The 24-team field is being set for the 2025 FCS Football Playoffs and the 13 at-large bids are being handed out. The eight first-round byes were the first to be announced.

Taking the top eight seeds were teams that not only dominated all season but also went up against difficult opponents in and out of their conference including North Dakota State, Montana, Lehigh and Tarleton State. See the full list below.

The Ivy League got not just one team in, but two, in their first time participating in the FCS postseason. Yale sealed the deal when they beat the Crimson less than 24 hours before the selection show. Harvard will take on Villanova in Pennsylvania.

By January 5, a champion will be crowned after four rounds of eliminations leaving just two teams standing to battle it out for the title in Nashville, TN.

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Vanderbilt's FirstBank Stadium is set to play the backdrop of the final showdown, but let's not get ahead of ourselves—the first round opens up postseason play on November 29 with the next eight seeds hosting the bottom eight.

FloCollege will be covering all of the FCS, DII, and DIII postseason football action as 2025 comes to a close.

2025 FCS Playoffs Bracket Revealed: Schedule And What To Know

Who Are The Top 8 Seeds In The 2025 FCS Playoffs?

Here are the eight teams that were given the top eight seeds and a first-round bye in the 2025 FCS Championship bracket.

• No. 1 North Dakota State
• No. 2 Montana State
• No. 3 Montana
• No. 4 Tarleton State
• No. 5 Lehigh
• No. 6 Mercer
• No. 7 Stephen F. Austin
• No. 8 UC Davis

Who Are The 11 Auto-Bid Winners In The 2025 FCS Playoffs?

Here are the 11 Conference Champions that were given a guaranteed spot in the 2025 FCS Championship bracket.

• Big Sky Conference: Montana State (10-2, 8-0)
• Coastal Athletic Association: Rhode Island (10-2, 8-0)
• Ivy League: Yale (8-2, 6-1)
• Missouri Valley Football Conference: North Dakota State (12-0, 8-0)
• Northeast Conference: Central Connecticut (8-4, 6-1)
• OVC-Big South Association: Tennessee Tech (11-1, 8-0)
• Patriot League: Lehigh (12-0, 7-0)
• Pioneer Football League: Drake (8-3, 7-1)
• Southern Conference: Mercer (9-2, 8-0)
• Southland Conference: Stephen F. Austin (10-2, 8-0)
• ASUN-WAC (UAC): Abilene Christian (8-4, 7-1)

What Are The First Round Matchups In The 2025 FCS Playoffs?

Here are the first round matchups in the 2025 FCS Championship bracket on Saturday, Nov. 29.

Left Bracket

• 1:00 p.m. ET - Illinois State (8-4) vs No. 16 Southeastern Louisiana (9-3)
  • Winner plays No. 1 North Dakota State (12-0)
• 12:00 p.m. ET - Central Connecticut State (8-4) vs No. 9 Rhode Island (10-2)
  • Winner plays No. 8 UC Davis (8-3)
• 12:00 p.m. ET - Harvard (9-1) vs No. 12 Villanova (9-2)
  • Winner plays No. 5 Lehigh (12-0)
• 1:00 p.m. ET - North Dakota (7-5) vs No. 13 Tennessee Tech (11-1) 
  • Winner plays No. 4 Tarleton State (11-1)

Right Bracket

• 1:00 p.m. ET - New Hampshire (8-4) vs No. 14 South Dakota State (8-4)
  • Winner plays No. 3 Montana (11-1)
• 1:00 p.m. ET - Drake (8-3) vs No. 11 South Dakota (8-4)
  • Winner plays No. 6 Mercer (9-2)
• 1:00 p.m. ET - Lamar (8-4) vs No. 10 Abilene Christian (8-4) 
  • Winner plays No. 7 Stephen F. Austin (10-2)
• 12:00 p.m. ET - Yale (8-2) vs No. 15 Youngstown State (8-4)
  • Winner plays No. 2 Montana State (10-2)

Who Are The 13 At-Large Bid Winners In The 2025 FCS Playoffs?

Here are the 13 at-large bid recipients that were given a spot as determined by committee in the 2025 FCS Championship bracket.

