College Football Schedule 2023-24

Conference Schedules icon
Wednesday, November 15, 2023
MATCHUP RESULT HI PASS HI RUSH HI REC
team logo Central Michigan OHIO 34 , CENTMI 20 Kurtis Rourke 222 Sieh Bangura 126 Chris Parker 62
team logo Buffalo MIA-O 23 , BUFF 10 Aveon Smith 146 Rashad Amos 82 Javon Tracy 123
Thursday, November 16, 2023
MATCHUP RESULT HI PASS HI RUSH HI REC
team logo Southeastern Louisiana
vs team logo Nicholls
NICH 21 , SELA 16 Pat McQuaide 300 Rodeo Graham Jr. 58 David Robinson Jr. 91
team logo Mississippi Valley State
@ team logo Alabama A&M
ALAA&M 30 , MSVL 21 Ty'Jarian Williams 223 Donovan Eaglin 207 Jacolby Hewitt 115
team logo Boston College PITT 24 , BC 16 Nate Yarnell 207 Rodney Hammond Jr. 145 Bub Means 78
Friday, November 17, 2023
MATCHUP RESULT HI PASS HI RUSH HI REC
team logo South Florida TX-SA 49 , USF 21 Frank Harris 411 Frank Harris 112 Joshua Cephus 163
team logo Colorado WASHST 56 , COLO 14 Cameron Ward 288 Sy'veon Wilkerson 49 Josh Kelly 130
Saturday, November 18, 2023
MATCHUP RESULT HI PASS HI RUSH HI REC
team logo BYU OKLA 31 , BYU 24 Dillon Gabriel 191 Aidan Robbins 182 Kody Epps 90
team logo Chattanooga ALA 66 , CHAT 10 Jalen Milroe 197 Gino Appleberry 104 Jermaine Burton 105
team logo Abilene Christian TEXA&M 38 , ABICHR 10 Jaylen Henderson 260 Rueben Owens 106 Moose Muhammad III 104
team logo Southern Miss MISSST 41 , SOUMIS 20 Will Rogers 144 Jeffery Pittman 98 Jakarius Caston 88
team logo Louisiana-Monroe MISS 35 , UL-MON 3 Jaxson Dart 310 Hunter Smith 74 Dayton Wade 108
team logo Purdue NW 23 , PURDUE 15 Ben Bryant 230 Tyrone Tracy Jr. 160 Cam Johnson 88
team logo Memphis SMU 38 , MEM 34 Seth Henigan 402 LJ Johnson Jr. 115 Roc Taylor 146
team logo Miami (FL) LOU 38 , MIA-FL 31 Tyler Van Dyke 327 Mark Fletcher Jr. 126 Xavier Restrepo 193
team logo Indiana MSU 24 , IND 21 Katin Houser 277 Trent Howland 77 Maliq Carr 117
team logo Maryland MICH 31 , MD 24 Taulia Tagovailoa 247 Blake Corum 94 Kaden Prather 81
team logo Rutgers PSU 27 , RUT 6 Gavin Wimsatt 130 Beau Pribula 71 Isaiah Washington 55
team logo Coastal Carolina ARMY 28 , COASTC 21 Jarrett Guest 279 Tyson Riley 112 Jared Brown 116
team logo Sacred Heart UCONN 31 , SHEART 3 Ta'Quan Roberson 201 Cam Edwards 90 Justin Joly 73
team logo East Carolina NAVY 10 , ECU 0 Alex Flinn 155 Alex Tecza 94 Chase Sowell 62
team logo Florida Atlantic TULANE 24 , FLAATL 8 Michael Pratt 252 Makhi Hughes 72 Chris Brazzell II 103
team logo Robert Morris
vs team logo Eastern Illinois
EASTIL 28 , RMOR 14 Pierce Holley 226 MJ Flowers 179 Noah Robinson 116
team logo Georgetown
@ team logo Holy Cross
HOLYCR 31 , GTOWN 10 Tyler Knoop 184 Matthew Sluka 161 Jalen Coker 90
team logo Lehigh
vs team logo Lafayette
LAF 49 , LEHIGH 21 Dean DeNobile 245 Jamar Curtis 166 Elijah Steward 91
team logo Brown
vs team logo Dartmouth
DART 38 , BROWN 13 Jake Willcox 198 Q Jones 124 Graham Walker 92
team logo Butler
vs team logo Drake
DRAKE 13 , BUTLER 9 Bret Bushka 140 Jyran Mitchell 55 Luke Wooten 65
team logo Furman
@ team logo Wofford
WOF 19 , FURMAN 13 Carson Jones 99 Ryan Ingram 111 Jordan Davis 28
team logo Western Carolina
@ team logo VMI
VMI 27 , WCU 24 Brody Palhegyi 253 Hunter Rice 138 Aidan Twombly 133
team logo Stetson
vs team logo San Diego
SD 47 , STET 20 Brady Meitz 293 Isaiah Williams 145 Ronnel Johnson 155
team logo Marist
vs team logo Bucknell
BUCK 38 , MARIST 21 Logan Brabham 328 Amin Woods 44 Damian Harris 177
team logo Central Connecticut State
vs team logo Saint Francis U
STF-PA 49 , CENTCT 14 Cole Doyle 253 Tobee Stokes 106 Dawson Snyder 129
team logo Merrimack
vs team logo Duquesne
DUQ 26 , MERRIM 14 Darius Perrantes 218 Edward Robinson 89 Keshawn Brown 54
team logo Harvard
@ team logo Yale
YALE 23 , HARV 18 Jaden Craig 245 Joshua Pitsenberger 99 Tim Dowd 71
team logo UT Martin
@ team logo Samford
SAM 27 , TN-MAR 17 Kinkead Dent 252 Jay Stanton 193 Chandler Smith 86
team logo Massachusetts LIB 49 , UMASS 25 Taisun Phommachanh 239 Kaidon Salter 118 Mark Pope 90
team logo Charleston Southern
@ team logo Gardner-Webb
G-WEBB 34 , CHSOU 10 Isaiah Bess 156 Jayden Brown 147 AJ Johnson 66
team logo Monmouth
@ team logo Albany
ALBANY 41 , MONM 0 Reese Poffenbarger 247 Griffin Woodell 61 Brevin Easton 100
team logo Delaware
vs team logo Villanova
VILL 35 , DEL 7 Connor Watkins 222 Jalen Jackson 130 Jaaron Hayek 121
team logo Hampton
@ team logo Elon
