2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season

The 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the 154th season of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at its highest level of competition, the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). The regular season began on August 26 and ended on December 9. The postseason began on December 15, and, aside from any all-star games that are scheduled, ended on January 8, 2024, with the College Football Playoff National Championship at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas.

Number of teams133

DurationAugust 26, 2023 – December 9, 2023

Preseason AP No. 1Georgia

DurationDecember 15, 2023 – January 8, 2024

Quick facts Number of teams, Duration ...

2023 NCAA Division I FBS season
LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels running from Florida defenders on November 11 at Tiger Stadium.
Number of teams	133
Duration	August 26, 2023 – December 9, 2023
Preseason AP No. 1	Georgia
Postseason
Duration	December 15, 2023 – January 8, 2024
Bowl games	42^[a]
AP Poll No. 1	Michigan
Coaches Poll No. 1	Michigan
Heisman Trophy	Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
College Football Playoff
2024 College Football Playoff National Championship
Site	NRG Stadium (Houston, Texas)
Champion(s)	Michigan
NCAA Division I FBS football seasons
← 2022 2024 →

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The Michigan Wolverines defeated the Washington Huskies by a score of 34–13 to claim the program's first national championship in the College Football Playoff (CFP) era, and their 12th overall. This was the tenth and final season of using the four team College Football Playoff (CFP) system, with the bracket being expanded to 12 teams for the 2024 season.^[1] The season's Heisman Trophy winner was LSU Tigers quarterback Jayden Daniels, who led all players in total yards and set the NCAA single-season passer rating record.

Rule changes

The following rules changes were approved by the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Committee for the season:^[2]

Mirroring the NFL rule adopted in the 2005 NFL season, teams may not call consecutive timeouts during a single dead ball period.
Accepted penalties committed on the last play of the first or third quarter will no longer result in an untimed down before the period ends. The penalty enforcement will be marked off and the second or fourth quarter will begin with the ball at the new spot. This modifies the rule adopted in the 1983 season.
Modifying a rule adopted in the 1968 season, the game clock will no longer be stopped for first downs on offense except inside of the final two minutes of each half. This is similar to a rule used in the current incarnation of the UFL, as well as its predecessors, the USFL and XFL. The NFL does not stop the game clock for first downs at any time in the game. This rule was adopted for all NCAA Football divisions except Division III, which eventually adopted this change in 2024.
When there is not a replay official in the booth, the on-field officials will have optional replay available in the event of a coaches' challenge. This rule was trialed in the Division II Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association in its 2022 conference season.
Establishing guidelines for second-half warmup activities, including requiring teams to wait until the field is made available to return and having designated areas of the field to warm up.
When teams are on the field, drones are not allowed over the playing surface or the team area.
If a player receives a third targeting penalty in the same season (which requires a one-game suspension) and the penalty is overturned by the National Coordinator of Officials upon appeal, the suspension will be vacated.
The area where "roughing/running into the kicker" protection ends was expanded to include when the kicker retreats more than five yards behind the spot the kicker was initially lined up to receive the snap. Previously the protection ended only when the kicker ran outside the tackle box before kicking the ball. The rule change was the result of a controversial play in the 2022 game between Missouri and Kentucky, where roughing was called after the Kentucky punter was hit while attempting a rushed kick following a botched snap which sailed more than 20 yards over his head.

Points of Emphasis for the 2023 season included:^[3]

Continued emphasis on targeting, sideline control, concussions, feigning injuries and acts of taunting.
Pre-snap actions by the offense designed to cause the defense to jump into the neutral zone (abrupt, quick, or jerky motions by the quarterback) and disconcerting signals by the defense designed to cause a false start or snap issues on offense (simulating cadence and other sounds or motions similar to the offense's snap signals, including the use of the "clap" on defense designed to be similar to the offense).
Rules regarding illegal hits to the quarterback/passer will be more strictly enforced.