• No. 3 Montana
• No. 4 Tarleton State
• No. 8 UC Davis
• No. 11 South Dakota
• No. 14 South Dakota State
• No. 16 Southeastern Louisiana
• Illinois State
• Central Connecticut
• Harvard
• North Dakota
• New Hampshire
• Lamar

When Do The 2025 FCS College Football Playoffs Start?

The FCS Playoffs begin Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, featuring 24 teams. 

The 2025 Division I FCS College Football Championship game will be played on Jan. 5, 2026, at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.

2025 FCS Championship Schedule

• Selection show: 12 p.m. ET Sunday, Nov. 23 on ESPNU
• First round: Saturday, Nov. 29
• Second round: Saturday, Dec. 6
• Quarterfinals: Friday, Dec. 12 through Saturday, Dec. 13
• Semifinals: Saturday, Dec. 20 
• National championship: Monday, Jan. 5 on ESPN at 7:30 p.m. ET

How was the FCS National Championship Bracket Determined?

• 24 teams selected
  • 11 automatic-bids: conference champions or alliances thereof
  • 13 at-large bids: filled by the selection committee. 
• Committee seeds the top 16 of those teams to determine bracket 
  • Seeds 1-8 get a first-round bye. 
  • Seeds 9-16 host  in the first round. 
  • Remaining 8 teams ( unseeded) play away (or at neutral) in the first round

FCS Scores On FloCollege This Week

Saturday, Nov. 22

• UAlbany 31 - 24 Monmouth
• Bryant 28 - 35 Stony Brook
• Sacred Heart 10 - 34 Villanova
• Richmond 28 - 21 William & Mary
• Maine 27 - 33 UNH
• Campbell 31 - 35 Towson
• Hampton 10 - 38 Rhode Island
• NC A&T 17 - 55 Elon

Last Week's Division I FCS Rankings

AFCA FCS Coaches Poll — Through Games Nov. 15, 2025

• 1. North Dakota State (23), Prev: 1 — 11-0
• 2. Montana (1), Prev: 2 — 11-0
• 3. Montana State, Prev: 3 — 9-2
• 4. Lehigh, Prev: 4 — 11-0
• 5. Tarleton State, Prev: 5 — 10-1
• 6. Mercer, Prev: 8 — 9-1
• 7. Villanova, Prev: 7 — 8-2
• 8. Tennessee Tech, Prev: 6 — 10-1
• 9.Rhode Island, Prev: 9 — 9-2
• 10. Harvard, Prev: 11 — 9-0
• T11. Illinois State, Prev: 13 — 8-3
• T11. Monmouth (N.J.), Prev: 12 — 9-2
• 13. Stephen F. Austin, Prev: 17 — 9-2
• 14. UC Davis, Prev: 10 — 7-3
• 15. Jackson State, Prev: 16 — 8-2
• 16. North Dakota, Prev: 18 — 7-4
• 17. Youngstown State, Prev: 19 — 7-4
• 18. Abilene Christian (ACU), Prev: 20 — 7-4
• 19. Lamar, Prev: 14 — 8-3
• 20. Southeastern Louisiana, Prev: 21 — 8-3
• 21. South Dakota, Prev: 22 — 8-4
• 22. South Dakota State, Prev: 15 — 7-4
• 23. West Georgia, Prev: 24 — 8-3
• 24. Lafayette, Prev: 25 — 8-3
• 25. Yale, Prev: NR — 7-2

Dropped Out: Southern Illinois (23)

Others Receiving Votes: Southern Illinois, 28; Alabama St., 27; Dartmouth, 22; UT Rio Grande Valley, 15; Gardner-Webb, 13; Sacramento St., 12; Austin Peay, 8; New Hampshire, 7; South Carolina St., 4; Presbyterian, 3; East Tennessee St., 2; Southern Utah, 2; William & Mary, 2; Elon, 1; Northern Arizona, 1; Prairie View A&M, 1.

Archived Footage On FloCollege

Video footage from all games will be archived and stored in a video library for FloCollege subscribers to watch for the duration of their subscriptions.

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