THE RFC MYC: Southern Conference (FCS)

Southern Conference (FCS)

Overview: The Southern Conference held its own in 2023, with three of its nine teams advancing to the FCS playoffs, while two others finished last season with winning records.

The three teams that advanced to postseason play all won at least one playoff game, with SoCon champion Furman finishing 10-3 overall after eliminating fellow league foe Chattanooga 26-7 in the second round, only to lose an overtime heartbreaker to Montana in the quarterfinals. The Paladins finished the regular season at 9-2 overall and 7-1 in SoCon action to earn their conference's automatic bid to the FCS playoffs.

As for the other two postseason participants, Chattanooga advanced to the second round after the Mocs stunned Austin Peay on a last-second field goal, before succumbing to Furman to finish their season at 8-5 overall and 6-2 in the SoCon.

Meanwhile, the Mercer University Bears made the most of their first-ever FCS playoff appearance, outlasting Gardner-Webb 17-7 for its first-ever playoff win, before eventual national champion South Dakota State stomped its' way to a 41-0 victory in the second round. The Bears also finished their season at 6-2 in the Southern Conference, and 9-4 overall.

Although they fell well short of advancing to postseason play, two other SoCon squads showed that they could compete at a high level during the 2023 season. Western Carolina finished 7-4 overall and 5-3 in the SoCon, while Samford ended its season at 6-5 and 4-4.

The upcoming 2024 season promises to produce more thrills for the Southern Conference, with three of its teams-Chattanooga at #10, Furman at #14, and Western Carolina at #16-all ranked in the Hero Sports FCS Preseason Poll.

Any of those teams could take home the SoCon crown this fall. However, don't count out sleeper teams like Mercer or Samford. 

2024 Schedules (Teams are listed in alphabetical order, click the links below to access the schedules)

NOTE: If the link to the team's schedule is unavailable, the team still needs to submit its schedule for the 2024 season. The link (s) will appear in each blog post when the team's schedule is submitted. Also, please visit the RFC blog at realfootballcentral.blogspot.com for schedules, schedule updates, preseason previews, and more.

Final 2023 Southern Conference Football Standings

Chattanooga

East Tennessee State

Furman

Mercer

Samford

The Citadel

VMI

Western Carolina 

Wofford

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THE RFC MYC: Ivy League (FCS)

Ivy League-(FCS)

Overview: The Ivy League is one of the few conferences at any level to experience sustained stability in its membership due to conference realignment, as no new members have entered the league, nor have any current members left it during its' almost seven decades of existence, with the inaugural season occurring in 1956.

Three teams finished in a three-way tie for the Ivy League title in 2023, with Harvard, Yale, and Dartmouth all finishing conference play at 5-2. The Crimson finished the season at 8-2, followed by the Bulldogs at 7-3, and Dartmouth at 6-4 overall. 

During that chaotic race for the conference crown, Harvard lost to Princeton and Yale, Yale fell to Cornell and Penn, and Dartmouth dropped a pair of decisions to Yale and Harvard. Meanwhile, Princeton finished one game behind all three aforementioned teams at 4-3 in league play, as well as at 5-5 overall. 

Looking ahead to 2024, expect another tight race for the Ivy League title, with any one of the eight teams in this storied, historic league making a potential case for the conference crown.

2024 Schedules (Teams listed in alphabetical order, click the links below to find the schedules)


NOTE: If the team's schedule is not highlighted, it needs to submit its schedule for the 2024 season. The link (s) will appear in each blog post after the team's schedule is submitted. Also, please visit the RFC blog at realfootballcentral.blogspot.com for schedules, schedule updates, preseason previews, and more.

Final 2023 Ivy League Football Standings

Brown

Columbia 

Cornell (N.Y.)

Dartmouth

Harvard

Penn

Princeton 

Yale


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THE RFC MYC: Patriot League (FCS)

Patriot League (FCS)

Overview: There was a changing of the guard in the Patriot League in 2023, as the Lafayette Leopards leaped their way to the conference championship after finishing at 5-1 in league play, while also finishing the regular season at 9-2 overall. It was a five-win improvement from 2022 when the Leopards finished at 4-7.

