The FCS Kickoff is an annual college football game played on the Saturday before the opening weekend of the college football season. The game showcases teams from the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). For the game's first three editions, it was played at campus sites; from 2017 to 2025, the game was played at a neutral site, the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama. From 2026 on, the game is back to being played at campus sites. The game is televised nationally by ESPN.
History In February 2013, ESPN announced that the 2014 college football season would begin at its earliest point in 11 years with the creation of the "FCS Kickoff", an annual game which would showcase two top-level teams from the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision. ESPN stated that during meetings with FCS conference commissioners there was an interest in creating a "tentpole type" event around FCS football and to showcase the quality and depth of FCS football to a national audience.
Under current NCAA rules, FCS teams are not allowed to play their first regular-season game until the Thursday preceding Labor Day. However, an exception to this rule has been carved out for nationally televised events (on either over-the-air or cable networks); teams may participate in such an event against an out-of-conference opponent on the Saturday or Sunday preceding the standard season start date. No more than one team from a conference can participate in such an event in a given season, and no team can appear in such a game in three consecutive seasons.
The 2017 edition marked several changes for the event. First, ESPN took ownership of the event through its ESPN Events division. The event was moved to a neutral site (the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama); received a name sponsorship by Guardian Credit Union, a small Montgomery-based credit union; was co-branded as the Montgomery Kickoff Classic; and also took on Alabama FCS member Jacksonville State University as a partner for the 2017 and 2018 editions. As such, JSU participated in both editions of the event. With Jacksonville State barred from a third consecutive FCS Kickoff appearance by NCAA rule, ESPN chose another Alabama program, Samford, as the de facto home team for the 2019 edition.
The 2020 edition, which saw Central Arkansas defeat Austin Peay, was the first since ESPN took ownership of the event that did not feature an Alabama school.
The game would not be held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. When the game returned in 2022, it would not be sponsored by Guardian Credit Union and would only be known as the FCS Kickoff.
2022 would feature Jacksonville State's third appearance in the Week 0 game as they took on the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks. The Gamecocks would win 42–17 as the game ended prematurely with 13:18 left in the 4th quarter due to weather.
The 2023 rendition would feature the Mercer Bears and the North Alabama Lions. The Bears would defeat the Lions 17–7. The game was also the second FCS Kickoff game to feature a weather delay as lightning would halt play for 76 minutes in the 3rd quarter.
The Lions would return in 2024 to face off against Southeast Missouri State. The Lions would once again fall as they were defeated by the Redhawks 37–15.
The 2025 edition was a matchup of UC Davis Aggies and Mercer Bears. The Aggies were leading 23–17 with 7:46 remaining in the fourth quarter before the first lightning strike hit. Due to rain and intermittent lightning that continued to move through Montgomery, the game was declared a no contest, with all statistics voided.
In 2026, the FCS Kickoff will revert to being played on college campuses after ten years at the Cramton Bowl.
Game results SeasonDate Winning team Losing teamVenueAttendance 2014 August 23 56 35 Roos Field (Cheney, WA) 10,310 2015 August 29 38 35 Washington–Grizzly Stadium (Missoula, MT) 26,472 2016 August 27 24 17 Fargodome (Fargo, ND) 18,881 2017 August 26 27 13 Cramton Bowl (Montgomery, AL) 12,952 2018 August 25 20 17 13,500 2019 August 24 45 22 12,560 2020 August 29 24 17 2,000 2022 August 27 42 17 5,235 2023 August 26 17 7 5,566 2024 August 24 37 15 4,3582025Game declared a no contest due to lightning.No. 7 UC Davis vs No. 11 Mercer2026 August 29 23 15 Five Star Stadium (Macon, GA) 8,378
Records By team Rank Team Apps Record Win % PF PA 1 Mercer 3 2–0 40 22 Central Arkansas 1 1–0 24 17 Eastern Washington 1 1–0 56 35 Montana 1 1–0 38 35 North Carolina A&T 1 1–0 20 17 Southeast Missouri State 1 1–0 37 15 Youngstown State 1 1–0 45 22 7 Jacksonville State 3 2–1 86 50 8 North Dakota State 2 1–1 59 55 9 UC Davis 1 0–0 – – 10 Austin Peay 1 0–1 17 24 Charleston Southern 1 0–1 17 24 Chattanooga 1 0–1 13 27 East Texas A&M 1 0–1 15 23 North Alabama 2 0–2 22 54 Sam Houston 1 0–1 35 56 Samford 1 0–1 22 45 Stephen F. Austin 1 0–1 17 42
By conference Rank Conference Apps Record Win % PF PA 1 Big Sky 3 2–0 94 70 ASUN 1 1–0 42 17 MEAC 1 1–0 20 17 OVC–BSC 1 1–0 37 15 5 MVFC 3 2–1 104 77 6 Southland 2 1–1 59 73 7 Southern 4 1–2 52 79 OVC 3 1–2 61 57 9 Big South 1 0–1 17 24 UAC 2 0–2 22 54 WAC 1 0–1 17 42
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