This season’s FCS national championship game will be played on Sunday, Jan. 8, 2023. Kickoff in Frisco, Texas, is set for 2 p.m. ET and will air on ABC.
This is a big change from past title games, which were typically played on Saturdays at 11 a.m. and on ESPN2.
“We continuously work with the NCAA on ways to evolve our championship coverage,” said Dan Margulis, Senior Director of Programming and Acquisitions. “Moving the FCS Championship to Sunday opens up the possibility of capitalizing on the Sunday afternoon window on ABC, which we are regularly incorporating into our college sports programming.”
The game airing on ABC will be a boost for eyeballs on the matchup. Past championship games that aired on ESPN2 were in the 1 million to 1.5 million range for viewers. The title game has aired twice on ABC, once during the spring season, and once during the 2019 season when 2.68 million people watched NDSU vs. JMU. However, the game will go up against the NFL.
2021 Championship:
NDSU vs. Montana State (ESPN2) — 1.32 million viewers
2021 Spring Championship:
SDSU vs. SHSU (ABC) — 905K
2019 Championship:
NDSU vs. JMU (ABC) — 2.68 million
2018 Championship:
NDSU vs. EWU (ESPN2) — 1.00 million
2017 Championship:
NDSU vs. JMU (ESPN2) — 1.52 million
2016 Championship:
JMU vs. YSU (ESPN2) — 1.56 million
2015 Championship:
NDSU vs. Jacksonville State (ESPN2) — 1.35 million
2014 Championship:
NDSU vs. Illinois State (ESPN2) — 1.44 million
2013 Championship:
NDSU vs. Towson (ESPN2) — 1.2 million
2012 Championship:
NDSU vs. SHSU (ESPN2) — 1.1 million
“The addition of our championship game to ABC’s Sunday programming lineup is very exciting news for all of us who are passionate about Division I FCS football,” said Jermaine Truax, chair of the Division I Football Championship Committee and Bucknell University Director of Athletics and Recreation. “The committee greatly appreciates ESPN’s longtime commitment to showcasing the FCS Championship and our outstanding student-athletes and coaches. The FCS Championship is annually one of the most exciting postseason tournaments in college sports and having our national championship game on ABC will result in even more exposure for this great event.”
FCS Championship tickets will go on sale to the public Friday, September 16 at 11 a.m. ET at NCAA.com/FCS.
