Full 2016 FCS playoffs bracket and schedule revealed: NDSU going for 6 in a row

The bracket for this year’s NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision playoff is in place. In case you’re unfamiliar, this is the NCAA’s championship for the second level of Division I and is distinct from the FBS level’s four-team College Football Playoff.

Your top eight seeds, in order, are North Dakota State, Eastern Washington, Jacksonville State, James Madison, Sam Houston State, The Citadel, North Dakota, and South Dakota State. These teams get first-round byes.

Here’s the full bracket (tap to zoom, on mobile):

The single-elimination FCS playoff includes 24 teams. Ten of them are auto-bids as winners of 10 of the FCS’ 13 conferences. (The Ivy League, SWAC, and MEAC don’t take playoff auto-bids.) The field shrinks from 24 to 16 after the first round, and then it’s pretty simple: whoever wins four games in a row wins the national championship.

First-round play is set for next weekend. Higher-ranked teams host, until the final. The playoff runs through Jan. 7, when it ends at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.

For five years in a row, the team to do that has been North Dakota State. The Bison won three national titles under current Wyoming coach Craig Bohl, and they’ve won the last two under current head coach Chris Klieman. They’ve become FCS’ gold standard, and they’d probably be the favorite this year even if they hadn’t beaten FBS Iowa.

Nobody’s unbeatable, though, and it’s hard not to take the field this or any year. This year, NDSU could get a rematch with the only team to which it lost this year: rival SDSU.

The entire FCS playoff is broadcast on various ESPN platforms. The level of talent isn’t what you’ll see in the FBS’ Playoff, but it still tends to be excellent entertainment and quality football every year.