2010 NCAA Division I FCS football season

The 2010 NCAA Division I FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) football season, part of the college football season, began in September 2010 and concluded with the national championship game on January 7, 2011 won by Eastern Washington. The Eagles defeated Delaware 20–19 to claim their first Division I national title in any team sport.

For the first time since 1997, the final game was played at a new location—Pizza Hut Park in the Dallas suburb of Frisco, Texas. Every title game since 1997 had been held at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga, Tennessee, but the NCAA opened the hosting rights for the 2010–2012 championship games for bids during the 2009 season, as the hosting contract between the NCAA and the Chattanooga organizers was set to expire. In addition to Frisco and Chattanooga, three other cities submitted bids:
 * Little Rock, Arkansas — War Memorial Stadium
 * Missoula, Montana — Washington-Grizzly Stadium
 * Spokane, Washington — Joe Albi Stadium

The field of bidders was eventually cut to Chattanooga and Frisco, with Frisco being announced as the winner on February 26, 2010.

The January finish to the season was the result of an expanded playoff schedule. The championship tournament expanded from 16 teams to 20, with the Big South and Northeast Conference earning automatic bids for the first time. Eight teams played first-round games, with the remaining participants receiving byes into the second round. The playoffs began at their normal time on Thanksgiving weekend, specifically on November 27. According to early reports, the championship game would be played sometime between December 29, 2010 and January 7, 2011, and January 7 was ultimately chosen.

New FCS programs
Two FCS programs began play in the 2010 season, and a third officially launched its program but chose not to compete until 2011:
 * Georgia State University fielded the first football team in its history. The Panthers play all home games at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, with the upper decks being covered so that the fans are restricted to the lower tier of the 71,000+ capacity stadium. Coached by Bill Curry, a former FBS head coach, they participate in the Colonial Athletic Association, although they will not play a full conference schedule until 2012.
 * Lamar University revived its program after a 21-season absence. The Cardinals play their home games in Provost Umphrey Stadium, the same venue that hosted the Cardinals before their demise after the 1989 season but was extensively renovated for their FCS return. The Southland Conference members, coached by former NFL player Ray Woodard, did not play a full conference schedule until 2011.
 * UTSA officially began its football program during this season, however all of its players were redshirted so that the season could be used for practice only.

FCS team wins over FBS teams
Most FCS teams play at least one game against FBS opposition each season; in many cases, the FCS team will receive a substantial sum of money to travel to the FBS school for the game. In the 2009 season, FCS teams played 91 games against FBS opposition, with the FCS team winning five of the games. For the 2010 college football season, a total of 88 FBS-FCS games were played, with the FCS team winning seven times.


 * September 4 – Jacksonville State 49, Ole Miss 48 (2OT)
 * September 4 – North Dakota State 6, Kansas 3
 * September 11 – James Madison 21, #13 Virginia Tech 16
 * This was only the second win by an FCS school over a ranked FBS team, after Appalachian State's historic win over Michigan in 2007.
 * September 11 – South Dakota 41, Minnesota 38
 * September 11 – Gardner-Webb 38, Akron 37 (OT)
 * September 11 – Liberty 27, Ball State 23
 * October 2 – UC Davis 14, San Jose State 13

Automatic berths for conference champions

 * Big Sky Conference – Montana State
 * Big South Conference – Coastal Carolina
 * Colonial Athletic Association – William & Mary
 * Missouri Valley Football Conference – Northern Iowa
 * Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – Bethune-Cookman
 * Northeast Conference – Robert Morris
 * Ohio Valley Conference – Southeast Missouri State
 * Patriot League – Lehigh
 * Southern Conference – Appalachian State
 * Southland Conference – Stephen F. Austin

At large qualifiers

 * Big Sky Conference – Eastern Washington
 * Colonial Athletic Association – Delaware
 * Colonial Athletic Association – New Hampshire
 * Colonial Athletic Association – Villanova
 * Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – South Carolina State
 * Missouri Valley Football Conference – North Dakota State
 * Missouri Valley Football Conference – Western Illinois
 * Ohio Valley Conference – Jacksonville State
 * Southern Conference – Georgia Southern
 * Southern Conference – Wofford

No teams from the conferences that do not have automatic bids—currently the Great West Conference and Pioneer Football League—received bids. In order for a team from a conference without an automatic bid to be eligible for the playoffs, it must have a minimum of seven Division I wins, with at least two against teams in automatic bid conferences. The team in question also must be ranked an average of 16 or better in the national rankings.

Abstains

 * Ivy League – Pennsylvania
 * Southwestern Athletic Conference – Texas Southern

(Overall Record, Conference Record)

NCAA FCS Playoff bracket
* Host institution

Global Kilimanjaro Bowl
On September 1, 2010, Drake University announced it would participate in the Global Kilimanjaro Bowl, the first American football game played on the continent of Africa. The game will feature the Drake Bulldogs versus Mexican All-Star team CONADEIP. Due to the seasonal difference in Africa, the Global Kilimanjaro Bowl was played on May 21, 2011.

Final poll standings
Standings are from The Sports Network final poll.

Standings are from the FCS Coaches final poll.