The "Game Of The Year" in the Patriot League was played on October 21. That was when Lafayette knocked off then four-time defending champion Holy Cross 38-35 on the road. Although both teams finished league play at 5-1, it was the Leopards that earned the nod for the FCS playoffs automatic bid thanks to the win over the Crusaders. 

In the FCS playoffs, the Leopards gave the now FBS-bound University of Delaware Blue Hens all they could handle, before losing 36-34 in the first round. Lafayette finished the 2023 season at 9-3 overall after losing to Delaware.

Moving ahead to 2024, Lafayette will go into the upcoming season hoping to defend their first Patriot League title since 2013, as well as go for their second-straight nine-win season. Before 2023, the last time the Leopards finished a season with at least nine wins came in 1981, when Lafayette also finished at 9-2. 

As for Holy Cross, the Crusaders will start over under new head coach Dan Curran. Curran replaces Bob Chesney, who stepped down at the end of last season to become the head coach at James Madison. Holy Cross finished their 2023 campaign at 7-5 overall, falling short of advancing to postseason play after winning four straight Patriot League championships. 

Finally, as for the future, the Patriot League will gain one new football-playing member, as the University of Richmond Spiders will move there after spending almost two decades as a member of the CAA. The addition of Richmond will give the conference eight schools by the start of the 2025 season. 

2024 Schedules (Teams are listed in alphabetical order, click the links below to find the schedules)

NOTE: If the link to the team's schedule is not highlighted, the team still needs to submit its schedule for the 2024 season. When the team's schedule becomes available, the link (s) will appear in each blog post. Also, please visit the RFC blog at realfootballcentral.blogspot.com for schedules, schedule updates, preseason previews, and more.

Final 2023 Patriot League Football Standings

Bucknell

Colgate

Fordham

Georgetown (D.C.)

Holy Cross

Lafayette

Lehigh

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THE RFC MYC: FCS Independents-Merrimack and Sacred Heart

Overview: Thanks to the constantly changing nature of conference realignment in college sports, two FCS programs must adjust to not playing in a conference, possibly for the foreseeable future.

Those two programs are the Merrimack College Warriors from North Andover, Massachusetts, and the Sacred Heart University Pioneers from Fairfield, Connecticut. Both schools' football teams left the Northeast Conference because the athletics officials decided to join the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) for all sports except football. The MAAC sponsored football from 1993 to 2007.

As a result of those moves, the Warriors and Pioneers' respective football teams will play as independents, starting in 2024 and possibly beyond. As for 2023, Merrimack finished at 5-6 overall and 4-3 in NEC play, while Sacred Heart struggled significantly at 2-9 overall and 2-5 in the NEC.

Without a conference to fall back on, both teams must win as many games as possible to earn an at-large bid to the FCS playoffs this season. Merrimack's only postseason appearance came in 2006, where they finished 1-1 all-time in the NCAA Division II playoffs, while Sacred Heart holds a 0-4 all-time mark in the FCS playoffs, advancing in 2013, 2014, 2020 (spring 2021) and 2021 (fall 2021).   

2024 Schedules (Teams listed in alphabetical order, click the links below to find the schedules)

NOTE: If the link to the team's schedule is not linked, the team failed to submit its schedule for the 2024 season. Once the team's schedule is submitted, the link (s) will appear in each blog post. Also, please visit the RFC blog at realfootballcentral.blogspot.com for schedules, schedule updates, preseason previews, and more.

Merrimack

Sacred Heart

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THE RFC MYC: Northeast Conference (NEC)-(FCS)

Northeast Conference (NEC)-(FCS)

Overview: The Duquesne University Dukes overcame multiple early-season struggles to finish Northeast Conference play at 6-1, and advance to the FCS playoffs as that conference's automatic qualifier after finishing the regular season at 7-4. The Dukes' 2023 season ended at 7-5 overall after losing to Youngstown State in the first round.

The biggest news in the NEC came during the offseason, as Merrimack and Sacred Heart announced that they were leaving for the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). Since the MAAC currently doesn't sponsor football, the Warriors from North Andover, Massachusetts, and the Pioneers from Fairfield, Connecticut, will have to settle for playing as independents, likely for the foreseeable future. 

One team, however, will rejoin the NEC this fall, as Robert Morris University returns after spending the past four seasons in the Big South and Ohio Valley Conferences. The Mercyhurst University Lakers from Erie, Pennsylvania will join the Colonials as NEC members, moving from the NCAA Division II ranks after a long stint in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC). 