ELON 51 , HAMP 14 Matthew Downing 261 Wayne Dixie III 89 Jamarien Dalton 67
team logo North Carolina A&T
vs team logo Campbell
CAMP 28 , NCA&T 14 Hajj-Malik Williams 188 Shimique Blizzard 79 VJ Wilkins 71
team logo Maine
@ team logo New Hampshire
UNH 44 , MAINE 25 Derek Robertson 315 Myles Thomason 55 Logan Tomlinson 121
team logo Rhode Island
@ team logo Towson
TOWSON 31 , URI 30 Kasim Hill 359 Ja'Den McKenzie 143 Kahtero Summers 163
team logo William & Mary
vs team logo Richmond
RICH 27 , W&M 26 Darius Wilson 247 Malachi Imoh 91 Hollis Mathis 106
team logo Fordham
@ team logo Colgate
COLG 21 , FORD 14 CJ Montes 221 Jaedon Henry 106 MJ Wright 85
team logo Cornell
vs team logo Columbia
COLUM 29 , COR 14 Jameson Wang 345 Malcolm Terry II 73 Davon Kiser 121
team logo Penn
vs team logo Princeton
PRINCE 31 , PENN 24 Aidan Sayin 385 Malachi Hosley 119 Jared Richardson 138
team logo Citadel
@ team logo ETSU
EASTTN 35 , CIT 23 Graeson Underwood 244 Trey Foster 96 Xavier Gaillardetz 103
team logo Southeast Missouri State
@ team logo Bryant
BRYANT 45 , SEMO 21 Zevi Eckhaus 394 Geno Hess 179 Anthony Frederick 118
team logo Morgan State
@ team logo Howard
HOWARD 14 , MORGST 7 Tahj Smith 144 Jarett Hunter 108 Kasey Hawthorne 52
team logo LIU
@ team logo Stonehill
STONEH 40 , LIU 23 Chris Howell 167 Owen Glascoe 97 Kyren Petteway 80
team logo Morehead State
@ team logo Presbyterian
PRESBY 31 , MOR 27 Bryce Patterson 207 Ty Englehart 79 Kyle Daly 139
team logo Montana State
@ team logo Montana
MONT 37 , MONTST 7 Clifton McDowell 200 Tommy Mellott 108 Junior Bergen 91
team logo Northern Colorado
vs team logo Portland State
PORST 27 , NORCOL 23 Shea Kuykendall 222 Dante Chachere 123 Jamarii Robinson 96
team logo Hawaii WYO 42 , HAWAII 9 Andrew Peasley 319 Harrison Waylee 70 John Michael Gyllenborg 128
team logo Louisiana Tech JACST 56 , LATECH 17 Hank Bachmeier 198 Malik Jackson 193 Smoke Harris 61
team logo UTEP MIDDTN 34 , UTEP 30 Cade McConnell 364 Nicholas Vattiato 92 Kelly Akharaiyi 138
team logo Illinois State
@ team logo North Dakota
NORDAK 22 , ILLST 21 Tommy Rittenhouse 241 Mason Blakemore 101 Cam Grandy 73
team logo Central Arkansas
@ team logo Austin Peay
APSU 14 , CENARK 12 Mike DiLiello 189 Jevon Jackson 70 Kylin James 90
team logo Murray State
vs team logo Youngstown State
YSU 34 , MURRAY 17 Jayden Stinson 245 Tyshon King 152 Cole Rusk 94
team logo Indiana State
@ team logo Southern Illinois
SIU 38 , INST 9 Nic Baker 282 Justin Dinka 38 Izaiah Hartrup 125
team logo Western Illinois
vs team logo South Dakota
SOUDAK 48 , WESTIL 6 Aidan Bouman 268 Nate Thomas 102 Carter Bell 142
team logo Valparaiso
@ team logo St. Thomas (MN)
STTHMN 16 , VALPO 10 Amari Powell 179 Hope Adebayo 88 Andrew McElroy 90
team logo Charlotte RICE 28 , CHAR 7 AJ Padgett 140 Dean Connors 184 Luke McCaffrey 54
team logo Stephen F. Austin
@ team logo Eastern Kentucky
EASTKY 36 , SFA 24 Brian Maurer 328 Braedon Sloan 150 Lawton Rikel 85
team logo James Madison APP 26 , JMU 23 Joey Aguilar 318 Ty Son Lawton 37 Elijah Sarratt 128
team logo Delaware State
@ team logo North Carolina Central
NCCENT 55 , DELST 14 Davius Richard 386 Marquis Gillis 133 Joaquin Davis 128
team logo Norfolk State
vs team logo South Carolina State
SCST 44 , NOR 17 Cameron Sapp 174 Tyler Smith 86 Andre Pegues 63
team logo Kent State BALLST 34 , KENTST 3 Kiael Kelly 71 Marquez Cooper 140 Ahmad Edwards 50
team logo Utah ARI 42 , UTAH 18 Bryson Barnes 320 Jonah Coleman 90 Tetairoa McMillan 116
team logo Cincinnati WVU 42 , CIN 21 Garrett Greene 210 Jahiem White 204 Xzavier Henderson 104
team logo Sacramento State
@ team logo UC Davis
UCDAV 31 , SAC 21 Kaiden Bennett 232 Lan Larison 121 Carlos Hill 144
team logo Nevada COLOST 30 , NEVADA 20 Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi 245 Justin Marshall 98 Tory Horton 78
team logo Temple UAB 34 , TEMPLE 24 E.J. Warner 323 Jermaine Brown Jr. 153 Dante Wright 146
team logo Tulsa NORTX 35 , TULSA 28 Chandler Rogers 294 Oscar Adaway III 126 Kamdyn Benjamin 93
team logo Texas State ARKST 77 , TXST 31 TJ Finley 366 Ja'Quez Cross 139 Ashtyn Hawkins 165
team logo Alabama State
@ team logo Prairie View A&M
PVA&M 21 , ALST 14 Damon Stewart 383 Caleb Johnson 97 Tyree Saunders 120
team logo Missouri State
@ team logo South Dakota State
SDAKST 35 , MOSTU 17 Mark Gronowski 323 Isaiah Davis 85 Jadon Janke 187
team logo Tennessee State
vs team logo Tennessee Tech
