The 2023 DII football season is in the books, and Harding took home its first football national championship in program history. That gets them the No. 1 spot in the final Power 10 rankings of the season.
How do the rest of the final rankings of the season look? Well, if you go back to my preseason rankings all the way back in August, 10 of the 15 teams I ranked (remember, there is always the "first five out") made the postseason. The good teams were very good, to say the least.
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Remember, because of regionalization, the postseason may not have as much impact as you think. For example, the final four national semifinalists are not necessarily the top four teams in DII football simply because they made it that far. These are my rankings, and they are not simply a measurement of the moment, but what we saw all season. I try to blend metrics with the old eye test and come up with rankings that fall somewhere in between.
The final DII football Power 10 rankings
No. 1 Harding | Previous: 3
The flexbone offense works — what else can be said at this point? As you continue to scroll, you'll notice that Harding beat four Power 10 teams — including the No. 1 team in DII football — in the postseason. The Bisons didn't have a single favorable matchup and found a way to run their way to history. They won the first national championship in program history while going 15-0 on the way and became the first 6,000-yard rushing team in a college football season ever. The defense was among the best, the offense was among the best, the special teams was among the best, and there is no question that Harding is the best team in 2023.
No. 2 Colorado School of Mines| Previous: 1
The Orediggers season ended just like it did last year, and while it is certainly disappointing, let's not dismiss all that this team has accomplished in the past three years. A top-3 offense and defense in DII, a 39-6 record, three-straight Super Region Four championships, and consecutive national runners-up campaigns. Their quarterback, the record-setting John Matocha, will end his career as one of DII football's all-time greats and so will this run in Golden, Colorado. The Orediggers beat six nationally ranked teams this season and were as good as anyone.
No. 3 Grand Valley State | Previous: 2
The Lakers had two losses in 2023. One came to the national champions, and the other came to the national runners-up. Both games were decided by four points... total. Grand Valley State played the second toughest schedule in DII football, and defeated six nationally ranked teams, including Ferris State twice. The Lakers had Harding on the ropes for 54 minutes of that Super Region Three championship that ended 7-6 in one of the best defensive battles in recent tournament history. This team was very good all year long.
No. 4 Pittsburg State | Previous: 6 (tied)
The Gorillas and Mules were super close, so obviously the 38-37 victory over Central Missouri is what separates the two here. The Gorillas were very close to getting past Grand Valley State for a chance to play Harding, but a touchdown in the closing seconds sealed their fate. This team was 5-2 against teams that spent time in the national rankings and earned at least a share of the MIAA championship for the second year in a row, so there is no denying how strong Pitt State was in 2023.
No. 5 Central Missouri | Previous: 6 (tied)
The Mules are right behind their fellow MIAA champions. As I said, Pittsburg State had the head-to-head advantage, but it's also important to point out that if we are going by metrics, the Mules didn't play as tough a schedule as the Gorillas either. Still, this is a team that wasn't expected to be where it finished and was one of the most fun to watch all season long (more on that in a bit). When you consider their two losses came on botched extra point attempts/conversions by a total of two points, this team showed it can beat anyone.
No. 6 Lenoir-Rhyne |Previous: First five out
This was a tough pick as well, because the Blazers — who played a much tougher schedule than the Bears — could easily be here. At the end of the day, it was the Bears' 35-7 over the Blazers in the Super Region Two championship that separates the two. Once this team entered the tournament, it found another gear, showing the offense was for real in dominating its first three opponents 133-49. Sure, the Bears had no answer for Harding, but very few teams did.
No. 7 Valdosta State | Previous: NR
If you watched the Blazers in their last three games of last season, you could see they were starting to gel under then-new head coach Tremaine Jackson. That momentum and new quarterback Sammy Edwards — who threw for 4,223 and 34 touchdowns while rushing for more than 200 yards and six more scores — carried Valdosta State back to familiar territory, deep into the playoffs in 2023. Avenging its lone regular-season loss against Delta State is what boosts them ahead of their Gulf South rivals in the final rankings.
No. 8 Ferris State | Previous: 4
People may not understand the Bulldogs being in the top 10 and a team like Delta State not. But here is the bottom line: Ferris State played a schedule infinitely tougher than that of Statesmen and it was also a top-25 SOS in DII. The Bulldogs have three losses; one is by a touchdown to the team that is playing for the FCS national championship (Montana) and two were to Grand Valley State, a team that was in the top three nearly all season long. There is a national-championship-game-or-bust mentality in Big Rapids, Michigan, but this season was hardly a bust for the Bulldogs.