Going into 2024, Duquesne will look to win its second straight NEC title, while the other five playoff-eligible teams will try to "put up their dukes" hoping to dethrone the Dukes this fall.

2024 Schedules (Teams listed in alphabetical order, click the links below to find the schedules)

NOTE: If the link to the team's schedule is not linked, the team failed to submit its schedule for the 2024 season. Once the team's schedule is submitted, the link (s) will appear in each blog post. Also, please visit the RFC blog at realfootballcentral.blogspot.com for schedules, schedule updates, preseason previews, and more.

Final 2023 Northeast Conference Football Standings


Central Connecticut State

Duquesne

LIU

Mercyhurst*

Robert Morris

St. Francis (Pa.)

Stonehill*

Wagner

*-Transitioning from the NCAA Division II level.

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THE RFC MYC: Coastal Athletic Association (CAA)-(FCS)

Coastal Athletic Association (CAA)-(FCS)

Overview: Nothing was what it seemed in the newly-rebranded Coastal (formerly Colonial) Athletic Association (CAA) for 2023, as three teams finished the regular season at 7-1 at conference play. 

It was an unlikely contender in the University at Albany, or UAlbany, Great Danes that found their way to the CAA's automatic bid to the FCS playoffs last fall. An upset win over then #16 Villanova on September 30, followed by another key win over then #24 William & Mary on November 4, proved to be the difference in the Great Danes advancing to the FCS playoffs for the first time since 2019. 

Once in the playoffs, UAlbany had a run for the ages. The Great Danes opened postseason play with a convincing 41-13 win over fellow CAA foe Richmond in the second round. They followed up that performance by shocking then #4 seed Idaho in front of a national television audience 30-22 in the quarterfinals, before succumbing to eventual national champion South Dakota State in the semifinals to finish their season at 11-4. 

In addition to UAlbany's historic performance, two other CAA teams won at least one playoff game last season. Villanova downed Youngstown State in the second round before losing at South Dakota State to finish 10-3.

Elsewhere, Richmond crushed North Carolina Central 49-27 in the first round before falling to UAlbany in the second round, with the Spiders settling for a 9-4 finish, and Delaware rallied from a double-digit deficit down the stretch to stun Lafayette 36-34 in the first round, only to see its season end in Montana in a 49-19 loss. The Blue Hens finished their 2023 campaign at 9-4.

Looking ahead to 2024 and beyond, the continuing conference realignment has led to the eventual departures of two longtime CAA mainstays at the end of this season. Delaware has announced that the Blue Hens will move from the FCS to the FBS level in 2025, joining Conference USA. While they will play a full CAA schedule this season, the Blue Hens will be ineligible for postseason play during the two-year transition process. 

Another longtime league member who will be bidding farewell to the CAA after this season will be Richmond. The Spiders announced on May 14 that their football program will join the Patriot League starting in 2025. Those moves will leave the league at 14 football teams once Delaware and Richmond leave.

In the meantime, don't be surprised if a different squad wins the CAA crown while also making a surprisingly deep postseason run.      

2024 Schedules (Teams listed in alphabetical order, click the links below  to find the schedules)

NOTE: If the link to the team's schedule is unavailable, it still needs to submit its schedule for the 2024 season. The link (s) will appear in each blog post when the team's schedule is submitted. Also, please visit the RFC blog at realfootballcentral.blogspot.com for schedules, schedule updates, preseason previews, and more.

Final 2023 Coastal Athletic Association Football Standings

Albany (N.Y.)

Campbell

Delaware*

Elon

Hampton

Maine

Monmouth (N.J.)

New Hampshire

North Carolina A&T

Rhode Island

Richmond

Stony Brook

Towson

Villanova

William & Mary

*-Delaware is transitioning from the FCS to the FBS (Group Of Five) level in 2024 and will be ineligible for postseason play.

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THE RFC MYC: Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Alliance (FCS)

Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Alliance (FCS) 

Overview: Despite some early-season struggles in non-conference play, the Gardner-Webb University Runnin' Bulldogs found a way to win their second straight conference championship and advance to the FCS playoffs for the second straight season.

