5 potential first-time FCS national champions in 2023

South Dakota State became the second team in three years to become a first-time FCS national champion in 2022. Here's a look at the teams that could follow suit in 2023.

William & Mary

Running the ball and playing good defense are vital for playoff football success. William & Mary has just that in 2023. Quarterback Darius Wilson and running back Bronson Yoder led the third-best rushing offense from a year ago that returns four starters on the offensive line. Meanwhile, Nate Lynn and John Pius, a finalist for the Buck Buchanan Award, anchor the edge of a defense that finished in the top 10 on third downs. Linebackers Isaiah Jones and Kevin Jarrell also come back to the front seven.

William & Mary has talent in the right areas of its roster needed for a sustained playoff run. That gives head coach Mike London — a coach that won an FCS title in 2008 at Richmond — the pieces that could lead the Tribe to a first national title.

📊: 2023 preseason FCS Coaches' Poll

Holy Cross

Holy Cross finished the 2022 regular season undefeated and advanced to the quarterfinals before giving eventual national champion South Dakota State its toughest test of the playoffs. In 2023, Holy Cross can lean on the experience gained last season as it chases its first FCS title.

The Crusaders have one of the best QB-WR tandems in the sport in Matthew Sluka and Jalen Coker, and the return of Jacob Dobbs to the Patriot League's top defense is invaluable. Throw in one of the better special teams units in the FCS, and you may have the perfect mix for a Holy Cross championship run.

🔮: 2023 FCS playoff bracket preseason predictions

Samford

Michael Hiers is the best quarterback in the FCS entering 2023. That alone opens Samford's championship window, but when adding the six other Bulldogs to be named preseason All-SoCon, you have the ingredients needed for a championship team.

Unlike the first two teams on this list of potential champions, Samford will play a battle-tested schedule that features games against preseason top 25 teams Furman and Mercer. If the Bulldogs can win the SoCon this year, they'll be ready to pursue a title this winter.

PLAYERS TO KNOW: 46 players to know for the 46th season of FCS football

Idaho

Elite quarterback? Check. Elite wide receiver? Check. Balanced defense? Check. It's been hard to miss the hype surrounding Idaho football entering 2023.

In 2022, the Vandals returned to the FCS playoffs for the first time since 1995 (the program was in the FBS for much of the time after that), after Gevani McCoy won the Jerry Rice Award last year and Hayden Hatten led the FCS in regular season receiving touchdowns. Idaho's defense ranked no lower than fourth in scoring, yards, rushing or passing last season.

While Idaho lost its opening FCS playoff game, it's hoping the momentum from last year carries over into 2023 as the Vandals have championship sights.

UPSETS: 25 potential FCS-over-FBS upsets in 2023

UIW

Incarnate Word was a fourth quarter away from advancing to the FCS title game last year. While UIW lost a lot of pieces from last year's semifinalist team — including its head coach and Walter Payton Award winner — the Cardinals brought in a bevy of transfers.

It's a formula that worked for UIW in 2022, leading to the most successful season in program history. UIW could break through as an FCS champion if its influx of talent pays off for the second straight year.