BALTIMORE, MD – The Johns Hopkins football team closed the 2023 season ranked eighth in the final American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) top 25 and matched that with a number eight ranking in the D3football.com Poll as both organizations recently released their final national rankings.
 
The Blue Jays totaled 886 points in the AFCA Poll of 49 voters to grab the number eight ranking in that poll.  Cortland St., which won its first national championship this season, grabbed all 49 first-place votes and amassed 1,225 points to earn the top spot in the poll.  National runner-up North Central finished second in the final poll with 1,176 points and was followed by Warburg (1,122), Wisconsin-La Crosse (994) and Wisconsin-Whitewater (988) to round out the top five.
 
The number eight ranking marks the sixth time that Johns Hopkins has finished a season ranked in the top 10 in the AFCA Poll; all six instances have come since 2009.  The Blue Jays' top final ranking came in 2018 (5^th) and this year's number eight ranking is tied for the second-highest in program history (2009).
 
In the D3football.com Poll, the Blue Jays earned 404 points to earn their number eight ranking.  Cortland St. earned all 25 first-place votes to grab the top spot, while the top five was identical to the AFCA's top five with North Central, Wartburg, Wisconsin-La Crosse and Wisconsin-Whitewater rounding out the top five.
 
This is the second time Johns Hopkins has finished a season ranked in the top 10 by D3football.com; the 2018 team finished the season ranked fifth after making a run to the NCAA Semifinals.
 
Johns Hopkins tied the school record for wins in a season in 2023 as the Blue Jays posted a 12-1 record, claimed the program's 16^th Centennial Conference title and advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals for the third time in school history.
 
Final 2023 AFCA Division III Poll (12-18-23)
1-Cortland St., 2- North Central, 3-Wartburg, 4-Wisconsin-La Crosse, 5-Wisconsin-Whitewater, 6-Randolph-Macon, 7-Alma, 8-Johns Hopkins, 9-Mount Union, 10-Grove City, 11-Trinty (TX), 12-Aurora, 13-Wheaton (IL), 14-Susquehanna, 15-Endicott, 16-Whitworth, 17-Hardin-Simmons, 18-Ithaca, 19-Muhlenberg, 20-Union, 21-DePauw, 22-St. John's (MN), 23-Berry, 24-Linfield, 25-John Carroll.
 
Final D3football.com Poll (12-18-23)
1-Cortland St., 2-North Central, 3-Wartburg, 4-Wisconsin-La Crosse, 5-Wisconsin-Whitewater, 6-Alma, 7-Randolph-Macon, 8-Johns Hopkins, 9-Mount Union, 10-Grove City, 11-Trinity (TX), 12-Wheaton (IL), 13-Aurora, 14-Susquehanna, 15-Endicott, 16-Hardin-Simmons, 17-Whitworth, 18-Ithaca, 19-St. John's (MN), 20-John Carroll, 21-Union, 22-Muhlenberg, 23-Berry, 24-Wisconsin-River Falls, 25-Carnegie Mellon.