2023 Missouri Valley Football Conference season

2023 Missouri Valley Football Conference season
LeagueNCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision
SportFootball
DurationAugust 31, 2023
through January 7, 2024
Number of teams12
2024 NFL Draft
Top draft pickMason McCormick, G, South Dakota State
Picked byPittsburgh Steelers (round 4, pick 119)
Regular season
Champion

Playoff Participants		South Dakota State

North Dakota
North Dakota State
South Dakota
Southern Illinois
Youngstown State
Football seasons
← 2022
2024 →
2023 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 1 South Dakota State $^   8 – 0     15 – 0  
No. 4 South Dakota ^   7 – 1     10 – 3  
No. 3 North Dakota State ^   5 – 3     11 – 4  
No. 19 Youngstown State ^   5 – 3     8 – 5  
No. 16 North Dakota ^   5 – 3     7 – 5  
Northern Iowa   5 – 3     6 – 5  
No. 12 Southern Illinois ^   4 – 4     8 – 5  
Illinois State   4 – 4     6 – 5  
Missouri State   3 – 5     4 – 7  
Murray State   1 – 7     2 – 9  
Indiana State   1 – 7     1 – 10  
Western Illinois   0 – 8     0 – 11  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
As of November 25, 2024
Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2023 Missouri Valley Football Conference football season was the 38th season of college football play for the Missouri Valley Football Conference and part of the 2023 NCAA Division I FCS football season. This was the MVFC's first season with 12 teams, as the conference added Murray State over the offseason. It was also the last season with 12 teams for now, as it was announced in May 2023 that Western Illinois would be leaving the MVFC after the 2023 season for the Ohio Valley Conference.[1]

South Dakota State made it to the National Championship and won their 2nd FCS title in program history and became the third MVFC team to win back to back titles.[2] North Dakota State made the playoffs unseeded, and won their way into the semifinals where they lost to 2nd seeded Montana.[3] South Dakota made the playoffs as the 3rd seed, and made it to the quarterfinals, where they lost to North Dakota State.[4] Youngstown State and Southern Illinois made the playoffs unseeded as well, and made it to the 2nd round, losing to 8th seeded Villanova[5] and 4th seeded Idaho.[6] North Dakota made the playoffs unseeded and lost to Sacramento State in the opening round.[7]

  1. ^ "Leatherneck Athletics Moving to Ohio Valley Conference for All Sports". goleathernecks.com. Western Illinois Leathernecks. May 12, 2023. Retrieved May 12, 2023.
  2. ^ "South Dakota State Beats Montana to Win 2024 FCS Championship for 2nd Straight Title". bleacherreport.com. Bleacher Report. January 7, 2024. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  3. ^ "Bergen comes up big as Montana beats North Dakota State 31-29 in 2 OTs to make FCS Championship game". cbssports.com. CBS. December 17, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
  4. ^ "North Dakota State rolls into FCS semifinals with 45-17 win over South Dakota". cbssports.com. CBS. December 9, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
  5. ^ "Villanova tops Youngstown State 45-28 in FCS playoffs". apnews.com. Associated Press. December 2, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
  6. ^ "Chavez kicks 29-yard FG in OT to help Idaho beat S. Illinois 20-17, advance to FCS quarters". apnews.com. Associated Press. December 3, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
  7. ^ "Late score gives Sacramento State 42-35 win over North Dakota in FCS playoffs". apnews.com. Associated Press. November 25, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2024.