The University of Delaware will open its 2023 football season with a Colonial Athletic Association visit to Stony Brook, the CAA announced Tuesday.
The game will be Thursday night, Aug. 31.
Matchup against Penn State
The Blue Hens will then play the first of their three nonconference games on Sept. 9 at Penn State, a first-ever meeting with the vaunted Nittany Lions that was announced in 2018. The schools will also play in 2027.
CAA football expands to 15 schools in 2023 with the additions of North Carolina A&T and Campbell. The Blue Hens will play both, hosting North Carolina A & T on Oct. 14 and visiting Campbell in Buies Creek, North Carolina, on Nov. 11.
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Other home CAA games for Delaware are Sept. 23 against New Hampshire, where second-year Blue Hens coach Ryan Carty was on the coaching staff from 2007-17, Elon on Nov. 4 and traditional season-ending rival Villanova on Nov. 18.
In addition to Stony Brook and Campbell, Delaware will also travel to Hampton for the first time Oct. 21 and visit Towson Oct. 28.
The other two nonconference games on Delaware’s 11-game slate are home matchups against Northeast Conference members St. Francis (Pa.) on Sept. 16 and Duquesne on Oct. 7.
Delaware defeated St. Francis 56-17 in Newark on Nov. 26 of last season in the opening round of the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision playoffs before falling a week later at eventual champion South Dakota State 42-6 to finish with a 8-5 record.
The CAA is not splitting into divisions, as some expected with the recent expansion. But a scheduling format has been created in which each team is paired with two permanent partners that it will play each year. For Delaware, that’s Villanova and Towson. The other six conference games will rotate annually so that all teams meet each other at least once at home and once on the road over an eight-year period.
2023 Delaware football schedule
(Kick-off times to be announced)
Aug. 31 – at Stony Brook*Sept. 9 — at Penn StateSept. 16 – St. Francis (Pa.)Sept. 23 – New Hampshire*Sept. 30 – Open dateOct. 7 – DuquesneOct. 14 – North Carolina A&T*Oct. 21 – at Hampton*Oct. 28 – at Towson*Nov. 4 – Elon*Nov. 11 – at Campbell*Nov. 18 – Villanova**Colonial Athletic Association game
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