ITHACA, N.Y. – D3football.com released its Preseason Top 25 Poll on July 31 and Ithaca College will begin the 2023 season ranked No. 9. Ithaca is coming off a 12-1 campaign last fall, which culminated with a trip to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III Championship.

Based off the preseason poll, the Bombers will face two nationally ranked teams this season, along with two others who are receiving votes. Cortland and Johns Hopkins are ranked at No. 17 and 18 in the country, while Endicott and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute are receiving votes.

The Bombers open the season at Johns Hopkins on September 2 in Baltimore and then head to Endicott for a Week 2 matchup on Sept. 9. IC will remain on the road for the third straight week with a trip to Alfred on the 16th before heading into its bye week.

On Sept. 30, the Bombers will host their first game of the season against Hobart for their Liberty League opener. Ithaca will then alternate home and away games for the remainder of the schedule – away at RPI on October 7, home vs. Union on the 14th, at Rochester on the 21st and home against Buffalo State on the 28th to close out the month.

Ithaca wraps up Liberty League play at St. Lawrence on November 4 and returns to Butterfield Stadium on November 11 for the 64th Cortaca Jug Game.

Head coach Michael Toerper and his staff will officially welcome the team to campus next week to begin preseason. IC returns 56 juniors, seniors and fifth-year student-athletes this season, along with 25 sophomore and a new group of 46 first-year players.