TNTECH 35 , TENNST 0 Jordyn Potts 184 O.J. Ross 96 Brad Clark 33
team logo Houston Christian
vs team logo UIW
INCWOR 45 , HOUCHR 24 Zach Calzada 407 Jarrell Wiley 93 Caleb Chapman 170
team logo Texas A&M-Commerce
@ team logo Northwestern State
Cancelled
team logo Jackson State
vs team logo Alcorn State
ALC 28 , JKST 24 Aaron Allen 225 Ezequiel Johnson 81 Fabian McCray 109
team logo Texas Southern
vs team logo Arkansas-Pine Bluff
ARK-PB 35 , TXSO 34 Mekhi Hagens 193 LaDarius Owens 143 C'ing Blanton 87
team logo Duke UVA 30 , DUKE 27 Anthony Colandrea 278 Jaquez Moore 100 Jordan Moore 117
team logo USC UCLA 38 , USC 20 Caleb Williams 384 T.J. Harden 142 Brenden Rice 147
team logo Air Force UNLV 31 , AF 27 Jayden Maiava 339 Dylan Carson 104 Ricky White 169
team logo Baylor TCU 42 , BAYLOR 17 Josh Hoover 412 Dominic Richardson 66 Jared Wiley 178
team logo Sam Houston WESTKY 28 , SAMHOU 23 Austin Reed 392 Elijah Young 55 Malachi Corley 171
team logo Illinois IOWA 15 , ILL 13 John Paddock 215 Reggie Love III 64 Isaiah Williams 105
team logo Louisiana TROY 31 , UL-LAF 24 Chandler Fields 282 Kimani Vidal 112 Jabre Barber 74
team logo North Carolina CLEM 31 , UNC 20 Cade Klubnik 219 Omarion Hampton 178 Devontez Walker 70
team logo Virginia Tech NCSU 35 , VATECH 28 Kyron Drones 225 Brennan Armstrong 89 Da'Quan Felton 87
team logo Wake Forest ND 45 , WAKE 7 Sam Hartman 277 Audric Estime 115 Rico Flores Jr. 102
team logo Tennessee UGA 38 , TENN 10 Carson Beck 298 Jaylen Wright 90 Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint 91
team logo Bethune-Cookman
@ team logo Florida A&M
FLAA&M 24 , B-C 7 Jeremy Moussa 150 Jimmy Robinson III 74 Daveno Ellington 60
team logo Eastern Washington
vs team logo Northern Arizona
NOARI 49 , EASTWA 42 Kekoa Visperas 283 Devon Starling 125 BJ Fleming 111
team logo Arizona State OREGON 49 , ARIST 13 Bo Nix 404 Bucky Irving 63 Troy Franklin 128
team logo Houston OKST 43 , HOU 30 Alan Bowman 348 Ollie Gordon II 164 Brennan Presley 189
team logo Auburn NMST 31 , AUBURN 10 Diego Pavia 201 Star Thomas 67 Kordell David 55
team logo McNeese
@ team logo Lamar
LAMAR 52 , MCNE 27 Kamden Sixkiller 206 Joshon Barbie 138 Jonathan Harris 69
team logo Minnesota OHIOST 37 , MINN 3 Kyle McCord 212 TreVeyon Henderson 146 Emeka Egbuka 83
team logo UCF TXTCH 24 , UCF 23 Behren Morton 256 Tahj Brooks 182 Javon Baker 117
team logo Marshall USA 28 , MARSH 0 Carter Bradley 176 La'Damian Webb 117 Caullin Lacy 126
team logo UNI
vs team logo North Dakota State
NDAKST 48 , UNI 27 Theo Day 341 Cole Payton 79 Sam Schnee 162
team logo Georgia Southern ODU 20 , GASO 17 Davis Brin 235 Jalen White 74 Derwin Burgess Jr. 73
team logo Stanford CAL 27 , STAN 15 Fernando Mendoza 294 Jaydn Ott 166 Trond Grizzell 136
team logo North Alabama FLAST 58 , NORTAL 13 Tate Rodemaker 217 CJ Campbell Jr. 78 Jaheim Bell 59
team logo Idaho State
@ team logo Idaho
IDAHO 63 , IDAST 21 Jack Layne 275 Anthony Woods 115 Chedon James 145
team logo Utah Tech
vs team logo Southern Utah
SOUT 24 , UTAHTE 16 Kobe Tracy 227 Targhee Lambson 138 Daniel Thomason 70
team logo Utah State BOISE 45 , UTAHST 10 Cooper Legas 128 George Holani 182 Jalen Royals 113
team logo Kansas KANST 31 , KANSAS 27 Will Howard 165 Devin Neal 138 Jayce Brown 96
team logo Davidson
vs team logo Dayton
DAYTON 45 , DAV 14 Dante Casciola 151 Luke Hansen 162 Gavin Lochow 47
team logo Oregon State WASH 22 , OREST 20 DJ Uiagalelei 164 Damien Martinez 123 Rome Odunze 106
team logo FIU ARK 44 , FIU 20 Keyone Jenkins 265 Isaiah Augustave 101 Kris Mitchell 157
team logo Florida MISSOU 33 , FLA 31 Brady Cook 331 Cody Schrader 148 Luther Burden III 158
team logo Nebraska WISC 24 , NEB 17 Chubba Purdy 169 Chubba Purdy 105 Will Pauling 79
team logo Kentucky SCAR 17 , KTY 14 Spencer Rattler 207 Ray Davis 61 Xavier Legette 94
team logo Iowa State TEX 26 , IAST 16 Rocco Becht 323 CJ Baxter 117 Jayden Higgins 104
team logo Georgia State LSU 56 , GAST 14 Jayden Daniels 413 Jayden Daniels 96 Malik Nabers 140
team logo Syracuse GATECH 31 , SYR 22 Haynes King 138 LeQuint Allen 120 Dominick Blaylock 68
team logo Cal Poly
vs team logo Weber State
WEB 48 , CALPLY 21 Richie Munoz 329 Adrian Cormier 42 Dominique Thompson 116
team logo Fresno State NM 25 , FRES 17 Logan Fife 137 Jacory Croskey-Merritt 209 Caleb Medford 122
team logo San Diego State SJSU 24 , SDSU 13 Chevan Cordeiro 174 Quali Conley 155 Isaac Jernagin 56

