SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) – If South Dakota State reaches the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision championship game for a third straight season, the championship game will be played on Monday night.
On Saturday, the NCAA announced on social media the FCS Championship game will be on Monday, Jan. 6, 2025, at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas. It will be broadcast by ESPN.
The change will effect all FCS schools, including South Dakota, which reached the quarterfinals last year.
The past two FCS championship games, both South Dakota State wins, have been played on Sunday, at the same time NFL games were being played and broadcasted. Those games have been broadcast on ABC.
In 2024, media outlet Sports Media Watch reported the title game between SDSU and Montana drew an average of 1.04 million views on ABC, down 3% from the 2023 championship game featuring SDSU and North Dakota State on a Sunday.
In 2019, NDSU and James Madison drew 2.68 million viewers for the FCS Championship game on a Saturday. The FCS championship game moving to Monday night coincides with the 12-team College Football Playoff starting for the 2024-25 FBS season. The next CFP national championship will be played on Monday, Jan. 20.
