The Augustana Vikings football team enjoyed a historic season in 2023, notching the most wins since the 2005 season and also clinching its first postseason berth since that year as well.

Augie opened up the year on the road and cruised to a 22-point victory over the Simpson Storm in a non-conference clash. The team saw a week off before opening CCIW action two weeks later at home against Elmhurst. In a game that was delayed by nearly three hours due to weather, the Vikings set a program record in points with a 74-6 win. The Vikings out-gained the Bluejays 381-157 despite running nine fewer plays than their counterpart. On defense, Augie held Elmhurst to just 2.4 yards per play.

The Vikings went right back on the road the following weekend to match up with the No. 10 ranked Wheaton Thunder. Augustana held a 10-6 lead after a quarter of play, but the Thunder used a strong second quarter to take a lead into halftime. Both teams scored once in the third and twice in the fourth to keep the differential the same as Wheaton squeaked out the win at home. 

Another drama-filled game followed when the Vikings hosted the Carroll Pioneers a week later. Trailing at the end of each of the first three quarters, Augie out-scored the visitors by 10 in the final frame, eventually taking the lead around the three-minute mark. Leading by four, the Augie defense faced one final drive from the Pioneers deep in the Augie red zone. With under a minute to go, Carroll faced a first down from 14 yards out, but proceeded to see four incompletions in a row. On the final attempt to the end zone, Johnny Breeden poked the ball away to seal the Vikings win. Augustana improved to 4-1 with a 42-3 Homecoming victory the next weekend.

On October14, the Vikings successfully checked off another first-time accomplishment, defeating the Washington-St. Louis Bears for the first time in program history.  Augie was in control from the start, scoring two touchdowns in each of the first two quarters to take a 28-10 lead into halftime. The two squads traded touchdowns in the second half to complete the 18-point victory for the Vikings.

Augustana's win streak continued with three more victories against North Park, Illinois Wesleyan, and Carthage entering the final game of the regular season. In a game that decided the CCIW race, the Vikings fell at home on Senior Day to the No. 1 ranked North Central Cardinals. With North Central and Wheaton's bids to the NCAA playoffs, the Vikings in third place officially clinched a trip to the Culver's Isthmus Bowl. The bowl game was the first for Augustana outside of playing in the Stagg Bowl and the first postseason game since making the Division III playoffs in 2005. The Vikings were defeated in the Isthmus Bowl by UW-Platteville to end the 2023 season.

Following the conclusion of the regular season, a total of eight Vikings were named on the CCIW's All-Conference list, the most the team has earned since the 2008 season. Tim Swaney was the lone First Team selection, while Tyler Rivelli, Bobby Inserra, Cain Johnson, Brayden Macdonald, Chase Tatum, Darren Oregon, and Nick Harper all secured Second Team recognition. A month later, Harper was named to the D3football.com All-Region team before garnering All-American honors from both D3football and Hansen Ratings in the following weeks. Swaney and Macdonald were also recognized as CSC Academic All-District selections in mid-December.

An updated look at the Augie football record book can be found here.