The FCS season has now crossed the halfway point with three more games completed. Below is a look back on trends from week six. Angelo State was originally scheduled to visit Stephen F. Austin on Saturday, however, the game was pushed back a week to Saturday, October 17.
| Date | Away | Home | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/10 | The Citadel | Army | 9-14 |
| 10/10 | Mercer | Jacksonville State | 28-34 |
| 10/10 | Central Arkansas | Arkansas State | 27-50 |
FCS Versus FBS Points and Yardage
We keep track of points and yardage for each FCS versus FBS game this season. Listed below are the FCS team, points scored by each FCS team, points given up, offensive yards gained by each FCS team, and yards given up by each FCS team. Totals and averages since week one are also provided.
To date, 24 FCS versus FBS games have been played. Both charts and tables are provided to show the change over the course of the season. The number of games played each week is listed in parentheses.
| FCS Team | FCS Points | FBS Points | FCS Off. Yards | FCS Def. Yards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Arkansas | 27 | 50 | 411 | 573 |
| The Citadel | 9 | 14 | 218 | 228 |
| Week 6 Totals (2) | 36 | 64 | 629 | 801 |
| Week 6 Averages | 18 | 32 | 314.5 | 400.5 |
| Week 5 Totals (4) | 68 | 190 | 1,304 | 1,955 |
| Week 5 Averages | 17 | 47.5 | 326 | 488.8 |
| Week 4 Totals (3) | 66 | 168 | 1,022 | 1,509 |
| Week 4 Averages | 22 | 56 | 340.7 | 503 |
| Week 3 Totals (5) | 64 | 188 | 1,509 | 2,183 |
| Week 3 Averages | 12.8 | 37.6 | 301.8 | 436.6 |
| Week 2 Totals (6) | 75 | 248 | 1,734 | 3,062 |
| Week 2 Averages | 12.5 | 41.3 | 289 | 510.3 |
| Week 1 Totals (4) | 80 | 185 | 1,258 | 2,171 |
| Week 1 Averages | 20 | 46.3 | 314.5 | 542.8 |
| YTD Totals (24) | 389 | 1,043 | 7,456 | 11,681 |
| YTD Averages | 16.2 | 43.5 | 310.7 | 486.7 |
The historical scoring average through 2019 for FCS versus FBS games since the Division I split in 1978 was 15 points for FCS teams and 37 points for FBS squads. In 2019, FCS teams averaged 13.9 points per game against FBS teams while FCS teams gave up 43 points per game on defense.
FCS Versus FBS Conference and Team Records
Below are the records for each conference for FCS versus FBS games. A running total will be kept throughout the season and updated weekly. Historical team records can be found here and historical conference records can be found here.
| Team | 2020 vs. FBS | All-Time Record | Last FBS Win |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central Arkansas | 0-2 | 3-15 | 2019 |
| The Citadel | 0-2 | 8-46 | 2019 |
| Conference | Weekly Record | 2020 Record |
|---|---|---|
| ACC (FBS) | 0-0 | 4-0 |
| American Athletic (FBS) | 0-0 | 3-0 |
| Big 12 (FBS) | 0-0 | 3-0 |
| Big South (FCS) | 0-0 | 0-5 |
| Conference USA (FBS) | 0-0 | 7-0 |
| FBS Independents | 1-0 | 3-0 |
| MVFC (FCS) | 0-0 | 0-1 |
| Ohio Valley (FCS) | 0-0 | 0-5 |
| SoCon (FCS) | 0-1 | 0-3 |
| Southland (FCS) | 0-1 | 0-10 |
| Sun Belt (FBS) | 1-0 | 4-0 |
FCS School Trends Versus FBS Teams
Central Arkansas lost its second game of the second against an FBS opponent with a 50-27 defeat against in-state for Arkansas State. The Bears tend to play in high scoring affairs against FBS foes. Of the 18 games versus FBS teams, 14 have ended with at least 50 points scored and 11 have seen 60 or more points scored. The Bears have one final FBS opponent for 2020 against Louisiana on November 21.
The Citadel played a close game against Army but came up short in a 14-9 defeat. It was the fourth straight game between the teams to end with a difference of less than a touchdown. The Citadel won 20-14 in 1991 and 15-14 in 1992. Army won the most recent game prior to Saturday’s in 1994 on a last-second field goal by a score of 25-24.
Field Goal and Extra Point Trends
Given the lack of spring and summer practice, special teams performance are worth tracking. So far, field goal kicking has been rough for all FCS games since week one. The perfect start in week zero (7 for 7 on field goals and extra points) from Austin Peay and Central Arkansas were a mirage though week six saw one of the best kicking weeks of the season.
Week six brought a perfect week of extra points and only two missed field goals. While there were only three games at the FCS level, one of those games (Mercer-Jacksonville State) was played in a downpour. None of the 10 field goals or extra points were missed in the game while one punt was blocked.
Overall, week one is looking more and more like an outlier and while field goal kicking has rebounded, it has still not been higher than 75%. A table and chart are shown below for field goals (in blue) and extra points (in orange). The number of games played each week is listed in parentheses.
| Week | Field Goals | FG % | Extra Points | XP % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 0 | 4/4 | 100% | 3/3 | 100% |
| Week 1 | 1/7 | 14% | 11/11 | 100% |
| Week 2 | 5/8 | 63% | 6/7 | 86% |
| Week 3 | 6/8 | 75% | 4/5 | 80% |
| Week 4 | 4/6 | 67% | 16/19 | 84% |
| Week 5 | 9/15 | 60% | 25/27 | 93% |
| Week 6 | 5/7 | 71% | 11/11 | 100% |
| 2020 Totals | 34/55 | 62% | 76/83 | 92% |
What’s Ahead for Week Seven
As of this writing, 31 of the 57 games scheduled FCS games have been completed. The latest updated FCS schedule for 2020 can be found here. Next week’s game between West Texas A&M and Abilene Christian was canceled on Saturday.
Week seven will feature four FCS games with one against FBS competition, one against a Division II school, and two all-FCS matchups.
| Date | Away | Home | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/17 | Jacksonville State | North Alabama | 2 PM | ESPN+ |
| 10/17 | Eastern Kentucky | Troy | 3:30 PM | ESPN3 |
| 10/17 | Angelo State | Stephen F. Austin | 5 PM | |
| 10/17 | Central Arkansas | Missouri State | 8 PM | ESPN3 |
