| Year: | 2023 |
| Championship: | Red Grange Bowl, Glen Ellyn, IL, (NJCAA D-III) |
The 2023 junior college football season was the season of intercollegiate junior college football running from September to December 2023. The season ended with three national champions: two from the National Junior College Athletic Association's (NJCAA) Division I and Division III and one from the California Community College Athletic Association (3C2A).
The NJCAA Division I champion was Iowa Western who defeated 61–14 in the NJCAA National Football Championship.[1] The NJCAA Division III champion was DuPage who defeated 33–29 in the Red Grange Bowl.[2] The CCCAA champion was who defeated 24–21 in the 3C2A State Championship.[3]
Rankings are based on the NJCAA Division I, NJCAA Division III, and 3C2A polls.
This section lists instances of unranked teams defeating NJCAA Division I, NJCAA Division III, and 3C2A-ranked teams during the season.
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| Rank | Team | W–L | Conference and standing | Bowl game | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | National Southern League champions | SCFA semifinal | |||
| 2 | National Central League champions | SCFA semifinal | |||
| 3 | National Bay 6 League champions | NCFC semifinal | |||
| 4 | National Norcal League champions | NCFC semifinal | |||
| 5 | National Bay 6 League second place | NCFC semifinal | |||
| 6 | National Southern League second place | SCFA semifinal | |||
| 7 | National Norcal League second place | Northern California Bowl | |||
| 8 | National Central League second place | Beach Bowl | |||
| 9 | National Valley League champion | NCFC semifinal | |||
| 10 | National Northern League champion (tie) | Strawberry Bowl | |||
| 11 | National Northern League champion (tie) | SCFA semifinal | |||
| 12 | National Central League third place (tie) | Western State Bowl | |||
| 13 | National Northern League third place | Western State Bowl | |||
| 14 | National Valley League third place | Northern California Bowl | |||
| 15 | National Valley League second place | Gridiron Classic Bowl | |||
| 16 | National Northern League fourth place (tie) | Patriotic Bowl | |||
| 17 | National Northern League fourth place (tie) | Beach Bowl | |||
| 18 | National Southern League third place (tie) | Strawberry Bowl | |||
| 19 | National Central League third place (tie) | Patriotic Bowl | |||
| 20 | National Central League fifth place (tie) | None | |||
| 21 | National Norcal League third place (tie) | Golden State Bowl | |||
| 22 | American Pacific 7 League champion | American Division Bowl | |||
| 23 | Chaffey Panthers | American Metro League champions | American Division Championship Bowl | ||
| 24 | National Valley League fourth place | Golden State Bowl | |||
| 25 | National Southern League third place (tie) | None |
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3C2A had eleven bowl games, featuring teams that did not qualify for the 3C2A postseason tournament.
| Date | Time (EST) | Game | Site | Teams | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 19 | 4:00 p.m. | Southern California Bowl | Campus sites | Santa Ana (8–2) Desert (6–4) | Santa Ana 56 Desert 48 |
| Nov 20 | 12:30 p.m. | Beach Bowl | El Camino (6–4) Golden West (8–2) | El Camino 22 Golden West 19 | |
| Nov 21 | 5:00 p.m. | Strawberry Bowl | San Diego Mesa (6–4) Allan Hancock (7–3) | San Diego Mesa 42 Allan Hancock 20 | |
| Nov 25 | 2:00 p.m. | Gridiron Classic Bowl | Contra Costa (5–5) Fresno City (6–4) | Contra Costa 21Fresno City 14 | |
| Patriotic Bowl | East Los Angeles (6–4) Bakersfield (6–4) | East Los Angeles 31Bakersfield 27 | |||
| 4:00 p.m. | Western State Bowl | Citrus (7–3) College of the Canyons (6–4) | Citrus 42College of the Canyons 13 | ||
| 5:00 p.m. | American Division Championship Bowl | Chaffey (10–0) Pasadena City (9–1) | Chaffey 16Pasadena City 12 | ||
| Dec 1 | 5:00 p.m. | Golden State Bowl | College of the Sequoias (5–5) Sierra (5–5) | College of the Sequoias 31 Sierra 28 | |
| Dec 2 | 12:00 p.m. | Northern California Bowl | Butte (8–2) Reedley (7–3) | Butte 30 Reedley 24 | |
| 2:00 p.m. | American Division Bowl | Foothill (10–0) Monterey Peninsula (8–2) | Foothill 35 Monterey Peninsula 22 | ||
| Grizzly Bowl | College of the Redwoods (8–2) Hartnell (7–3) | College of the Redwoods 63 Hartnell 0 | |||
This list includes all head coaching changes announced during or after the season.