Other headlines

August 15 – Fresno State announced that the Bulldogs' home opener against Eastern Washington on September 9 would be the first-ever FBS game to be broadcast over linear television exclusively in Spanish. The city of Fresno is roughly 60% Hispanic, and the majority of Fresno State's enrollment is Hispanic. The game would be broadcast on UniMás in the Fresno and Bakersfield markets. English-language coverage was exclusively via streaming, with audio by Fresno State's radio broadcast team.^[4]
August 29 – Arizona State announced a self imposed bowl ban for the 2023 season. The ban stems from allegations that Arizona State hosted high school recruits during the COVID-19 dead period. At the time of announcement, an NCAA infractions case was ongoing.^[5]
October 4 – The NCAA announced several major changes to Division I football recruiting and governance rules:^[6]
- The window for athletes to enter the transfer portal was reduced. For FBS players, the portal now opens on the Monday after conference championship games are played and stays open for 30 days. For players participating in the postseason (i.e., bowl games, including the College Football Playoff), there is an additional 5-day window after the players' final game.
- The limit on "initial counters"—i.e., players who are receiving athletically related financial aid for the first time—was permanently eliminated. The previous limit of 25 had been suspended due to COVID-19 impacts.
- Football attendance requirements for FBS membership were eliminated, effective immediately.
- The application fee for transitioning from FCS to FBS increased from $5,000 to $5 million, effective immediately.
- Starting with the 2027–28 school year, FBS members must fund the equivalent of 210 full scholarships across all sports, and spend at least $6 million annually on such aid.
- Also starting in 2027–28, FBS members must provide at least 90% of the total number of allowed scholarships across 16 sports, including football. Schools that start FBS transitions in 2024–25 or later must meet both of the aforementioned limits by the end of their two-year transition.
November 28 – Conference USA announced that Delaware, then a member of the Coastal Athletic Association and its technically separate football arm of CAA Football, would start a transition from FCS to FBS in 2024 and join CUSA in 2025.^[7]
December 1 – The two schools left behind by the collapse of the Pac-12 Conference, Oregon State and Washington State, entered into a scheduling agreement with the Mountain West Conference (MW) for at least the 2024 season. Each MW team would play one game against either of the so-called "Pac-2" schools. These games would not count in the MW standings, and the Pac-2 was not eligible for the MW championship.^[8]

Conference realignment

Two schools played their first FBS seasons in 2023. Sam Houston (from the Western Athletic Conference) and Jacksonville State (from the ASUN Conference) began transitions from Division I FCS in 2022 and joined Conference USA (CUSA) in July 2023.^[9]

Two other Independent schools, Liberty and New Mexico State, joined CUSA in 2023; those schools had respectively been full members of the ASUN and WAC.^[9]

Six schools from CUSA joined the American Athletic Conference for the 2023 season—Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, North Texas, Rice, UAB, and UTSA.^[10] This followed the departure of Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF from The American for the Big 12 Conference in 2023. In addition, BYU, previously an FBS independent, joined the Big 12.^[11]

More information Team, Conference in 2022 ...

Team	Conference in 2022	Conference in 2023
BYU	Independent (FBS)	Big 12
Charlotte	CUSA	American
Cincinnati	American	Big 12
Florida Atlantic	CUSA	American
Houston	American	Big 12
Jacksonville State	ASUN (FCS)	CUSA
Liberty	Independent (FBS)	CUSA
New Mexico State	Independent (FBS)	CUSA
North Texas	CUSA	American
Rice	CUSA	American
Sam Houston	WAC (FCS)	CUSA
UAB	CUSA	American
UCF	American	Big 12
UTSA	CUSA	American

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The 2023 season was the last for 13 FBS teams in their current conferences, and was also the last for Army as an FBS independent.

More information School, Current conference ...

School	Current conference	Future conference
Arizona	Pac-12	Big 12
Arizona State	Pac-12	Big 12
Army	Independent (FBS)	American
California	Pac-12	ACC
Colorado	Pac-12	Big 12
Kennesaw State	Independent (FCS)	CUSA
Oklahoma	Big 12	SEC
Oregon	Pac-12	Big Ten
SMU	American	ACC
Stanford	Pac-12	ACC
Texas	Big 12	SEC
UCLA	Pac-12	Big Ten
USC	Pac-12	Big Ten
Utah	Pac-12	Big 12
Washington	Pac-12	Big Ten

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One FCS school, Kennesaw State, started the transition of its program to FBS in the 2023 season by leaving the ASUN Conference and playing the 2023 season as an FCS independent. It joined CUSA in 2024.^[12]

Stadiums

Arizona State announced a 15-year naming rights agreement to change the name of its stadium to Mountain America Stadium.^[13]
Louisville announced a 20-year naming rights agreement to change the name of its stadium to L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium.^[14] Significantly, the credit union had been founded in 1954 at the current stadium site.^[15]
North Texas announced a naming rights agreement with the Denton Area Teachers Credit Union to change the name of its stadium to DATCU Stadium.^[16]

Kickoff games

Rankings reflect the AP Poll entering each week.

"Week 0"

The regular season began on Saturday, August 26 with seven games in Week 0.

Aer Lingus College Football Classic
- No. 13 Notre Dame 42, Navy 3 (at Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland)
Jacksonville State 17, UTEP 14
Louisiana Tech 22, FIU 17
San Diego State 20, Ohio 13
No. 6 USC 56, San Jose State 28
UMass 41, New Mexico State 30
Vanderbilt 35, Hawaii 28

Week 1

Aflac Kickoff Game:
- Louisville 39, Georgia Tech 34 (at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia)
Duke's Mayo Classic:
- No. 21 North Carolina 31, South Carolina 17 (at Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina)
Camping World Kickoff:
- No. 8 Florida State 45, No. 5 LSU 24 (at Camping World Stadium, Orlando, Florida)

Week 2

Allstate Crossbar Classic:
- No. 11 Texas 34, No. 3 Alabama 24 (at Bryant–Denny Stadium, Tuscaloosa, Alabama)

Top 10 matchups

Rankings through Week 9 reflect the AP Poll. Rankings for Week 10 and beyond will list College Football Playoff Rankings first and AP Poll second. Teams that failed to be a top 10 team for one poll or the other will be noted.

