FRISCO – The Southland Conference will send three teams to the 2025 NCAA Division I FCS Playoffs, the league’s highest total since 2019 and tied for the second most selections among all conferences this season. The Missouri Valley Football Conference led all leagues with six selections, while the Southland matched both the CAA and Big Sky with three bids apiece.

Stephen F. Austin earned the league’s automatic qualifier and was awarded the No. 7 national seed, securing a first-round bye and advancing directly to the second round. Southeastern Louisiana claimed the No. 16 national seed and will host Illinois State at Noon CT on Saturday, Nov. 29, at Strawberry Stadium in Hammond. Lamar received an at-large selection and will travel to No. 10 Abilene Christian for a first-round matchup, also at Noon CT on Nov. 29 at Wildcat Stadium in Abilene.

This marks the Southland’s first three-bid playoff year since 2019, when the league sent Central Arkansas, Southeastern Louisiana, and Nicholls to the field. It is the fourth time in eight years the conference has placed at least three programs into the postseason (2017, 2018, 2019, 2025). It is the sixth time the Southland has sent three or more teams to the FCS Playoffs, and the ninth time the Southland has earned multiple bids since the field expanded in 2013.

The Southland has now produced a national seed in back-to-back seasons, and three of the last four years, underscoring the league’s continued national relevance and postseason success.