All times are in ET. Tap on each match's time to view it in your local timezone.

College Football Schedule

Rose Bowl

The United States probably has the biggest following with respect to any college sport in the world. In fact, there are plenty of people in America who are not as gung ho about the professional sports leagues such as the NFL, NBA, MLB, etc. as they are about the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletics Association) sports. There could be several reasons for this but the one thing that stands out is the passion individuals have for their school and the respective college team.

The college football season typically starts from the end of August to the early part of January. Teams generally play anywhere between 8 to 12 games a year. They play an equal number of home and away games throughout the season but the scheduling process is quite complex to understand.

Understanding how the NCAA runs college football games can be quite confusing. The NCAA for instance does not control all aspects of college football games. It only has control over the rules and compliances on the field, apart from that everything else including the money and the tournaments is managed by the respective conferences of college football.

NCAA Football Conferences

The NCAA football constitutes first and foremost of four divisions which are Division 1 FBS, Division 1 FCS, Division 2, and Division 3. Most of the college football teams belong to either one of these divisions. Although not everything is set in stone, it is generally considered that playing college football for a Division 1 school will get you the maximum chance of going professional in the future.

We will check out only the Division 1 FBS in this article as it is the most important one and really the only one that matters. FBS stands for Football Bowl Subdivision and within this division, we have a total of 10 different conferences. The four teams of Notre Dame, Brigham Young University, Army, and Navy do not belong to any of the conferences despite being in the FBS.

Out of these ten, there are five conferences known as the Power Five Conferences, which are the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big Ten Conference, Big 12 Conference, Pac-12 Conference, and Southeastern Conference (SEC).

The remaining five conferences which are at times referred to as the Non-Power Five (Group of 5) Conferences are the American Athletic Conference (AAC), Conference USA Conference, Mid-American Conference (MAC), Mountain West Conference (MWC), and the Sun Belt Conference (SBC).

NCAA Football Schedule Process

This is where things start getting tricky because every conference in college football has its individual freedom. That means all conferences have the autonomy to create their own schedules, but it is not as simple as just assigning two teams to play each other within their own conference.

Every conference has its own set of rules and guidelines which they use to schedule games. In addition to that, some conferences have more pull than others thereby directly impacting which teams get to play the best games. To create one national schedule from this is one tough ask.

It may come as a surprise that in today's day and age when the simplest of simple things are done with the help of an algorithm run by software, that college football schedules are drawn up by speaking to one another and agreeing to terms. The conference officials and the athletic directors all must come together and work out a possible schedule that works for everyone and which also allots an equal number of home and away games to each team.

There are three main factors which go into consideration during the scheduling of college football games. They are conference scheduling, non-conference scheduling, and TV broadcasting.

Conference scheduling

Since each conference has its own method of scheduling games, the process remains unique to all conferences. Generally, all the schools will play the other schools within their conference at least once a year. The Power Five conferences also play a few cross-divisional games in addition to their conference games.

Non-conference scheduling

These are the games that each team needs to play outside of their own conference against other teams. As each team must figure out with whom they will play and when and where, this can get a bit complicated, especially for the smaller school.

Power Five teams will normally play one or two non-conference games with other Power Five conferences as well as one or two games with teams from Group of Five conferences. Since the reward is greater for Group of Five teams when they go up against the Power Five competition, teams from the former conferences will generally try to play more games with the latter. In doing so, Group of Five teams will get a significantly more amount of revenue.

