2023 Drake Bulldogs football team

The 2023 Drake Bulldogs football team represented Drake University as a member of the Pioneer Football League (PFL) during the 2023 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bulldogs were led by fifth-year head coach Todd Stepsis and played home games at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa.

2023 Drake Bulldogs football
PFL champion
NCAA Division I First Round, L 3–66 at North Dakota State
Conference	Pioneer Football League
Record	8–4 (8–0 PFL)
Head coach	Todd Stepsis (5th season)
Defensive coordinator	Allen Smith (5th season)
Home stadium	Drake Stadium
Seasons ← 2022 2024 →

2023 Pioneer Football League standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
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
Presbyterian		2	–	6					4	–	7
Valparaiso		2	–	6					3	–	8
Dayton		2	–	6					4	–	7
Stetson		1	–	7					3	–	8
$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant * – St. Thomas (MN) ineligible for FCS postseason play due to transition from NCAA Division III Rankings from STATS Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 2	3:00 p.m.	at No. 17 North Dakota*	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND	ESPN+	L 7–55	8,503
September 9	6:00 p.m.	No. 1 (NAIA) Northwestern (IA)*	Drake Stadium Des Moines, IA	ESPN+	L 24–27 OT	3,526
September 16	2:30 p.m.	vs. No. 1 South Dakota State*	Target Field Minneapolis, MN	ESPN+	L 7–70	18,174
September 30	1:00 p.m.	at Morehead State	Jayne Stadium Morehead, KY	ESPN+	W 16–9	6,876
October 7	1:00 p.m.	Valparaiso	Drake Stadium Des Moines, IA	ESPN+	W 20–14	3,075
October 14	12:00 p.m.	St. Thomas (MN)	Drake Stadium Des Moines, IA	ESPN+	W 52–21	1,902
October 21	4:00 p.m.	at San Diego	Torero Stadium San Diego, CA	ESPN+	W 25–20	791
October 28	12:00 p.m.	Stetson	Drake Stadium Des Moines, IA	ESPN+	W 33–7	1,625
November 4	11:00 a.m.	at Marist	Leonidoff Field Poughkeepsie, NY	ESPN+	W 10–3	1,594
November 11	1:00 p.m.	Presbyterian	Drake Stadium Des Moines, IA	ESPN+	W 16–14	2,278
November 18	11:00 a.m.	at Butler	Bud and Jackie Sellick Bowl Indianapolis, IN	FloSports	W 13–9	2,788
November 25	2:30 p.m.	at No. 8 North Dakota State*	Fargodome Fargo, ND (NCAA Division I First Round)	ESPN+	L 3–66	7,798
*Non-conference game Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^[1]

Game summaries

At No. 17 North Dakota

See also: 2023 North Dakota Fighting Hawks football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	0	0	0	7	7
No. 17 Fighting Hawks	0	14	27	14	55

Northwestern (IA)

See also: 2023 Northwestern Red Raiders football team

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Red Raiders	3	7	3	8	6	27
Bulldogs	0	14	0	7	3	24

vs. No. 1 South Dakota State

See also: 2023 South Dakota State Jackrabbits football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	7	0	0	0	7
No. 1 Jackrabbits	14	21	21	14	70

At Morehead State

See also: 2023 Morehead State Eagles football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	7	6	0	3	16
Eagles	0	6	3	0	9

Valparaiso

See also: 2023 Valparaiso Beacons football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Beacons	0	0	0	14	14
Bulldogs	7	3	7	3	20

St. Thomas

See also: 2023 St. Thomas Tommies football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Tommies	7	14	0	0	21
Bulldogs	7	17	21	7	52

at San Diego

See also: 2023 San Diego Toreros football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	3	6	10	6	25
Torreros	0	7	3	10	20

Stetson

See also: 2023 Stetson Hatters football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hatters	0	7	0	0	7
Bulldogs	3	10	7	13	33

at Marist

See also: 2023 Marist Red Foxes football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	0	7	0	3	10
Red Foxes	0	0	3	0	3

Presbyterian

See also: 2023 Presbyterian Blue Hose football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Blue Hose	7	0	0	7	14
Bulldogs	7	3	6	0	16

at Butler

See also: 2023 Butler Bulldogs football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
DU Bulldogs	0	7	0	6	13
BU Bulldogs	3	0	6	0	9