2023 Drake
8–4 (8–0 Pioneer Football League). Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat St. Thomas (MN) 52–21Oct 14
By 31 points, its widest win.
- Most excitingLost to Northwestern (IA) 24–27Sep 9
The win probability swung the most, by CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2 | at North Dakota | L 7–55 | 26% |
| Sep 9 | vsNorthwestern (IA) | L 24–27 | 59% |
| Sep 16 | vs South Dakota State | L 7–70 | 11% |
| Sep 30 | at Morehead State | W 16–9 | 42% |
| Oct 7 | vs Valparaiso | W 20–14 | 62% |
| Oct 14 | vs St. Thomas (MN) | W 52–21 | 38% |
| Oct 21 | at San Diego | W 25–20 | 50% |
| Oct 28 | vs Stetson | W 33–7 | 73% |
| Nov 4 | at Marist | W 10–3 | 56% |
| Nov 11 | vs Presbyterian | W 16–14 | 85% |
| Nov 18 | at Butler | W 13–9 | 37% |
| Nov 25Bowls & playoff | at North Dakota StateFCS Championship – First Round | L 3–66 | 21% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Lost to North Dakota State 66–3 in the FCS Championship – First Round; unranked in the final AP poll; Pioneer Football League champions.
In program history: The 74th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 111 on file).
Pioneer Football League champions8–0 in the conference
- Record
- 8–4
- Conference
- 8–0 first in Pioneer Football League
- AP final
- Unranked
- Points
- 226–315
- Coach
- —
- Elo
- 1328 +101 this season
- SP+ rating
- —
- SRS
- −29.8 No. 68 of 128 in FCS
- Recruiting class
- —
- Defensive coordinator
- Allen Smith
Leaders
| Passing yards | Luke Bailey QB | 2,558 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Luke Bailey QB | 16 TD |
| Rushing yards | Dorian Boyland RB | 680 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | Dorian Boyland RB | 6 TD |
| Receiving yards | Mitchell January WR | 444 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Mitchell January WR | 4 TD |
| Interceptions | Ethan Zager DB | 1 INT |
Top recruits in the 2023 class
| Isaac Saffold DL | ★★ | No. 3423 |
| Shaku Sangarie DE |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2023 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Defensive line | 1 | 2.0 | 0.720 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
2023 Pioneer Football League standings
Conference page| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
 Drake | 8–0 | 8–4 | |
| St. Thomas (MN) | 7–1 | 8–3 | |
 Davidson | 6–2 | 7–4 | |
| Butler | 5–3 | 7–4 | |
| Marist | 4–4 | 4–7 | |
| San Diego | 4–4 | 4–7 | |
| Morehead State | 3–5 | 4–7 | |
 Dayton | 2–6 | 4–7 | |
| Presbyterian | 2–6 | 4–7 | |
| Valparaiso | 2–6 | 3–8 | |
| Stetson | 1–7 | 3–8 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.