2010 NCAA Division I FCS football season#Postseason

September 4 – Jacksonville State 49, Ole Miss 48 ^2OT

September 4 – North Dakota State 6, Kansas 3

September 11 – James Madison 21, No. 13 Virginia Tech 16 (NOTE: 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).{{cite news|url=http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=302540259 |title=Va. Tech suffers 2nd loss in 6 days as James Madison pulls off upset |agency=Associated Press |publisher=ESPN |date=September 11, 2010 |access-date=September 11, 2010| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100914120124/http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=302540259| archive-date= September 14, 2010 | url-status= dead}}

September 11 – Gardner–Webb 38, Akron 37 ^OT

September 11 – Liberty 27, Ball State 23

September 11 – South Dakota 41, Minnesota 38

October 2 – UC Davis 14, San Jose State 13

• 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

• 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.{{citation needed|date=November 2010}}

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

(Overall Record, Conference Record)

After 24 seasons with a playoff field of sixteen teams, the FCS bracket was expanded to twenty this postseason, with the five seeded teams and seven others receiving first-round byes. The championship game was moved to January, three weeks after the mid-December semifinals.

The FCS playoff field was twenty for three seasons, then expanded to 24 in 2013.

{{5RoundBracket|compact=y|byes=1

| RD1=First Round
November 27
Campus sites

| RD2=Second Round
December 4
Campus sites

| RD3=Quarterfinals
December 10 and 11
Campus sites

| RD4=Semifinals
December 17 and 18
Campus sites

| RD5=National Championship Game

January 7
Pizza Hut Park, Frisco, Texas

| RD1-seed3=

| RD1-team3= Western Illinois

| RD1-score3=17

| RD1-seed4=

| RD1-team4= Coastal Carolina*

| RD1-score4= 10

| RD1-seed11=

| RD1-team11= Robert Morris

| RD1-score11=17

| RD1-seed12=

| RD1-team12= North Dakota State*

| RD1-score12=43

| RD1-seed19=

| RD1-team19= South Carolina State

| RD1-score19=16

| RD1-seed20=

| RD1-team20= Georgia Southern*

| RD1-score20=41

| RD1-seed27=

| RD1-team27= Lehigh

| RD1-score27= 14

| RD1-seed28=

| RD1-team28= Northern Iowa*

| RD1-score28= 7

| RD2-seed1=

| RD2-team1= Western Illinois

| RD2-score1= 14

| RD2-seed2= 1

| RD2-team2= Appalachian State*

| RD2-score2=42

| RD2-seed3=

| RD2-team3= Villanova

| RD2-score3= 54

| RD2-seed4=

| RD2-team4= Stephen F. Austin*

| RD2-score4= 24

| RD2-seed5=

| RD2-team5= North Dakota State

| RD2-score5=42

| RD2-seed6= 4

| RD2-team6= Montana State*

| RD2-score6= 17

| RD2-seed7=

| RD2-team7= SE Missouri State

| RD2-score7= 17

| RD2-seed8= 5

| RD2-team8= Eastern Washington*

| RD2-score8= 37

| RD2-seed9=

| RD2-team9= Georgia Southern

| RD2-score9= 31

| RD2-seed10= 2

| RD2-team10= William & Mary*

| RD2-score10= 15

| RD2-seed11=

| RD2-team11= Wofford

| RD2-score11=17

| RD2-seed12=

| RD2-team12= Jacksonville State*

| RD2-score12= 14

| RD2-seed13=

| RD2-team13= Lehigh

| RD2-score13= 20

| RD2-seed14= 3

| RD2-team14= Delaware*

| RD2-score14=42

| RD2-seed15=

| RD2-team15= New Hampshire

| RD2-score15= 45

| RD2-seed16=

| RD2-team16= Bethune–Cookman*

| RD2-score16= 20

| RD3-seed1= 1

| RD3-team1= Appalachian State*

| RD3-score1=24

| RD3-seed2=

| RD3-team2=Villanova

| RD3-score2=42

| RD3-seed3=

| RD3-team3= North Dakota State

| RD3-score3=31

| RD3-seed4= 5

| RD3-team4= Eastern Washington*

| RD3-score4=38

| RD3-seed5=

| RD3-team5= Georgia Southern

| RD3-score5=23

| RD3-seed6=

| RD3-team6= Wofford*

| RD3-score6=20

| RD3-seed7= 3

| RD3-team7= Delaware*

| RD3-score7= 16

| RD3-seed8=

| RD3-team8= New Hampshire

| RD3-score8= 3

| RD4-seed1=

| RD4-team1=Villanova

| RD4-score1=31

| RD4-seed2=5

| RD4-team2=Eastern Washington*

| RD4-score2=41

| RD4-seed3=

| RD4-team3=Georgia Southern

| RD4-score3=10

| RD4-seed4= 3

| RD4-team4= Delaware*

| RD4-score4=27

| RD5-seed1= 5

| RD5-team1=Eastern Washington

| RD5-score1=20

| RD5-seed2= 3

| RD5-team2= Delaware

| RD5-score2=19

}}

:* {{small|Home team}}

{{main|SWAC Championship Game}}

{{main|2011 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 featured 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.{{cite news|url=http://www.godrakebulldogs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=71156&SPID=8123&DB_OEM_ID=15700&ATCLID=204986351|title=Drake To Play First American Football Game In Africa|author=Drake University |publisher=GoDrakeBulldogs.com |date=September 1, 2010 |access-date=September 1, 2010}}

{{Col-begin}}

{{Col-2}}

Standings are from The Sports Network final poll.

{{Col-2}}

Standings are from the FCS Coaches final poll.

{{Col-end}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Commons category-inline}}

{{NCAA football season navbox}}