Regular season

Week 1
- No. 8 Florida State defeated No. 5 LSU, 45–24 (Camping World Kickoff, Camping World Stadium, Orlando, Florida)
Week 4
- No. 6 Ohio State defeated No. 9 Notre Dame, 17–14 (Notre Dame Stadium, Notre Dame, Indiana)
Week 7
- No. 7 Washington defeated No. 8 Oregon, 36–33 (Husky Stadium, Seattle, Washington)
Week 8
- No. 3 Ohio State defeated No. 7 Penn State, 20–12 (Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio)
Week 11
- No. 3/2 Michigan defeated No. 10/9 Penn State, 24–15 (Beaver Stadium, University Park, Pennsylvania)
- No. 2/1 Georgia defeated No. 9/10 Ole Miss, 52–17 (Sanford Stadium, Athens, Georgia)
Week 12
- No. 5/5 Washington defeated No. 11/10 Oregon State, 22–20 (Reser Stadium, Corvallis, Oregon)
Week 13
- No. 3/3 Michigan defeated No. 2/2 Ohio State, 30–24 (Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan)

Conference championship games

Bowl games

Cotton Bowl
- No. 9 Missouri defeated No. 7 Ohio State, 14–3 (AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX)
Orange Bowl
- No. 6 Georgia defeated No. 5 Florida State, 63–3 (Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, FL)
Rose Bowl (CFB Playoff semifinal)
- No. 1 Michigan defeated No. 4 Alabama, 27–20^OT (Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA)
Sugar Bowl (CFB Playoff semifinal)
- No. 2 Washington defeated No. 3 Texas, 37–31 (Caesars Superdome, New Orleans, LA)
CFB Playoff National Championship Game
- No. 1 Michigan defeated No. 2 Washington, 34–13 (NRG Stadium, Houston, TX)

FCS team wins over FBS teams

Italics denotes FCS teams.

More information Date, Visiting team ...

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Ref.
September 9	No. 24 (FCS) Southern Illinois	Northern Illinois	Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, Illinois	14–11	13,114	^[17]^[18]
September 9	Fordham	Buffalo	UB Stadium • Amherst, New York	40–37	15,854	^[17]^[19]
September 9	No. 7 (FCS) Idaho	Nevada	Mackay Stadium • Reno, Nevada	33–6^[A]	19,852	^[17]^[21]
September 16	No. 8 (FCS) Sacramento State	Stanford	Stanford Stadium • Stanford, California	30–23	23,848	^[17]^[22]
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game.

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[A]
Idaho was a 5.5-point favorite at kickoff.^[20]

Upsets

This section lists instances of unranked teams defeating AP Poll-ranked teams during the season.

Regular season

September 2, 2023
- Colorado 45, No. 17 TCU 42
September 4, 2023
- Duke 28, No. 9 Clemson 7
September 9, 2023
- Washington State 31, No. 19 Wisconsin 22
- Miami (FL) 48, No. 23 Texas A&M 33
September 16, 2023
- Florida 29, No. 11 Tennessee 16
- Missouri 30, No. 15 Kansas State 27
September 30, 2023
- Kentucky 33, No. 22 Florida 14
October 7, 2023
- UCLA 25, No. 13 Washington State 17
- Georgia Tech 23, No. 17 Miami (FL) 20
- Wyoming 24, No. 24 Fresno State 19
October 14, 2023
- Pittsburgh 38, No. 14 Louisville 21
- Arizona 44, No. 19 Washington State 6
- Oklahoma State 39, No. 23 Kansas 32
- Missouri 38, No. 24 Kentucky 21
October 21, 2023
- Virginia 31, No. 10 North Carolina 27
- Minnesota 12, No. 24 Iowa 10
October 28, 2023
- Kansas 38, No. 6 Oklahoma 33
- Arizona 27, No. 11 Oregon State 24
- Georgia Tech 46, No. 17 North Carolina 42
November 4, 2023
- Oklahoma State 27, No. 10 Oklahoma 24
- Clemson 31, No. 12 Notre Dame 23
- Army 23, No. 17 Air Force 3
- Arizona 27, No. 20 UCLA 10
November 11, 2023
- UCF 45, No. 15 Oklahoma State 3
- Texas Tech 16, No. 19 Kansas 13
November 18, 2023
- Appalachian State 26, No. 18 James Madison 23^OT
- Clemson 31, No. 22 North Carolina 20
November 25, 2023
- Kentucky 38, No. 9 Louisville 31
- Iowa State 42, No. 19 Kansas State 35

Bowl games

Rankings in this section are based on the final CFP rankings released on December 3, 2023.

December 27, 2023
- USC 42, No. 15 Louisville 28 (Holiday Bowl)
December 28, 2023
- Boston College 23, No. 24 SMU 14 (Fenway Bowl)

Conference standings

More information Conf., Overall ...

