Illinois
2025 FCS football championship: Bracket, schedule, scores
The 2025-26 FCS playoffs consist of a 24-team bracket with play starting on Saturday, Nov. 29 and concluding on Monday, Jan. 5. The top 16 teams seeded and the top eight seeds receive automatic byes to the second round, while the rest of the 24-team field (the remaining 16 teams) play in the first round.
Here’s everything you need to know for the Division I Football Championship postseason.
FCS championship bracket
Click or tap here to view the bracket
FCS championship schedule
All times Eastern
Quarterfinals
- Friday, December 12
- Saturday, December 13
Semifinals
- Saturday, December 20
- Semifinal 1 | 4 p.m. ET | ABC
- Semifinal 2 | 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN2
National Championship
FCS championship rounds, dates
- Selection show: 12 p.m. ET Sunday, Nov. 23 on ESPNU
- First round: Saturday, Nov. 29
- Second round: Saturday, Dec. 6
- Quarterfinals: Friday, Dec. 12 through Saturday, Dec. 13
- Semifinals: Saturday, Dec. 20
- National championship: Monday, Jan. 5 on ESPN at 7:30 p.m. ET
FCS selections
The bracket selections for the 2025-26 FCS Championship was on Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. The bracket was be revealed via a selection show on ESPNU at 12 p.m. ET and a selections release.
Eleven conferences (or conference partnerships/alliances) earn automatic bids to the playoffs. The FCS Championship Committee selects the remaining 13 at-large bids.
AUTOMATIC BIDS: Click or tap here to see all 11 of the clinched auto-bids
FCS championship history
North Dakota Dakota State is the reigning national champion, winning its 10 title in 2024 with a 35-32 win over Montana State. Here’s every FCS champion and runner-up from the past decade:
| Year | Champion | Coach | Score | Runner-Up | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | North Dakota State | Tim Polasek | 35-32 | Montana State | Frisco, Texas |
| 2023 | South Dakota State | Jimmy Rogers | 23-3 | Montana | Frisco, Texas |
| 2022 | South Dakota State | John Stiegelmeier | 45-21 | North Dakota State | Frisco, Texas |
| 2021 | North Dakota State | Matt Entz | 38-10 | Montana State | Frisco, Texas |
| 2020 | Sam Houston | K.C. Keeler | 23-21 | South Dakota State | Frisco, Texas |
| 2019 | North Dakota State | Matt Entz | 28-20 | James Madison | Frisco, Texas |
| 2018 | North Dakota State | Chris Klieman | 38-24 | Eastern Washington | Frisco, Texas |
| 2017 | North Dakota State | Chris Klieman | 17-13 | James Madison | Frisco, Texas |
| 2016 | James Madison | Mike Houston | 28-14 | Youngstown State | Frisco, Texas |
| 2015 | North Dakota State | Chris Klieman | 37-10 | Jacksonville State | Frisco, Texas |
Click here for a full list of every champion since 1978.
Illinois
Illinois native inside NASA’s Mission Control talks Artemis II splashdown
Skip to content
Contact Us
Illinois
Missing man’s body found in retention pond in Elk Grove Village, police say
ELK GROVE VILLAGE, Ill. (WLS) — The body of a missing man was found in a retention pond Thursday in the northwest suburbs, police said.
Chopper 7 was over the scene at a retention pond at Higgins and Innovation Drive in Elk Grove Village, in front of a number of warehouses in the area.
ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch
There was a large police presence there for multiple hours, surrounding the water.
Chopper 7 witnessed dive teams go in and out of the water, and there were paramedics on scene.
Elk Grove Police confirmed a male body was found in the water in the 700 block of Innovation Drive. The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office responded to the scene.
Police identified the body as a missing 26-year-old man named Alexis Ramirez.
Ramirez had been missing since March 10. Elk Grove Police were searching the same area after Ramirez went missing after he was the sole occupant of a single-vehicle crash near Higgins and Brennan Boulevard, which is right by the pond he was found in on Thursday.
Police believe he walked away from that scene before officers arrived. At that time, the police search led to no one being found.
ABC7 spoke to the family of Ramirez on the scene Thursday, and they appeared very emotional.
Police say there is no evidence of foul play at this time as they send out their condolences to the family.
No further information was immediately available.
Copyright © 2026 WLS-TV. All Rights Reserved.
Illinois
Giant Illinois interstate sign collapses after truck strike, ‘major delays’ expected
A busy stretch of I-64 in Illinois near St. Louis remains closed after a truck hit an overhead sign Wednesday night, with shocking photos showing beams of metal collapsed on the roadway.
The Illinois Department of Transportation posted about the closure, in St. Clair County, just before 8 a.m. Thursday.
“Heads up, Metro East travelers! Westbound I-64 approaching I-255 is currently closed due to a truck that hit a sign trust overnight,” IDOT said in a Facebook post. “Our crews are on it, working hard to get things cleared up and the road reopened ASAP. Expect major delays this morning, so if you can, try to steer clear of the area.”
According to the Illinois State Police, about 10:50 p.m., truck tractor semi trailer was in the construction zone on I-64 near Washington Park when it failed to lower its dump bed and struck the overhead road sign.
The structure holding the sign then failed and fell onto the roadway, ISP said. No injuries were reported.
Photos shared by IDOT showed the damage, with two giant green road signs over the interstate nearly touching the road, with the metal structure crushed and folded.
As of Thursday morning, all four westbound lanes remained closed due to the damage. Cleanup was expected to last for hours, with traffic diverted to IL 157, ISP said.
-
Atlanta, GA6 days ago1 teenage girl killed, another injured in shooting at Piedmont Park, police say
-
Education1 week agoVideo: YouTube’s C.E.O. on the Rise of Video and the Decline of Reading
-
Movie Reviews1 week agoVaazha 2 first half review: Hashir anchors a lively, chaos-filled teen tale
-
Georgia3 days agoGeorgia House Special Runoff Election 2026 Live Results
-
Education1 week agoVideo: Toy Testing with a Discerning Bodega Cat
-
Pennsylvania4 days agoParents charged after toddler injured by wolf at Pennsylvania zoo
-
Milwaukee, WI4 days agoPotawatomi Casino Hotel evacuated after fire breaks out in rooftop HVAC system
-
Entertainment1 week agoInside Ye’s first comeback show at SoFi Stadium