Gardner-Webb parlayed its' 5-1 mark in Big South-Ohio Valley Conference play into an eventual 7-4 regular-season finish. However, their upset win over then #13 UT Martin on  October 28 helped the Runnin' Bulldogs seal another postseason berth. G-W fell to Mercer 17-7 in the first round of the FCS playoffs to finish the 2023 season at 7-5 overall.

Looking ahead to 2024, expect UT Martin and Eastern Illinois to mount serious challenges to Gardner-Webb in the race for the BS-OVC title. While the Skyhawks and Panthers finished their respective 2023 campaigns at 8-3 overall, UTM finished 5-1 in conference play, while EIU finished at 4-2. Unfortunately, though, neither team advanced to postseason play.  

Finally, the BS-OVC will undergo several membership changes this fall, with Bryant leaving for the CAA, while Robert Morris left to rejoin the Northeast Conference (NEC). Meanwhile, Western Illinois will move from the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) to the BS-OVC after finishing winless at 0-11 in 2023. 

The departures of Bryant and Robert Morris, and the addition of Western Illinois, will give the BS-OVC nine football teams in 2024. 

2024 Schedules (Teams listed in alphabetical order, click the links below  to find the schedules)


NOTE: If the link to the team's schedule needs to be highlighted, it still needs to submit its schedule for the 2024 season. The link (s) will appear in each blog post when the team's schedule is submitted. Also, please visit the RFC blog at realfootballcentral.blogspot.com for schedules, schedule updates, preseason previews, and more.

Final 2023 Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Alliance Standings

Charleston Southern

Eastern Illinois

Gardner-Webb

Lindenwood*

Southeast Missouri State

Tennessee State

Tennessee Tech

UT-Martin

Western Illinois

*-Lindenwood is transitioning from the NCAA Division II to the FCS level and therefore ineligible for postseason play. 

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THE RFC MYC: Sun Belt Conference (FBS Group Of Five)

Sun Belt Conference (FBS Group Of Five)

Overview: The Sun Belt Conference once again proved why it was the toughest of all Group Of Five Conferences in 2023, with all but two squads becoming bowl-eligible last season. Additionally, the SBC finished 16-8 overall against other G5 leagues last season, which included a 5-1 mark against FBS independents not named Notre Dame.

But once the bowl season arrived, the SBC struggled tremendously, finishing a combined 5-7 in postseason play. However, the 23-year-old league got quality wins during December, with Appalachian State (Cure vs. Miami [Ohio]), Georgia State (Famous Idaho Potato Bowl vs. Utah State), South Alabama (68 Ventures vs. Eastern Michigan, Coastal Carolina (Hawaii vs. San Jose State) and Texas State (First Responder vs. Rice) all ending their seasons on a winning note.

Heading into the 2024 season, expect the Sun Belt Conference to stay strong from top to bottom, with Troy hoping to win its' third-straight league title under new head coach Gerad Parker. He replaces Jon Sumrall, who stepped down to take the Tulane head coaching job before the start of bowl season. The Trojans finished their 2023 campaign at 11-3 overall losing to Duke 17-10 in the Birmingham Bowl.

Also, expect James Madison to be a serious contender for the crown under another new head coach in Bob Chesney, who replaced now-Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti. JMU advanced to its first-ever FBS bowl appearance despite technically not being bowl-eligible last season, due to a lack of bowl-eligible teams. The Dukes fell to Air Force 31-21 in the Armed Forces Bowl to finish their season at 11-2 overall, with their only other loss coming to Appalachian State.

But in a conference that's filled with parity, don't be surprised if a different team comes out on top come early December.

2024 Schedules (Teams listed in alphabetical order, click the links below to find the schedules)

NOTE: If the team's schedule isn't highlighted, it didn't enter its schedule for the 2024 season. When the team's schedule is available, the link (s) to it will appear in each blog post. Also, please visit the RFC blog at realfootballcentral.blogspot.com for schedules, schedule updates, preseason previews, and more.

Final 2023 Sun Belt Conference Football Standings

East Division

Appalachian State

Coastal Carolina

Georgia Southern 

Georgia State

James Madison

Marshall

Old Dominion

West Division

Arkansas State

Louisiana

South Alabama

Southern Mississippi

Texas State

Troy

ULM 

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