TV Broadcasting

The third factor that goes into scheduling college football games is that of TV broadcasting. This is because all top networks want to show the best possible games at the best time slots on their respective networks. Therefore, many times the TV networks will also have a say in the scheduling matters and may request any changes or modifications as they see fit.

Power 5 and Group of 5 Conferences

Typically, the best of the best teams are all in the Power 5 conferences. They are the ones who receive the maximum media attention, the maximum revenue, and boast of the maximum fan following as well. The teams in these conferences have a long-standing history of winning and producing the best talent that will carry forward to the professional league.

Each conference in the Power Five has its own rules for scheduling and not all conferences play the same number of games within their own conference. For example, teams in the Big Ten conference will play nine conference games and three non-conference games, but the same is not the case with the SEC as they play only eight conference games and four non-conference games.

However, a lot of mixing up and shaking up of the conferences and their rules keep taking place and therefore not everything can be attributed to a permanent way of functioning. For instance, some teams are looking to jump from one conference to another while some conferences that are playing eight inter-conference games want to move to nine.

Therefore, for the various conferences to make their schedules, a lot of attention must be given to all the guidelines and a committee needs to monitor all the intricacies such as the competitive balance between the teams, broadcast terms and conditions, an equal number of home and away games, and more.

As for the Group of Five conferences, most of them will play eight inter-conference games and four non-conference games. The same level of thought process must go into making the schedule for these conferences as well. But one disadvantage for the Group of 5 teams is that they must strive harder to get a matchup with some of the Power 5 teams.

Conference Scheduling

Since all conferences have their unique ways of creating a schedule, not all teams will play each other from their respective conference on an annual basis. Such a case arises because there are a greater number of teams in conferences than the number of games a team can play. Therefore, each conference needs to resort to a rotation-based design to ensure that teams will play each other once every few years.

For example, if we look at the Big 12 conference, it has a total of ten teams. This conference plays 9 conference and 1 non-conference game throughout the season. Thus, as per the rotation policy, each team will play all other teams in the conference at least once in two years.

Taking the example of the SEC, which is probably the most popular conference today, it has fourteen teams within the conference and it is also subdivided into two divisions, namely: the East and the West. Each team will play a total of eight conference games out of which six are from their own division and the other two are from the other division. This conference also has 1 permanent rival for each team and it rotates the other seven conference games every year.

Non-Conference Scheduling

Scheduling the non-conference games does not require any rotational policy as teams are free to select their opponents mutually. However, teams will want to play games against top-quality opposition to ensure they remain at a high level when they play their conference games. Also, the Group of 5 conference teams can take this opportunity to not only see where they are in terms of performance with the top tier teams, but they can also generate much more income from these games as more media and revenue are associated with the Power 5 teams.

When it comes to non-conference scheduling, there are many teams that have created matchups with one another years in advance. This is done as careful planning is required to generate proper revenue for home games and to maintain steady competition. Teams will alternate between easy and difficult games every other year as a way of balancing out their schedules.

FBS Power 5 Conferences

ACC Scheduling

From 2023, the ACC will play their games with the newly introduced 3-5-5 format. That means that each team will play three of their rivals on a permanent basis which leaves ten teams. These ten teams will be separated into two groups of five and they will be flipped every other year. Therefore, within the conference the ACC will play eight teams and then they will play a further four teams outside of their conference as well.

As of 2023, the ACC consists of 14 schools in the conference which are as follows:

  1. Boston College Eagles
  2. Clemson Tigers
  3. Duke Blue Devils
  4. Florida State Seminoles
  5. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
  6. Louisville Cardinals
  7. Miami Hurricanes
  8. North Carolina Tar Heels
  9. North Carolina State Wolfpack
  10. Pittsburgh Panthers
  11. Syracuse Orange
  12. Virginia Cavaliers
  13. Virginia Tech Hokies
  14. Wake Forest Demon Deacons

The permanent matchups for the ACC teams are as below:

UniversityRival 1Rival 2Rival 3
Boston CollegeMiamiPittsburghSyracuse
ClemsonFlorida StateGeorgia TechNC State
DukeNorth CarolinaNC StateWake Forest
Florida StateClemsonMiamiSyracuse
Georgia TechClemsonLouisvilleWake Forest
LouisvilleGeorgia TechMiamiVirginia
MiamiBoston CollegeFlorida StateLouisville
North CarolinaDukeNC StateVirginia
NC StateClemsonDukeNorth Carolina
PittsburghBoston CollegeSyracuseVirginia Tech
SyracuseBoston CollegeFlorida StatePittsburgh
VirginiaLouisvilleNorth CarolinaVirginia Tech
Virginia TechPittsburghVirginiaWake Forest
Wake ForestDukeGeorgia TechVirginia Tech

Big 10 Scheduling

The Big 10 which is divided into the East and West division follows a nine game conference schedule. Seven teams are placed in both divisions based upon their locality. The Big 10 schedules six divisional games and three cross divisional games. The Indiana and Perdue game is an annual cross division game which is a permanent fixture. Apart from this, each team will face three non-conference teams as well.

As of 2023, the Big Ten’s two divisions and their respective teams are as follows:

EastWest
Ohio State BuckeyesMinnesota Golden Gophers
Rutgers Scarlet KnightsIowa Hawkeyes
Maryland TerrapinsWisconsin Badgers
Michigan WolverinesIllinois Fighting Illini
Michigan St. SpartansPurdue Boilermakers
Penn St. Nittany LionsNorthwestern Wildcats
Indiana HoosiersNebraska Cornhuskers

Big 12 Scheduling

The Big 12’s current scheduling system is a 14 team round robin event. Upon its conclusion, the top two teams in the conference will fight it out in the Championship game to declare the eventual winner of the conference.