2023 American Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 22 SMU y$	8	–	0	11	–	3
Tulane y	8	–	0	11	–	3
UTSA	7	–	1	9	–	4
Memphis	6	–	2	10	–	3
South Florida	4	–	4	7	–	6
Rice	4	–	4	6	–	7
Navy	4	–	4	5	–	7
North Texas	3	–	5	5	–	7
UAB	3	–	5	4	–	8
Florida Atlantic	3	–	5	4	–	8
Charlotte	2	–	6	3	–	9
Tulsa	2	–	6	4	–	8
Temple	1	–	7	3	–	9
East Carolina	1	–	7	2	–	10
Championship: SMU 26, Tulane 14
$ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

2023 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 6 Florida State y$	8	–	0	13	–	1
No. 19 Louisville y	7	–	1	10	–	4
No. 21 NC State	6	–	2	9	–	4
Georgia Tech	5	–	3	7	–	6
Virginia Tech	5	–	3	7	–	6
No. 20 Clemson	4	–	4	9	–	4
Duke	4	–	4	8	–	5
North Carolina	4	–	4	8	–	5
Boston College	3	–	5	7	–	6
Miami (FL)	3	–	5	7	–	6
Syracuse	2	–	6	6	–	7
Pittsburgh	2	–	6	3	–	9
Virginia	2	–	6	3	–	9
Wake Forest	1	–	7	4	–	8
Championship: Florida State 16, Louisville 6
$ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

2023 Big Ten Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
No. 1 Michigan xy$#^	9	–	0	15	–	0
No. 10 Ohio State	8	–	1	11	–	2
No. 13 Penn State	7	–	2	10	–	3
Maryland	4	–	5	8	–	5
Rutgers	3	–	6	7	–	6
Indiana	1	–	8	3	–	9
Michigan State†	0	–	7	0	–	8
West Division
No. 24 Iowa xy	7	–	2	10	–	4
Northwestern	5	–	4	8	–	5
Wisconsin	5	–	4	7	–	6
Minnesota	3	–	6	6	–	7
Illinois	3	–	6	5	–	7
Nebraska	3	–	6	5	–	7
Purdue	3	–	6	4	–	8
Championship: Michigan 26, Iowa 0
# – College Football Playoff champion ^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant † — NCAA vacated all wins for Michigan State (4–8, 2–7)^[23] Rankings from AP Poll

2023 Big 12 Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 3 Texas y$^	8	–	1	12	–	2
No. 16 Oklahoma State y	7	–	2	10	–	4
No. 15 Oklahoma	7	–	2	10	–	3
Iowa State	6	–	3	7	–	6
No. 18 Kansas State	6	–	3	9	–	4
West Virginia	6	–	3	9	–	4
Texas Tech	5	–	4	7	–	6
No. 23 Kansas	5	–	4	9	–	4
UCF	3	–	6	6	–	7
TCU	3	–	6	5	–	7
Houston	2	–	7	4	–	8
BYU	2	–	7	5	–	7
Baylor	2	–	7	3	–	9
Cincinnati	1	–	8	3	–	9
Championship: Texas 49, Oklahoma State 21
^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

2023 Conference USA football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 25 Liberty y$	8	–	0	13	–	1
New Mexico State y	7	–	1	10	–	5
Jacksonville State*	6	–	2	9	–	4
Western Kentucky	5	–	3	8	–	5
Middle Tennessee	3	–	5	4	–	8
UTEP	2	–	6	3	–	9
Sam Houston*	2	–	6	3	–	9
Louisiana Tech	2	–	6	3	–	9
FIU	1	–	7	4	–	8
Championship: Liberty 49, New Mexico State 35
$ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant * – Ineligible for postseason play due to FCS-to-FBS transition rules Rankings from AP Poll

2023 Mid-American Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
Miami (OH) xy$	7	–	1	11	–	3
Ohio	6	–	2	10	–	3
Bowling Green	5	–	3	7	–	6
Buffalo	3	–	5	3	–	9
Akron	1	–	7	2	–	10
Kent State	0	–	8	1	–	11
West Division
Toledo xy	8	–	0	11	–	3
Northern Illinois	5	–	3	7	–	6
Eastern Michigan	4	–	4	6	–	7
Central Michigan	3	–	5	5	–	7
Ball State	3	–	5	4	–	8
Western Michigan	3	–	5	4	–	8
Championship: Miami (OH) 23, Toledo 14
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant

2023 Mountain West Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
UNLV y	6	–	2	9	–	5
Boise State y$	6	–	2	8	–	6
San Jose State	6	–	2	7	–	6
Air Force	5	–	3	9	–	4
Wyoming	5	–	3	9	–	4
Fresno State	4	–	4	9	–	4
Utah State	4	–	4	6	–	7
Hawaii	3	–	5	5	–	8
Colorado State	3	–	5	5	–	7
Nevada	2	–	6	2	–	10
New Mexico	2	–	6	4	–	8
San Diego State	2	–	6	4	–	8
Championship: Boise State 44, UNLV 20
$ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant

