The FCS Playoffs 2025 are set to kickoff on Saturday with eight first-round games. The action begins at noon Eastern with three contests — Central Connecticut at (9) Rhode Island, Harvard at (12) Villanova, and Yale at (15) Youngstown State.
The five remaining first-round games on the FCS Playoff Schedule each kickoff at 1:00pm ET — Drake at (11) South Dakota, Illinois State at (16) Southeastern Louisiana, Lamar at (10) Abilene Christian, New Hampshire at (14) South Dakota State, and North Dakota at (13) Tennessee Tech.
Winners of the first-round contests will advance to the second-round where they will travel to play one of the top eight seeds. The top eight seeds, listed below, each received a first-round bye:
1. North Dakota State
2. Montana State
3. Montana
4. Tarleton State
5. Lehigh
6. Mercer
7. Stephen F. Austin
8. UC Davis
Below is the complete schedule for the first two rounds of the 2025 FCS Playoffs:
FIRST-ROUND GAMES (NOV. 29)
*All games ET and streaming via ESPN+.
CCSU at (9) Rhode Island
Harvard 7, (12) Villanova 52
Yale 43, (15) Youngstown State 42
Drake 17, (11) South Dakota 38
Illinois State 21, (16) SLU 3
Lamar 20, (10) ACU 38
New Hampshire 3, (14) S Dakota St 41
North Dakota 31, (13) Tennessee Tech 6
SECOND-ROUND GAMES (DEC. 6)
*All games ET and streaming via ESPN+, except where noted.
(11) South Dakota at (6) Mercer – 12pm
(12) Villanova at (5) Lehigh – 12pm
Illinois State at (1) N Dakota St – 1pm
North Dakota at (4) Tarleton St – 1pm
(10) ACU at (7) Stephen F. Austin – 2pm
(14) S Dakota St at (3) Montana – 2pm
Yale at (2) Montana State – 2pm
(9) Rhode Island at (8) UC Davis – 10pm, ESPN2
The FCS Championship Game for the 2025 season is scheduled for Monday, Jan. 5, 2026 at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tenn. The game will be nationally televised by ESPN at 7:30pm ET.
FCS Playoff Bracket (PDF)
2025 FCS Playoff Bracket pic.twitter.com/v3bjbKiIEo
— FBSchedules.com (@FBSchedules) November 23, 2025