The current teams playing in the Big 12 conference are:

  1. BYU Cougars
  2. Cincinnati Bearcats
  3. Houston Cougars
  4. Iowa State Cyclones
  5. Kansas Jayhawks
  6. Kansas State Wildcats
  7. Oklahoma Sooners
  8. Oklahoma State Cowboys
  9. Texas Longhorns
  10. UCF Knights
  11. Baylor Bears
  12. TCU Horned Frogs
  13. Texas Tech Red Raiders
  14. West Virginia Mountaineers

PAC-12 Scheduling

The PAC-12 which once followed divisions of two has done away with them and now hold a round robin system similar to that of the Big 12. Once the season comes to an end the top two teams in the conference will play the Championship game.

The PAC-12 football conference is made up of the following teams:

  1. USC Trojans
  2. Arizona Wildcats
  3. Arizona State Sun Devils
  4. California Golden Bears
  5. Colorado Buffaloes
  6. Oregon Ducks
  7. Oregon State Beavers
  8. Stanford Cardinal
  9. UCLA Bruins
  10. Utah Utes
  11. Washington Huskies
  12. Washington State Cougars

SEC Scheduling

Considered by many to be the best conference in college football at least since the past few years, the SEC operates in a division format with two divisions of seven teams each. However, with more teams joining next year, it is expected that the current system will undergo a change to better accommodate the expansion of the conference. At present though, each team within the conference plays eight conference games.

From the division itself, each team plays all the other six teams every year. Then, each team has a permanent cross division rival for the seventh game and the eighth game is a cross divisional rotation.

The SECs permanent cross-divisional matchups are:

  1. Alabama vs. Tennessee
  2. Arkansas vs. Missouri
  3. Auburn vs. Georgia
  4. LSU vs. Florida
  5. Mississippi State vs. Kentucky
  6. Ole Miss vs. Vanderbilt
  7. Texas A&M vs. South Carolina.

The teams participating in the SEC conference as of 2023 are:

EastWest
Vanderbilt CommodoresAlabama Crimson Tide
Georgia BulldogsArkansas Razorbacks
Kentucky WildcatsAuburn Tigers
Missouri TigersOle Miss Rebels
Tennessee VolunteersMississippi State Bulldogs
Florida GatorsTexasA&M Aggies
South Carolina GamecocksLSU Tigers

FBS Group of Five Conferences

AAC Scheduling

The AAC scheduling system has just recently undergone a change which is expected to be continued till 2026. Featuring a conference of 14 teams, each team is set to play 8 conference games. As per this schedule, each team within the conference will face every other team twice in a period of four years getting one home game and one away game respectively. The ACC has also included six annual matchups which are as follows:

  1. North Texas vs. SMU
  2. UAB vs. Memphis
  3. Rice vs. UTSA
  4. Charlotte vs. East Carolina
  5. Florida Atlantic vs. South Florida
  6. Navy vs. Temple

The 14 members of the AAC are as follows:

  1. Memphis Tigers
  2. Charlotte 49ers
  3. Florida Atlantic Owls
  4. Navy Midshipmen
  5. Rice Owls
  6. SMU Mustangs
  7. South Florida Bulls
  8. Temple Owls
  9. Tulane Green Wave
  10. Tulsa Golden Hurricane
  11. UAB Blazers
  12. UTSA Roadrunners
  13. East Carolina Pirates
  14. North Texas Mean Green

C-USA Scheduling

This conference has been quite unstable since its formation. Several teams have left to join different conferences while new teams are making their way to the C-USA. This conference is set to expand further by next year making it one of the most unpredictable conferences in college football. As a result, the current schedule is in place only for the 2023 season and is expected to undergo some type of modification before the 2024 season. As for now, all nine teams from the conference will play each other in a round robin format.

The nine teams which make up the C-USA conference are:

  1. Liberty Flames
  2. Jacksonville State Gamecocks
  3. Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
  4. Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
  5. Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders
  6. Sam Houston Bearkats
  7. FIU Panthers
  8. New Mexico State Aggies
  9. UTEP Miners

MAC Scheduling

The MAC conference is quite simple as it is divided into divisions featuring six teams each. Teams in this conference are set to play eight conference games which includes five divisional games and three cross divisional games.

The divisions of the MAC are as below:

EastWest
Ohio BobcatsCentral Michigan Chippewas
Akron ZipsEastern Michigan Eagles
Bowling Green FalconsNorthern Illinois Huskies
Miami (OH) RedHawksToledo Rockets
Buffalo BullsWestern Michigan Broncos
Kent State Golden FlashesBall State Cardinals

MWC Scheduling

The MWC has made a change from 2023 onwards. Earlier this conference had a divisional system but now that has been scrapped. The twelve-team conference will play a 2-6 format wherein the 2 games will be against fixed opponents every year. The remaining six games will be rotation based and will be flipped every other year.

