The Aurora University Spartan football program will enter the 2023 season with some preseason recognition from D3football.com and Lindy's College Football as part of the Division III Preseason Top 25 rankings.

The 2023 preseason recognition and being ranked 8th (Lindy's) and 20th (D3football.com) comes after the 2022 Spartans finished the season with a program record 11 wins with an 11-2 record, a perfect 8-0 in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference and a 2022 NCAA Division III playoff appearance. The champions of the NACC, the AU football team headed to the NCAA Division III Football Championship for the seventh time in program history and third consecutive season of the NCAA hosting the playoffs.

The Spartans made a historical run for Aurora University and the NACC in the 2022 NCAA Division III playoffs, defeating the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater 33-28 for the first playoff win for AU and a NACC football team. AU then continued the run with a 48-26 second round victory over Alma College to make the first trip the NCAA playoff quarterfinals.

The Spartans are scheduled to start the 2023 season on Saturday, September 2 at 1:00 p.m. at Spartan Athletic Park in Montgomery, Illinois.