2023 Pac-12 Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 2 Washington y$^	9	–	0	14	–	1
No. 6 Oregon y	8	–	1	12	–	2
No. 11 Arizona	7	–	2	10	–	3
Oregon State	5	–	4	8	–	5
Utah	5	–	4	8	–	5
USC	5	–	4	8	–	5
California	4	–	5	6	–	7
UCLA	4	–	5	8	–	5
Washington State	2	–	7	5	–	7
Stanford	2	–	7	3	–	9
Arizona State*	2	–	7	3	–	9
Colorado	1	–	8	4	–	8
Championship: Washington 34, Oregon 31
^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant * – Ineligible for postseason play due to self-imposed ban for 2020 recruiting violations Rankings from AP Poll

2023 Southeastern Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Eastern Division
No. 4 Georgia xy	8	–	0	13	–	1
No. 8 Missouri	6	–	2	11	–	2
No. 17 Tennessee	4	–	4	9	–	4
Kentucky	3	–	5	7	–	6
Florida	3	–	5	5	–	7
South Carolina	3	–	5	5	–	7
Vanderbilt	0	–	8	2	–	10
Western Division
No. 5 Alabama xy$^	8	–	0	12	–	2
No. 9 Ole Miss	6	–	2	11	–	2
No. 12 LSU	6	–	2	10	–	3
Texas A&M	4	–	4	7	–	6
Auburn	3	–	5	6	–	7
Mississippi State	1	–	7	5	–	7
Arkansas	1	–	7	4	–	8
Championship: Alabama 27, Georgia 24
^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

2023 Sun Belt Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
James Madison* x	7	–	1	11	–	2
Appalachian State y	6	–	2	9	–	5
Coastal Carolina	5	–	3	8	–	5
Old Dominion	5	–	3	6	–	7
Georgia State	3	–	5	7	–	6
Marshall	3	–	5	6	–	7
Georgia Southern	3	–	5	6	–	7
West Division
Troy xy$	7	–	1	11	–	3
Texas State	4	–	4	8	–	5
Arkansas State	4	–	4	6	–	7
South Alabama	4	–	4	7	–	6
Louisiana	3	–	5	6	–	7
Southern Miss	2	–	6	3	–	9
Louisiana–Monroe	0	–	8	2	–	10
Championship: Troy 49, Appalachian State 23
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant * – Ineligible for postseason play due to FCS-to-FBS transition rules

2023 NCAA Division I FBS independents football records
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 14 Notre Dame		–		10	–	3
Army		–		6	–	6
UConn		–		3	–	9
UMass		–		3	–	9

Rankings from AP Poll

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Rankings

The top 25 from the AP and USA Today Coaches Polls.^[24]^[25]

Pre-season polls

More information AP, Ranking ...

AP
Ranking	Team
1	Georgia (60)
2	Michigan (2)
3	Ohio State (1)
4	Alabama
5	LSU
6	USC
7	Penn State
8	Florida State
9	Clemson
10	Washington
11	Texas
12	Tennessee
13	Notre Dame
14	Utah
15	Oregon
16	Kansas State
17	TCU
18	Oregon State
19	Wisconsin
20	Oklahoma
21	North Carolina
22	Ole Miss
23	Texas A&M
24	Tulane
25	Iowa

USA Today Coaches
Ranking	Team
1	Georgia (61)
2	Michigan
3	Alabama (4)
4	Ohio State (1)
5	LSU
6	USC
7	Penn State
8	Florida State
9	Clemson
10	Tennessee
11	Washington
12	Texas
13	Notre Dame
14	Utah
15	Oregon
16	TCU
17	Kansas State
18	Oregon State
19	Oklahoma
20	North Carolina
21	Wisconsin
22	Ole Miss
23	Tulane
24	Texas Tech
25	Texas A&M

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CFB Playoff final rankings

On December 3, 2023, the College Football Playoff selection committee announced its final team rankings for the year. It was the tenth and final season of the CFP era under four teams. This was the first time that an undefeated Power Five conference champion (Florida State) was left out of the semifinals.^[26]

More information Rank, Team ...