The teams making up the Mountain West Conference are:

  1. Air Force Falcons
  2. Fresno State Bulldogs
  3. Wyoming Cowboys
  4. San Diego State Aztecs
  5. New Mexico Lobos
  6. UNLV Rebels
  7. Utah State Aggies
  8. Hawaii Rainbow Warriors
  9. San Jose State Spartans
  10. Colorado State Rams
  11. Boise State Broncos
  12. Nevada Wolf Pack

The two permanent fixtures per team are as below:

UniversityRival 1Rival 2
Air ForceColorado StateWyoming
Boise StateNew MexicoUtah State
Colorado StateAir ForceWyoming
Fresno StateNevadaSan Jose State
HawaiiSan Diego StateUNLV
NevadaFresno StateUNLV
New MexicoBoise StateSan Jose State
San Diego StateHawaiiUtah State
San Jose StateFresno StateNew Mexico
UNLVHawaiiNevada
Utah StateBoise StateSan Diego State
WyomingAir ForceColorado State

SBC Scheduling

The SBC conference is another one divided into two divisions of seven teams each. According to their scheduling, each team will play two cross divisional games, one at home and one away. Furthermore, each team will play against all six divisional opponents every year for a total of eight conference games.

The divisions of the SBC conference are as below:

EastWest
Old Dominion MonarchsLouisiana-Monroe Warhawks
Georgia Southern EaglesSouth Alabama Jaguars
Georgia State PanthersSouthern Miss Golden Eagles
James Madison DukesTexas State Bobcats
Marshall Thundering HerdTroy Trojans
Appalachian State MountaineersArkansas State Red Wolves
Coastal Carolina ChanticleersLouisiana Ragin' Cajuns

Independents (FBS) Scheduling

The Independent programs in college football are very few today with only four of them left. Most of the independent schools from earlier have joined other conferences as they can then earn revenue from television broadcasting. In addition to that, joining a conference makes their scheduling worries easier. However, the independent schools do get more flexibility to schedule their matchups as they are not conference bound. This gives them added advantage in having interesting games throughout the year.

The four independent football schools that are remaining are:

  1. Army West Point Black Knights
  2. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
  3. Connecticut Huskies
  4. Massachusetts Minutemen

The Army has fixed annual games against the Navy and Air Force. They also have a rivalry game with Notre Dame but it is not on an annual basis and is scheduled quite randomly. As for Notre Dame, they have many long-standing rivalry matchups throughout the year and they also have a deal with the ACC which gives them five games every year.

UConn was earlier part of the AAC but their other sports faced some issues due to which they had to leave the conference in 2020. Nowadays, as their football program is not so strong, many FBS schools play against them in order to fill out their schedules.

FCS Conferences

The conferences in the FCS division of college football are undergoing regular changes with new conferences coming up and teams leaving and joining every passing year. As a result of which the scheduling format for these conferences keep on changing and information pertaining to the same is scantily available.

Big Sky Scheduling

The Big Sky Conference consists of twelve teams currently. Their schedule from 2022 to 2024 is set at eight league games which comprises two fixed annual opponents and six rotating ones. This new format was put into action to make sure that teams would get to play other teams in the conference more frequently than earlier. Teams have also been afforded the flexibility to choose at least one of their permanent opponents.

The Big Sky’s twelve-member conference is as follows:

  1. Idaho Vandals
  2. Montana Grizzlies
  3. Sacramento State Hornets
  4. Weber State Wildcats
  5. Cal Poly Mustangs
  6. Montana State Bobcats
  7. UC Davis Aggies
  8. Eastern Washington Eagles
  9. Idaho State Bengals
  10. Northern Arizona Lumberjacks
  11. Northern Colorado Bears
  12. Portland State Vikings

Big South Scheduling

The Big South Conference is one of the newest conferences in college football. Initially starting out with nine teams, it has quickly been reduced to only four at present. This conference has decided to merge with the Ohio Valley Conference in 2026 as both conferences do not have sufficient teams. Due to so many ongoing changes, the exact scheduling format for the Big South Conference is not available.

The four teams in the Big South Conference are as below:

  1. Bryant Bulldogs
  2. Charleston Southern Buccaneers
  3. Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs
  4. Robert Morris Colonials

Coastal Athletic Association Conference Scheduling

The CAA conference which consists of fifteen teams has each team playing eight games in the conference. Moreover, each team has been allotted two permanent rivals annually while the remaining six games are on rotation basis. This means each team will play every other team at home and away at least once in eight years.

The fifteen members of the CAA conference are:

  1. William & Mary Tribe
  2. Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens
  3. Monmouth Hawks
  4. Rhode Island Rams
  5. Villanova Wildcats
  6. Hampton Pirates
  7. New Hampshire Wildcats
  8. Albany Great Danes
  9. Elon Phoenix
  10. Maine Black Bears
  11. North Carolina A&T Aggies
  12. Richmond Spiders
  13. Campbell Fighting Camels
  14. Towson Tigers
  15. Stony Brook Seawolves

Independents (FCS) Conference Scheduling

In the FCS division of college football, the Kennesaw State Owls are the only team which are playing as an independent conference. The Owls are slowly beginning their transition from the FCS to the FBS as they are moving to Conference USA football conference in 2024.

Ivy League Conference Scheduling

There are a total of eight Ivy League Schools featuring in the college football program. The Ivy League Conference usually starts a little later than the other conferences, mostly near mid-September. These schools play ten games each which include a complete round-robin system where each team plays all the other seven teams. The remaining three games are scheduled against non-conference teams.

Ivy League Conference teams include:

  1. Dartmouth Big Green
  2. Harvard Crimson
  3. Columbia Lions
  4. Princeton Tigers
  5. Cornell Big Red
  6. Penn Quakers
  7. Yale Bulldogs
  8. Brown Bears

Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Scheduling

The MEAC is a conference consisting of six football teams. As per their schedule for the 2023 season, teams will play non-conference games at the start and the end of the season with conference games being sandwiched in between.

