at No. 20 in the poll. UNH is tied with Austin Peay in the poll.

Villanova Football, Albany Football Pick Up Votes

A sign of things to come could be Villanova and UAlbany both getting votes in the latest poll. Villanova received 51 votes in the poll after beating Villanova 21-0. The Wildcats face Stony Brook this weekend, with a massive showdown against New Hampshire on Nov. 4.

Albany beat Rhode Island, which had been ranked earlier this season, 35-10. The Great Danes travel to Maine this weekend and face W&M on Nov. 4.

South Dakota State Football Remains No. 1

The Jackrabbits (7-0) strengthened their case as No.1 with 17-10 win over then-No.12-ranked Southern Illinois on the road.

But that ranking could change this weekend as the undefeated Jackrabbits travel to No. 9 South Dakota (6-1). The rivalry is known as the South Dakota Series. SDSU leads the series 56-54-7 all-time.

NCAA FCS Football Rankings For Week 9 (Oct. 23)

No. 1 South Dakota St. (26) 7-0 650 No. 2 Montana St. 6-1 623 No. 3 Furman 6-1 587 No. 4 UIW 6-1 545 No. 5 Montana 6-1 537 No. 6 Delaware 6-1 510 No. 7 Sacramento St. 5-2 475 No. 8 Idaho 5-2 471 No. 9 South Dakota 6-1 423 No. 10 North Carolina Central 6-1 418 No. 11 North Dakota St. 5-2 No. 12 Southern Illinois 5-2 No. 13 UT Martin 6-1 314 No. 14 Florida A&M 6-1 304 No. 15 Chattanooga 6-2 266 No. 16 Western Carolina 5-2 253 No. 17 North Dakota 4-3 198 No. 18 Central Arkansas 5-2 197 No. 19 Lafayette 6-1 120 No. 20 Austin Peay 5-2 116 No. 20 New Hampshire 4-3 116 No. 21 Holy Cross 4-3 108 No. 23 Harvard 5-1 87 17 No. 24 William & Mary 4-3 83 No. 25 UC Davis 4-3 82

Dropped Out: Illinois St. (25)

Others Receiving Votes: Northern Iowa, 65; Villanova, 51; Fordham, 44; Youngstown St., 41; Pennsylvania, 25; Albany, 4; Mercer, 3; Eastern Illinois, 1; Illinois St., 1; Nicholls, 1.

FCS Playoffs 2023 Outlook

Twenty-four teams will advance to the FCS playoffs in 2023. Ten of those teams will automatically qualify for the playoffs via conference titles. Those conferences are:

Big Sky Big South/Ohio Valley Coastal Athletic Association Missouri Valley Football ConferenceNortheastPatriot LeaguePioneer Football LeagueSouthernSouthlandUnited Athletic Conference

The Ivy League does not enter the FCS playoffs, meaning No. 23-ranked Harvard won’t be in the field. If the season ended on Oct. 23., South Dakota State would likely be the overall No.1 seed and Delaware would be the CAA automatic qualifier.

When Do The 2023 FCS Playoffs Start?

The first round of the FCS playoffs are scheduled for Nov. 25.

When Is The 2024 FCS National Championship Game?

The FCS National Championship is at 2 p.m. on Jan. 7 at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas. The game will be on ABC.

How To Watch FCS Football

FloFootball and the FloSports app is home to CAA college football and more. FloFootball will also be home to game replays and highlights

For more action, including all the CAA conference games, check out the FloFootball schedule page.

Archived Footage On FloFootball

Video footage from the event will be archived and stored in a video library for FloFootball subscribers to watch for the duration of their subscription.