Sunday, November 20, 2022
by Cody Bush, PFL Media Relations

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Davidson, which earned the Pioneer Football League's automatic qualifying spot, travels to face Richmond in the first round of the NCAA Division I Football Championship at 2 p.m. (ET), Saturday in Robins Stadium.

The winner of the Davidson-Richmond game travels to meet No. 2 national seed Sacramento State in a 5 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 3 game at Hornet Stadium in Sacramento, California.

Davidson (8-3, 6-2 PFL) is making its third-consecutive appearance in the FCS Playoffs. The Wildcats earned the PFL's automatic bid to the tournament after defeating Dayton in the regular season's final game.

Richmond (8-3, 6-2 CAA) earned an at-large berth after finishing tied for third place in the Colonial Athletic Conference. The CAA saw five teams earn a spot in the 24-team FCS Playoffs.

The triple-option-based Davidson offense continued to flex its strength, again leading all FCS teams in rushing offense (350.5 yards per game). They also ranked among the FCS Top 20 offensively in scoring offense (18th, 34.8 points per game) and time of possession (6th, 33:47 per game).

The Wildcats boast a balanced running attack led by Dylan Sparks and his 71.4 yards per game (49thin the FCS) and Coy Williams' 70.8 yards per game (54thin the FCS). Jayden Waddell (47.7 ypg) and Mark McCurdy (43.1 ypg) also were ranked among the FCS' Top 200 runners.

Davidson's defense has held up its end of the bargain, ranking 16th among FCS teams in defensive yards allowed (321.6 ypg) and 25th  in passing defense (194.2 ypg). Jonathan Hammond again leads the Wildcats' defensive unit with 9.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks this season. .

PIONEER FOOTBALL LEAGUE FCS PLAYOFF HISTORY

The NCAA Football Championship began in 1978 with a four-team field. It has expanded over the years to its current 24-team format. The Pioneer Football League first received an automatic bid during the 2013 expansion to 24 teams.

2013: Tennessee State 31, at Butler 0

2014: at Montana 52, San Diego 14

2015: Western Illinois 24, at Dayton 7

2016: San Diego 35, at Cal Poly 21 | at North Dakota State 45, San Diego 7

2017: San Diego 41, at Northern Arizona 10 | at North Dakota State 38, San Diego 3

2018: at Nicholls 49, San Diego 30

2019: at Northern Iowa 17, San Diego 3

2020: at Jacksonville State 49, Davidson 14

2021: at Kennesaw State 48, Davidson 21