2023 Toledo Rockets football team

The 2023 Toledo Rockets football team represented the University of Toledo during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Rockets were led by eighth-year head coach Jason Candle and played their home games at the Glass Bowl in Toledo, Ohio.^[1] They competed as members of the West Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC). The Rockets won the West with a perfect conference record.^[2] Their quarterback Dequan Finn won Player of the Year and coach Jason Candle won coach of the year.^[3] Miami defeated them in the MAC Championship Game with a 23–14 upset victory.^[4] They played Wyoming in the Arizona Bowl, where they lost 15–16. ^[5] The Rockets drew an average home attendance of 19,675 in 2023.

2023 Toledo Rockets football
MAC West Division champion
MAC Championship, L 14–23 vs. Miami (OH)
Arizona Bowl, L 15–16 vs. Wyoming
Conference	Mid-American Conference
Division	West Division
Record	11–3 (8–0 MAC)
Head coach	Jason Candle (8th season)
Co-offensive coordinators	Mike Hallett (4th season) Robert Weiner (4th season)
Offensive scheme	Spread
Defensive coordinator	Vince Kehres (4th season)
Co-defensive coordinators	Ross Watson (4th season) Craig Kuligowski (4th season)
Base defense	4–2–5
Home stadium	Glass Bowl
Seasons ← 2022 2024 →

2023 Mid-American Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
Miami (OH) xy$		7	–	1					11	–	3
Ohio		6	–	2					10	–	3
Bowling Green		5	–	3					7	–	6
Buffalo		3	–	5					3	–	9
Akron		1	–	7					2	–	10
Kent State		0	–	8					1	–	11
West Division
Toledo xy		8	–	0					11	–	3
Northern Illinois		5	–	3					7	–	6
Eastern Michigan		4	–	4					6	–	7
Central Michigan		3	–	5					5	–	7
Ball State		3	–	5					4	–	8
Western Michigan		3	–	5					4	–	8
Championship: Miami (OH) 23, Toledo 14
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant

Preseason

Preseason polls

Coaches Poll

On July 20, the MAC announced the preseason coaches poll. Toledo was picked to finish first in the West. They received seven votes to win conference.^[6][7]

East
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Ohio	63 (9)
2	Miami	52 (2)
3	Buffalo	51 (1)
4	Bowling Green	35
5	Akron	26
6	Kent State	19

West
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Toledo	66 (11)
2	Eastern Michigan	55 (1)
3	Northern Illinois	38
4	Central Michigan	37
5	Ball State	27
6	Western Michigan	23

Coaches poll (MAC Championship)
Rank	Team	Votes
1	Toledo	7
2	Ohio	4
3	Buffalo	1

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 2	7:30 p.m.	at Illinois*		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	L 28–30	48,898
September 9	3:30 p.m.	Texas Southern*		Glass Bowl Toledo, OH	ESPN+	W 71–3	22,742
September 16	7:00 p.m.	San Jose State*		Glass Bowl Toledo, OH	ESPN+	W 21–17	20,039
September 23	1:30 p.m.	Western Michigan		Glass Bowl Toledo, OH	ESPN+	W 49–31	19,068
September 30	3:30 p.m.	Northern Illinois		Glass Bowl Toledo, OH	ESPNU	W 35–33	19,068
October 7	12:00 p.m.	at UMass*		Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium Hadley, MA	ESPNU	W 41–24	9,623
October 14	2:00 p.m.	at Ball State		Scheumann Stadium Muncie, IN	ESPN+	W 13–6	7,673
October 21	4:00 p.m.	at Miami (OH)		Yager Stadium Oxford, OH	ESPNU	W 21–17	17,321
October 31	7:30 p.m.	Buffalo		Glass Bowl Toledo, OH	ESPN2	W 31–13	14,939
November 8	7:30 p.m.	Eastern Michigan		Glass Bowl Toledo, OH	ESPN2	W 49–23	17,842
November 14	7:00 p.m.	at Bowling Green		Doyt L. Perry Stadium Bowling Green, OH (Battle of I-75)	ESPN2	W 32–31	20,590
November 24	12:00 p.m.	at Central Michigan	No. 23	Kelly/Shorts Stadium Mount Pleasant, MI	ESPNU	W 32–17	8,612
December 2	12:00 p.m.	vs. Miami (OH)	No. 23	Ford Field Detroit, MI (MAC Championship Game)	ESPN	L 14–23	20,200
December 30	4:30 p.m.	vs. Wyoming		Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ (Arizona Bowl)	The CW/Barstool Sports	L 15–16	30,428
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Rankings

Further information: 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	RV	RV	RV	RV	23	23	RV	RV
Coaches	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	—
CFP	Not released									—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released

Source: AP -^{[8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]}

Coaches -^{[25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39]}

CFP -^{[40][41][42][43][44][45]}

NFL Draft

See also: 2024 NFL draft

The NFL draft was held at Campus Martius Park in Detroit, Michigan, on April 25–27, 2024. Additionally Chris McDonald, Dallas Gant, Judge Culpepper, and David Nwaogwugwu were signed as undrafted free agents.

Rockets who were picked in the 2024 NFL Draft:

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Team
1	22	Quinyon Mitchell	CB	Philadelphia Eagles