Rank	Team	W–L	Conference and standing	Bowl game
1	Michigan Wolverines	13–0	Big Ten champions	Rose Bowl (CFB playoff semifinal)
2	Washington Huskies	13–0	Pac–12 champions	Sugar Bowl (CFB playoff semifinal)
3	Texas Longhorns	12–1	Big 12 champions	Sugar Bowl (CFB playoff semifinal)
4	Alabama Crimson Tide	12–1	SEC champions	Rose Bowl (CFB playoff semifinal)
5	Florida State Seminoles	13–0	ACC champions	Orange Bowl
6	Georgia Bulldogs	12–1	SEC East Division champions	Orange Bowl
7	Ohio State Buckeyes	11–1	Big Ten East Division second place	Cotton Bowl
8	Oregon Ducks	11–2	Pac–12 second place	Fiesta Bowl
9	Missouri Tigers	10–2	SEC East Division second place	Cotton Bowl
10	Penn State Nittany Lions	10–2	Big Ten East Division third place	Peach Bowl
11	Ole Miss Rebels	10–2	SEC West Division second place (tie)	Peach Bowl
12	Oklahoma Sooners	10–2	Big 12 second place (tie)	Alamo Bowl
13	LSU Tigers	9–3	SEC West Division second place (tie)	ReliaQuest Bowl
14	Arizona Wildcats	9–3	Pac–12 third place	Alamo Bowl
15	Louisville Cardinals	10–3	ACC second place	Holiday Bowl
16	Notre Dame Fighting Irish	9–3	Independent	Sun Bowl
17	Iowa Hawkeyes	10–3	Big Ten West Division champions	Citrus Bowl
18	NC State Wolfpack	9–3	ACC third place	Pop-Tarts Bowl
19	Oregon State Beavers	8–4	Pac–12 fourth place (tie)	Sun Bowl
20	Oklahoma State Cowboys	9–4	Big 12 second place (tie)	Texas Bowl
21	Tennessee Volunteers	8–4	SEC East Division third place	Citrus Bowl
22	Clemson Tigers	8–4	ACC sixth place (tie)	Gator Bowl
23	Liberty Flames	13–0	CUSA champions	Fiesta Bowl
24	SMU Mustangs	11–2	AAC champions	Fenway Bowl
25	Kansas State Wildcats	8–4	Big 12 fourth place (tie)	Pop-Tarts Bowl

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Final rankings

More information Rank, Associated Press ...

Rank	Associated Press	Coaches' Poll
1	Michigan (61)	Michigan (63)
2	Washington	Washington
3	Texas	Georgia
4	Georgia	Texas
5	Alabama	Alabama
6	Oregon	Florida State
7	Florida State	Oregon
8	Missouri	Missouri
9	Ole Miss	Ole Miss
10	Ohio State	Ohio State
11	Arizona	Arizona
12	LSU	LSU
13	Penn State	Penn State
14	Notre Dame	Notre Dame
15	Oklahoma	Oklahoma
16	Oklahoma State	Oklahoma State
17	Tennessee	Tennessee
18	Kansas State	Louisville
19	Louisville	Kansas State
20	Clemson	Clemson
21	NC State	NC State
22	SMU	Iowa
23	Kansas	Kansas
24	Iowa	SMU
25	Liberty	West Virginia

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Postseason

There are 41 team-competitive FBS post-season bowl games, with two teams advancing to a 42nd – the CFP National Championship game. Normally, a team is required to have a .500 minimum winning percentage during the regular season to become bowl-eligible (six wins for an 11- or 12-game schedule, and seven wins for a 13-game schedule). If there are not enough winning teams to fulfill all open bowl slots, teams with losing records may be chosen to fill all 82 bowl slots. Additionally, on the rare occasion in which a conference champion does not meet eligibility requirements, they are usually still chosen for bowl games via tie-ins for their conference.

Conference summaries

Rankings in this section are based on CFP rankings released prior to the games.

More information Conference, Championship game ...