No. 9 Augustana (SD) | Previous: 9
The NSIC was an absolute gauntlet this year. While three teams made the tournament, two incredibly talented teams in Minnesota Duluth and Wayne State (Neb) didn't. The Vikings beat Bemidji State and then Minnesota State twice, and certainly deserved every bit of their NSIC championship run. Sure, they got walloped by the national runners-up, but a lot of teams did, let's not kid ourselves. The Vikings played a tough schedule and were the best of a tough conference, earning them a spot in the top 10.
No. 10 Kutztown | Previous: NR
I had the Golden Bears in my top 25 a bit longer than the national polls, so I may very well be higher on them than most. But the fact remains: Slippery Rock appeared to be the team to beat in Super Region One for most of the season, and Kutztown handled them quite easily twice in the last five weeks of its season. After a slow start, the Golden Bears reeled off 12-straight wins, including their great run to their first-ever semifinals against the 11th toughest schedule in DII football.
First five (ish) out (in alphabetical order)
Every now and then, there is a tie in my first five out. Since I list them alphabetically, here are the next six teams.
- Benedict: The Tigers are great in the SIAC, and while they did go 5-0 against teams with a winning record, they also played the weakest schedule of any team in the top 20. They simply need to show they can handle ranked competition for them to be in the top 10.
- Bemidji State: Did you know the Beavers played the third toughest schedule in DII football? And did you know while doing that, they advanced to the second round of the tournament for the third year in a row? They didn't light up scoreboards like they have in the past, but there is something to be said for their consistency.
- Central Washington: I can see how people think there is some recency bias here, but what the Wildcats did in the playoffs on the road is certainly worthy. Don't forget, this team was playing for the Lone Star title in the final week of the season: This is well deserved.
- Delta State: Statesmen fans won't be happy, but it came down to the tiniest details. One of those details was the 110th-ranked SOS in DII football. Don't forget, they finished the regular season with the third-best PI in their own region. This team was very good, make no mistake, but when it came down to the No. 10 spot, Delta State just missed.
- UT Permian Basin: The Falcons were picked to finish seventh in the Lone Star and instead won the whole thing. Their strength of schedule was nearly identical to Ferris State showing they beat tough teams. UTPB was one of the feel-good stories of 2023 and it may be just the start.
- Western Colorado: Well, if I have UTPB in the top 15, I can't ignore the Mountaineers, the team that handed the Falcons their lone regular-season loss. Fact of the matter is, Western Colorado lost some significant pieces from last year's breakout season and still found its way to the playoffs. This was a tough team.
krikya18.com DII football players of the year
This past season, for the first time in the history of the Power 10 rankings, I added the krikya18.com player of the week. Now, we salute the first-ever krikya18.com DII football players of the year. First, take a look at 2023 players of the week.
- Week 1: Braden Gleason, Emporia State
- Week 2: Zach Zebrowski, Central Missouri
- Week 3: Jordan Terrell, Barton
- Week 4: Patrick Shegog, Delta State
- Week 5: Shen Butler Lawson, Jr., Minnesota State; John Jiles, West Florida
- Week 6: Jada Byers, Virginia Union, Kymani Clarke, Virginia State
- Week 7: Camden Dean, Sioux Falls
- Week 8: Zach Zebrowski, Central Missouri
- Week 9: John Matocha, Colorado School of Mines
- Week 10: Zach Zebrowski, Central Missouri
- Week 11: Jordan Terrell, Barton
Offensive player of the year: Zach Zebrowski, Central Missouri
A simple look at the week-by-week list gives you your answer. Zebrowski won the krikya18.com Player of the Week award three times and caps his award-winning, record-breaking season with the inaugural 2023 krikya18.com Player of the Year honors.
Zebrowski threw for 5,157 yards, 61 touchdowns, and a mere five interceptions. The 61 touchdown passes crushed the record of 54 (set by Dusty Bonner of Valdosta State in 2000 and tied by Zach Zull of Shippensburg in 2012) and he broke last year's Harlon Hill Trophy-winner John Matocha's single-season record for most games with at least three touchdown passes with 12. Zebrowski threw for fewer than 300 yards once the whole season and had seven games of 400 or more yards, including a 615-yard, eight-touchdown performance against Emporia State. He could also run the ball and his legs helped him break the single-season record for most total offense with an astounding 5.690 yards.
The Mules were picked to finish in the bottom half of the MIAA and not only made it to the postseason, but stomped their first-round opponent and were a blocked extra point away from taking down Harding in the second round — a game in which Zebrowski threw for 425 yards and five touchdowns while adding 94 rushing yards against arguably the best defense in DII football all year long. There has never been an easier choice for player of the year.
Defensive player of the year: Tanner Volk, Central Washington
Simply put, Volk was outstanding all season long for the Cinderella team of the tournament. He led DII football in total tackles (124) and had 13 interceptions to lead all college football. He had a run of four interceptions in three games beginning in the final week of the season — in what was essentially a playoff game against UT Permian Basin — so he shined brightest when it mattered most.
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