| Year: | 2015 |
| Number Of Teams: | 125 |
| Regular Season: | August 29 – November 21 |
| Playoffs: | November 28 – December 19 |
| Nc Date: | January 9, 2016 |
| Championship: | Toyota Stadium, Frisco, Texas |
| Champions: | North Dakota State |
| Payton: | Cooper Kupp, WR, Eastern Washington |
| Buchanan: | Deon King, LB, Norfolk State |
The 2015 NCAA Division I FCS football season, part of college football in the United States, was organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level. The season began on August 29, 2015, and concluded with the 2016 NCAA Division I Football Championship Game played on January 9, 2016, at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas. North Dakota State won its fifth consecutive title, defeating Jacksonville State, 37-10.
(FCS rankings from the STATS poll)
September 4: No. 20 Fordham 37, Army 35
September 5: North Dakota 24, Wyoming 13
September 5: Portland State 24, Washington St 17
September 5: No. 16 South Dakota State 41, Kansas 38
September 19: Furman 16, UCF 15
September 26: No. 9 James Madison 48, SMU 45
October 3: No. 18 Liberty 41, Georgia State 33
October 10: No. 25 Portland State 66, North Texas 7 (NOTE: This was the largest victory margin ever by an FCS team over an FBS team. Portland State also became the first FCS team to defeat two FBS teams in the same season since North Dakota State in 2007).[1]
November 21: No. 25 The Citadel 23, South Carolina 22
See main article: 2010–2014 NCAA conference realignment.
| School | 2014 conference | 2015 conference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charlotte | C–USA (FBS) | ||
| East Tennessee State | Revived program | FCS Independent | |
| Kennesaw State | New program | Big South |
Note: Records are regular-season only, and do not include playoff games.
| Conference | Champion | Record | Offensive Player of the Year | Defensive Player of the Year | Coach of the Year | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Big Sky | Southern Utah | 8–3 (7–1) | Cooper Kupp (Eastern Washington) | James Cowser (Southern Utah) | Bruce Barnum (Portland State) | |
| Big South | Charleston Southern | 9–2 (6–0) | De'Angelo Henderson (Coastal Carolina) | Chima Uzowihe (Liberty) | Jamey Chadwell (Charleston Southern) | |
| CAA | James Madison Richmond William & Mary | 9–2 (6–2) 8–3 (6–2) 8–3 (6–2) | Vad Lee (James Madison) | DeAndre Houston-Carson (William & Mary) Victor Ochi (Stony Brook) | Danny Rocco (Richmond) | |
| Ivy | Dartmouth Harvard Penn | 9–1 (6–1) 9–1 (6–1) 7–3 (6–1) | Scott Hosch (Harvard) | Tyler Drake (Yale) | Ray Priore (Penn) | |
| MEAC | Bethune-Cookman North Carolina A&T North Carolina Central | 9–2 (7–1) 9–2 (7–1) 8–3 (7–1) | Tarik Cohen (North Carolina A&T) | Javon Hargrave (South Carolina State) | Terry Sims (Bethune-Cookman) | |
| MVFC | Illinois State North Dakota State | 9–2 (7–1) 9–2 (7–1) | Marshaun Coprich (Illinois State) | Deiondre' Hall (Northern Iowa) | Bob Nielson (Western Illinois) | |
| NEC | Duquesne | 8–3 (5–1) | Ricardo McCray (Bryant) | Christian Kuntz (Duquesne) | Chris Villarrial (Saint Francis) | |
| OVC | Jacksonville State | 10–1 (8–0) | Eli Jenkins (Jacksonville State) | Dino Fanti (Eastern Illinois) Noah Spence (Eastern Kentucky) | John Grass (Jacksonville State) | |
| Patriot | Colgate | 7–4 (6–0) | Chase Edmonds (Fordham) | Clayton Ewell (Bucknell) | Dan Hunt (Colgate) | |
| Pioneer | Dayton San Diego | 10–1 (7–1) 9–2 (7–1) | Austin Gahafer (Morehead State) | Donald Payne (Stetson) | Rick Chamberlin (Dayton) | |
| Southern | Chattanooga The Citadel | 8–3 (6–1) 8–3 (6–1) | Jacob Huesman (Chattanooga) | Mitchell Jeter (The Citadel) | Mike Houston (The Citadel) | |
| Southland | McNeese State | 10–0 (9–0) | Kade Harrington (Lamar) | Wallace Scott (McNeese State) | Matt Viator (McNeese State) |
| Conference | Team | data-sort-type=number | Appearance | Last bid | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Big Sky Conference | Southern Utah | 2nd | 2013 | First Round (L – Sam Houston State) | |
| Big South Conference | Charleston Southern | 1st | – | – | |
| Colonial Athletic Association | 10th | 2014 | Second Round (L – Coastal Carolina) | ||
| Missouri Valley Football Conference | North Dakota State | 6th | 2014 | National Champions (W – Illinois State) | |
| Northeast Conference | Duquesne | 1st | – | – | |
| Ohio Valley Conference | Jacksonville State | 6th | 2014 | Second Round (L – Sam Houston State) | |
| Patriot League | Colgate | 10th | 2012 | First Round (L – Wagner) | |
| Pioneer Football League | Dayton | 1st | – | – | |
| Southern Conference | Chattanooga | 3rd | 2014 | Quarterfinals (L – New Hampshire) | |
| Southland Conference | McNeese State | 16th | 2013 | Second Round (L – Jacksonville State) |
* Home team
† Overtime
Winner
Home facilities for the two new FCS programs in the 2015 season:
This is restricted to coaching changes that took place on or after May 1, 2015. For coaching changes that occurred earlier in 2015, see 2014 NCAA Division I FCS end-of-season coaching changes.
| School | Outgoing coach | Date announced | Reason | Replacement | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Dakota | November 22 | Retired[5] | [6] | ||
| Austin Peay | November 23 | Fired[7] | [8] | ||
| Montana State | November 23 | Fired[9] | [10] | ||
| Eastern Kentucky | November 23 | Fired[11] | [12] | ||
| Maine | November 24 | Transferred to Senior Associate Director of Athletics for UMaine[13] | [14] | ||
| Texas Southern | November 29 | Resigned[15] | [16] | ||
| Southern Illinois | November 30 | Fired[17] | [18] | ||
| Tennessee Tech | December 2 | Retired[19] | [20] | ||
| Jacksonville | December 3 | Fired[21] | [22] | ||
| Fordham | December 12 | Hired as offensive coordinator by Penn State[23] | [24] | ||
| McNeese State | December 14 | Hired as head coach by Louisiana–Monroe[25] | [26] | ||
| December 16 | Hired as head coach by South Dakota | Charlie Fisher[27] | |||
| Southern Utah | December 26 | Hired as assistant head coach by BYU[28] | |||
| James Madison | January 7 | Hired as head coach by Texas State | [29] | ||
| The Citadel | January 18 | Hired as head coach by James Madison | [30] | ||
| Morgan State | Lee Hull | February 8, 2016 | Resigned | Fred Farrier (interim) |