| School | Outgoing coach | Reason | Replacement | Previous position | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CC of San Francisco | Jimmy Collins | Hired as head coach for Diablo Valley[9] | Eduardo Yagües Nuño | CC of San Francisco offensive line coach (1998–2023) | |
| Central Lakes | Greg Medeck | Hired as athletic director by Central Lakes[10] | Toby Thurman | Armijo HS (CA) head coach (2019–2023) | |
| Chaffey | Darrin Chiaverini | Hired as head coach by Northeastern State[11] | Ben Buys[12] | La Salle College Prep (CA) head coach (2019–2023) | |
| Coffeyville | Jeff Leiker | Resigned[13] | Nick Dobler[14] | Coffeyville defensive coordinator and linebackers coach (2020–2023) | |
| College of the Sequoias | Travis Burkett | Resigned[15] | Matt Mendonca[16] | College of the Sequoias defensive coordinator (2022–2023) | |
| College of the Siskiyous | Tyler Knudsen | Resigned[17] | Adam Groppi (full-season interim) | Weed HS (CA) head coach (2022–2023) | |
| Diablo Valley | Austin Kiraly (full-season interim) | Permanent coach hired | Jimmy Collins | CC of San Francisco head coach (2015–2023) | |
| Dodge City | Terry Karg | Resigned | Ryan Lusby[18] | Texas–Permian Basin assistant head coach and offensive coordinator (2023) | |
| East Los Angeles | Bobby Godinez | Resigned[19] | Arnie Robles (full-season interim) | East Los Angeles assistant coach (2023) | |
| Ellsworth | Kory Vaught | Resigned[20] | Matt White[21] | UVA Wise defensive coordinator (2020–2023) | |
| Fullerton | Garrett Campbell | Resigned | Phil Austin / Brian Crooks (co-head coaches) | Fullerton assistant coach (2017–2023) / Fullerton defensive coordinator (2010–2023) | |
| Garden City | Tom Minnick | Fired[22] | Kiyoshi Harris[23] | Boise State recruiting coordinator (2022–2023) | |
| Hartnell | Matt Collins | Resigned[24] | Ruben Lerma (full-season interim) | Hartnell running backs coach and offensive line coach (2018–2023) | |
| Minnesota State C&T | Austin Jones | Resigned | Bernard Holsey[25] | Minnesota State C&T defensive coordinator and defensive line coach (2023) | |
| Minnesota West C&T | Conner Kunkel (full-season interim) | Resigned | Jermaine Smith[26] | Campbell defensive analyst (2023) | |
| Nassau | Jamel Ramsay | Hired as head coach by Maritime[27] | Jhaleel Oswald[28] | Nassau defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator (2021–2023) | |
| New Mexico Military | Kurt Taufa'asau | Hired as head coach by New Mexico Highlands[29] | Oliver Soukup[30] | Eastern New Mexico defensive coordinator (2023) | |
| San Bernardino Valley | Daniel Algattas | N/A | Nate Turner[31] | San Marino HS (CA) head coach (2023) | |
| Santa Ana | Anthony White | Died[32] | Geoff Jones | Santa Ana co-offensive coordinator and tight ends coach (2023) | |
| Southwestern (CA) | Dionicio Monarrez Jr. | Resigned[33] | Oscar Rodriguez[34] | Kansas defensive analyst (2022–2023) | |
| Vermilion | Earnest Wilson | Resigned | Tyree Johnson[35] | Crookston HS (MN) defensive coordinator (?–2023) | |
| West Los Angeles | Steve Ruedaflores | N/A | Eric Scott[36] | San Jose State wide receivers coach (2021–2023) | |
| Yuba | Mike Pomfret | Resigned[37] | Tim Mulvehill[38] | Placer HS (CA) assistant coach (?–2023) |