Conference	Championship game				Overall Player of the Year/MVP	Offensive Player of the Year	Defensive Player of the Year	Special Teams Player of the Year	Coach of the Year
Conference	Date	Venue (Location)	Matchup	Result	Overall Player of the Year/MVP	Offensive Player of the Year	Defensive Player of the Year	Special Teams Player of the Year	Coach of the Year
ACC	Dec. 2, 2023	Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, North Carolina)	No. 4 Florida State vs. No. 14 Louisville	Florida State 16–6	Jordan Travis, QB, Florida State^[27]	Jordan Travis, QB, Florida State^[27]	Payton Wilson, LB, NC State^[27]	N/a	Mike Norvell, Florida State^[27]
American	Dec. 2, 2023	Yulman Stadium (New Orleans, Louisiana)	SMU at No. 22 Tulane	SMU 26–14	N/a	Michael Pratt, QB, Tulane^[28]	Trey Moore, LB, UTSA^[28]	LaJohntay Wester, WR/RS, Florida Atlantic^[28]	Willie Fritz, Tulane^[28]
Big Ten	Dec. 2, 2023	Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis, Indiana)	No. 2 Michigan vs. No. 16 Iowa	Michigan 26–0	N/a	Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State^[29]	Johnny Newton, DL, Illinois^[29]	Dragan Kesich, PK, Minnesota; Tory Taylor, P, Iowa; & Cooper DeJean, RS, Iowa^[29]	David Braun, Northwestern (coaches & media)^[29]
Big 12	Dec. 2, 2023	AT&T Stadium (Arlington, Texas)	No. 7 Texas vs. No. 18 Oklahoma State	Texas 49–21	N/a	Ollie Gordon II, RB, Oklahoma State^[30]	T'Vondre Sweat, DL, Texas^[30]	Austin McNamara, P, Texas Tech^[30]	Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State^[30]
CUSA	Dec. 1, 2023	Williams Stadium (Lynchburg, Virginia)	New Mexico State at No. 24 Liberty	Liberty 49–35	Kaidon Salter, QB, Liberty	Diego Pavia, QB, New Mexico State	Tyren Dupree, LB, Liberty	Ethan Albertson, PK, New Mexico State	Jamey Chadwell, Liberty Jerry Kill, New Mexico.^[31]
MAC	Dec. 2, 2023	Ford Field (Detroit, Michigan)	Miami (OH) vs. Toledo	Miami (OH) 23–14	N/a	Peny Boone, RB, Toledo^[32]	Matt Salopek, LB, Miami (OH)^[32]	Graham Nicholson, PK, Miami (OH)^[32]	Jason Candle, Toledo^[32]
MW	Dec. 2, 2023	Allegiant Stadium (Paradise, Nevada)	Boise State at UNLV	Boise State 44–20	N/a	Ashton Jeanty, RB, Boise State^[33]	Mohamed Kamara, DE, Colorado State^[33]	Jose Pizano, PK, UNLV^[33]	Barry Odom, UNLV^[33]
Pac-12	Dec. 1, 2023	Allegiant Stadium (Paradise, Nevada)	No. 3 Washington vs. No. 5 Oregon	Washington 34–31	N/a	Bo Nix, QB, Oregon^[34]	Laiatu Latu, DE, UCLA^[34]	N/a	Kalen DeBoer, Washington^[34]
SEC	Dec. 2, 2023	Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, Georgia)	No. 1 Georgia vs. No. 8 Alabama	Alabama 27–24	N/a	Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU	Dallas Turner, LB, Alabama	Will Reichard, PK/P, Alabama	Eliah Drinkwitz, Missouri.^[35]
Sun Belt	Dec. 2, 2023	Veterans Memorial Stadium (Troy, Alabama)	Appalachian State at Troy	Troy 49–23	Jordan McCloud, QB, James Madison^[36]	Kimani Vidal, RB, Troy^[36]	Jalen Green, DE, James Madison^[36]	N/a	Curt Cignetti, James Madison^[36]

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[a]
Bowl count includes the National Championship game.

Conference champions' bowl games

Ranks are per the final CFP rankings, released in December 2023, with win–loss records at that time.

More information Conference, Champion ...

Conference	Champion	W–L	Rank	Bowl game
American	SMU	11–2	24	Fenway Bowl
ACC	Florida State	13–0	5	Orange Bowl
Big Ten	Michigan^CFP	13–0	1	Rose Bowl
Big 12	Texas^CFP	12–1	3	Sugar Bowl
CUSA	Liberty	13–0	23	Fiesta Bowl
MAC	Miami (OH)	11–2	–	Cure Bowl
Mountain West	Boise State	8–5	–	LA Bowl
Pac-12	Washington^CFP	13–0	2	Sugar Bowl
SEC	Alabama^CFP	12–1	4	Rose Bowl
Sun Belt	Troy	11–2	–	Birmingham Bowl

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^CFP College Football Playoff participant

Bowl-eligible teams

ACC (11): Boston College, Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami (FL), North Carolina, NC State, Syracuse, Virginia Tech
American (6): Memphis, Rice, SMU, South Florida, Tulane, UTSA
Big 10 (9): Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota,^[a] Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Rutgers, Wisconsin
Big 12 (9): Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, Texas Tech, UCF, West Virginia
C-USA (4): Jacksonville State,^[b] Liberty, New Mexico State, Western Kentucky
MAC (6): Bowling Green, Eastern Michigan, Miami (OH), Northern Illinois, Ohio, Toledo
MW (7): Air Force, Boise State, Fresno State, San Jose State, UNLV, Utah State, Wyoming
Pac-12 (8): Arizona, California, Oregon, Oregon State, UCLA, USC, Utah, Washington
SEC (9): Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Missouri, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Texas A&M
Sun Belt (12): Appalachian State, Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, James Madison,^[b] Georgia State, Louisiana, Marshall, Old Dominion, South Alabama, Texas State, Troy
Independent (1): Notre Dame

Number of bowl berths available: 82
Number of bowl-eligible teams: 79
Number of conditional bowl-eligible teams: 2 (Jacksonville State and James Madison)
Number of teams qualified by APR: 1 (Minnesota)

Bowl-ineligible teams

ACC (3): Pittsburgh, Virginia, Wake Forest
American (8): Charlotte, East Carolina, Florida Atlantic, Navy,^[c] North Texas, Temple, Tulsa, UAB
Big 10 (5): Illinois, Indiana, Michigan State, Nebraska, Purdue
Big 12 (5): Baylor, BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, TCU
C-USA (5): FIU, Louisiana Tech, Middle Tennessee, Sam Houston,^[d] UTEP
MAC (6): Akron, Ball State, Buffalo, Central Michigan, Kent State, Western Michigan
MW (5): Colorado State, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, San Diego State
Pac-12 (4): Arizona State,^[e] Colorado, Stanford, Washington State
SEC (5): Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi State, South Carolina, Vanderbilt
Sun Belt (2): Louisiana–Monroe, Southern Miss
Independent (3): Army,^[c] UConn, UMass

Number of bowl-ineligible teams: 51

Conference performance in bowl games

More information Conference, Games ...