The six participating teams in MEAC are”

  1. North Carolina Central Eagles
  2. Howard Bison
  3. Morgan State Bears
  4. Norfolk State Spartans
  5. Delaware State Hornets
  6. South Carolina State Bulldogs

Missouri Valley Conference Scheduling

The Missouri Valley Conference is one of those which has somewhat of a complex history. It has undergone a couple of name changes over the years as well. This conference uses a simple round robin system to decide the eventual conference champion. The first three weeks are usually reserved for non-conference matchups while the remaining nine weeks are for conference games. Teams are also allowed to make changes to their schedule provided both teams have a written agreement in place.

  1. Teams participating in this conference currently are:
  2. Illinois State Redbirds
  3. North Dakota Fighting Hawks
  4. North Dakota State Bison
  5. South Dakota State Jackrabbits
  6. Southern Illinois Salukis
  7. Murray State Racers
  8. South Dakota Coyotes
  9. Youngstown State Penguins
  10. Indiana State Sycamores
  11. Missouri State Bears
  12. UNI Panthers
  13. Western Illinois Leathernecks

Northeast Conference Scheduling

The Northeast Conference features eight teams which will all play each other. Each team will get four home games and three away games in the conference. Each team will also play three away non-conference games for the 2023 season.

The eight teams making up the Northeast Conference are:

  1. Stonehill Skyhawks
  2. Duquesne Dukes
  3. LIU Sharks
  4. Merrimack Warriors
  5. Sacred Heart Pioneers
  6. Saint Francis U Red Flash
  7. Wagner Seahawks
  8. Central Connecticut State Blue Devils

Ohio Valley Conference Scheduling

The Ohio Valley Conference has joined forces with the Big South Conference as both conferences had lost several teams. Now the two conferences together have a total of ten teams and will play a schedule consisting of six conference games. As prior commitments with teams are still prevalent, more conference games cannot be played currently.

The Ohio Valley Conference teams are:

  1. Southeast Missouri State Redhawks
  2. Eastern Illinois Panthers
  3. Tennessee State Tigers
  4. UT Martin Skyhawks
  5. Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles
  6. Lindenwood Lions

Patriot League Conference Scheduling

The Patriot League Conference features seven teams which are as follows:

  1. Georgetown Hoyas
  2. Fordham Rams
  3. Bucknell Bison
  4. Holy Cross Crusaders
  5. Lafayette Leopards
  6. Lehigh Mountain Hawks
  7. Colgate Raiders

Pioneer League Conference Scheduling

This conference is truly a one-of-a-kind conference given the fact that it has teams from both coasts and many more through the heart of the country. The eleven team conference boasts teams such as:

  1. Stetson Hatters
  2. Butler Bulldogs
  3. Dayton Flyers
  4. Morehead State Eagles
  5. Presbyterian Blue Hose
  6. St. Thomas (MN) Tommies
  7. Marist Red Foxes
  8. Davidson Wildcats
  9. Drake Bulldogs
  10. San Diego Toreros
  11. Valparaiso Beacons

Southern Conference Scheduling

The Southern Conference is a nine-team conference which is comprised of the following teams:

  1. Western Carolina Catamounts
  2. Mercer Bears
  3. Chattanooga Mocs
  4. ETSU Buccaneers
  5. Furman Paladins
  6. VMI Keydets
  7. Citadel Bulldogs
  8. Wofford Terriers
  9. Samford Bulldogs

Southland Conference Scheduling

With eight teams featuring in the Southland Conference, each team will play against the other teams in a round-robin format in 2023. This is the first time since 2013 that the round-robin format has been implemented. Apart from these seven games, teams will also play non-conference games.

The Southland Conference is made up of the following eight teams:

  1. Houston Christian Huskies
  2. UIW Cardinals
  3. Lamar Cardinals
  4. McNeese Cowboys
  5. Nicholls Colonels
  6. Northwestern State Demons
  7. Southeastern Louisiana Lions
  8. Texas A&M-Commerce Lions

Southwestern Athletic Conference Scheduling

The SWAC has been divided into two divisions and since 2021, it has implemented the following schedule to its football program. Each team will play five divisional and three non-divisional games. Three teams from the other division will be rotated every two years. The team with the best record in the conference will get the chance to host the Championship game.

The two divisions of the SWAC are as follows:

EASTWEST
Florida A&M RattlersPrairie View A&M Panthers
Mississippi Valley State Delta DevilsAlcorn State Braves
Alabama A&M BulldogsArkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions
Alabama State HornetsGrambling State Tigers
Bethune-Cookman WildcatsSouthern University Jaguars
Jackson State TigersTexas Southern Tigers

United Athletic Conference Scheduling

The United Athletic Conference is a newly formed conference with the merger of two previously independent conferences, namely, the ASUN Conference and the Western Athletic Conference. Having nine teams currently as part of its membership, the UAC will be limited to six conference games for the 2023 season before it switches to a full round-robin system in 2024.

The UAC teams at present include:

  1. Tarleton State Texans
  2. Abilene Christian Wildcats
  3. Central Arkansas Bears
  4. Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks
  5. Austin Peay Governors
  6. Eastern Kentucky Colonels
  7. Southern Utah Thunderbirds
  8. Utah Tech Trailblazers
  9. North Alabama Lions

Conclusion

In short, college football scheduling is not the same for each team as it has more flexibility. This is the case because the NCAA does not have a say in scheduling matters which is being handled by the respective conferences. Furthermore, each conference has its own set of rules that it follows to prepare its unique schedule taking into consideration various factors such as home and away games, conference, and non-conference games, and of course the broadcasting terms and conditions.

Sometimes, another issue which crops up during scheduling is the lack of availability of a stadium due to various factors beyond the team’s control. Considering all these factors, the committee members of each conference come out with a schedule which is then overseen by the NCAA.

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