Division I FBS
Conference	Games	Record			Bowls
Conference	Games	W	L	Pct.	Won	Lost
ACC	11	5	6	.455	Gasparilla, Birmingham, Military, Fenway, Gator	Boca Raton, Duke's Mayo, Holiday, Pinstripe Pop-Tarts, Orange
American	6	3	3	.500	Frisco, Boca Raton, Liberty	First Responder, Military, Fenway
Big 12	9	5	4	.556	Independence, Guaranteed Rate, Duke's Mayo Texas, Pop-Tarts	Gasparilla, Alamo, Liberty, Sugar
Big Ten	10	6	4	.600	Las Vegas, Quick Lane, Pinstripe, Music City, Rose, Championship	Cotton, Peach, ReliaQuest, Citrus
C-USA	4	2	2	.500	New Orleans, Famous Toastery	New Mexico, Fiesta
MAC	6	2	4	.333	Myrtle Beach, Camellia	Cure, 68 Ventures, Quick Lane, Arizona
Mountain West	7	3	4	.429	New Mexico, Armed Forces, Arizona	LA, Famous Idaho Potato, Hawaii, Guaranteed Rate
Pac-12	9	5	4	.556	LA, Holiday, Alamo, Fiesta, Sugar	Independence, Las Vegas, Sun, Championship
SEC	9	5	4	.556	Cotton, Peach, Orange, ReliaQuest, Citrus	Texas, Gator, Music City, Rose
Sun Belt	12	5	7	.417	Cure, Famous Idaho Potato, 68 Ventures, Hawaii, First Responder	Myrtle Beach, New Orleans, Famous Toastery, Frisco, Birmingham, Camellia, Armed Forces
Independent	1	1	0	1.000	Sun	—

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Source:^[38]

Note: The only independent team that played in an FBS bowl game was Notre Dame.

College Football Playoff

Semifinals			Championship

January 1 – Rose Bowl Rose Bowl Stadium, Pasadena
1	Michigan (OT)	27
4	Alabama	20	January 8 – National Championship NRG Stadium, Houston
			January 8 – National Championship NRG Stadium, Houston
			1	Michigan	34
January 1 – Sugar Bowl Caesars Superdome, New Orleans			2	Washington	13
January 1 – Sugar Bowl Caesars Superdome, New Orleans
2	Washington	37
3	Texas	31

All-star games

Each of these games features college seniors, or players whose college football eligibility is ending, who are individually invited by game organizers. These games are scheduled to follow the team-competitive bowls, to allow players selected from bowl teams to participate. The all-star games may include some players from non-FBS programs.

The NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, which debuted in 2012 and was played 12 times through January 2023, was discontinued. The East–West Shrine Bowl relocated from Nevada (where its prior two editions had been played) to Texas.

More information Date, Time (EST) ...

Date	Time (EST)	Game	Site	Television	Participants	Results	Ref.
Jan. 13	12:00 p.m.	Hula Bowl	FBC Mortgage Stadium Orlando, Florida	CBS Sports Network	Team Kai Team Aina	Kai 24 Aina 17	^[39]
Jan. 20	11:00 a.m.	Tropical Bowl	Camping World Stadium Orlando, Florida	Varsity Sports Network	American Team National Team	American 17 National 17	^[40]
Feb. 1	8:00 p.m.	East-West Shrine Bowl	Ford Center at The Star Frisco, Texas	NFL Network	West Team East Team	West 26 East 11	^[41]
Feb. 3	1:00 p.m.	Senior Bowl	Hancock Whitney Stadium Mobile, Alabama		National Team American Team	National 16 American 7	^[42]
Feb. 24	4:00 p.m.	HBCU Legacy Bowl	Yulman Stadium New Orleans, Louisiana		Team Gaither Team Robinson	Gaither 10 Robinson 6	^[43]

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Awards and honors

Heisman Trophy voting

The Heisman Trophy is given to the year's most outstanding player

More information Player, School ...

Player	School	Position	1st	2nd	3rd	Total
Jayden Daniels	LSU	QB	503	217	86	2,029
Michael Penix Jr.	Washington	QB	292	341	143	1,701
Bo Nix	Oregon	QB	51	205	322	885
Marvin Harrison Jr.	Ohio State	WR	20	78	136	352
Jordan Travis	Florida State	QB	8	19	23	85
Jalen Milroe	Alabama	QB	4	8	45	73
Ollie Gordon II	Oklahoma State	RB	1	2	24	31
Cody Schrader	Missouri	RB	1	2	22	29
Blake Corum	Michigan	RB	3	2	15	28
J. J. McCarthy	Michigan	QB	1	7	4	21

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