NAIA Football National Championship
| NAIA Football National Championship | |
|---|---|
| In operation | 1956–present |
| Preceded by | Small college polls & NAIA Division II Championship |
| Number of playoff teams | 16 |
| Championship trophy | Tom Osborne Trophy |
| Television partner(s) | ESPN3 |
| Most playoff championships | Texas A&I (7) |
| Current champion | Morningside (IA) |
| Website | NAIA Football |
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Football National Championship is decided by a post-season playoff system featuring the best NAIA college football teams in the United States. Under sponsorship of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, the championship game has been played annually since 1956.[1] In 1970, NAIA football was divided into two divisions, Division I and Division II, with a championship game played in each division. In 1997, NAIA football was again consolidated into one division. The game is currently played at Daytona Stadium in Daytona Beach, Florida.[2]
Texas A&I (now known as Texas A&M–Kingsville) have been the most prolific program with seven NAIA championships. Carroll (MT) are the most successful team still playing at the NAIA level, with 6 national titles.
Morningside (IA) are the current champions, having defeated Benedictine (KS) in the 2018 championship, 35-28.
Contents
1 Game name
2 Results
3 Championships by school
4 See also
5 References
Game name
Over the years, the NAIA championship games were played under a variety of names:
Aluminum Bowl (1956)- Holiday Bowl (1957–1960)[a]
Camellia Bowl (1961–1963)[b]
- Champion Bowl (1964–1976 and 1980–1996, Division I games only)
- Apple Bowl (1977, Division I game only)
Palm Bowl (1978–1979, Division I games only)
A separate NAIA Division II Football National Championship was played between 1970 and 1996, when there were two divisions at the NAIA level.
Results
| Year | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Montana State Saint Joseph's (IN) | 0–0[c] | Little Rock, Arkansas | |
| 1957 | Pittsburg State | 27–26 | Hillsdale | Saint Petersburg, Florida |
| 1958 | Northeastern State | 19–13 | Arizona State-Flagstaff | Saint Petersburg, Florida |
| 1959 | Texas A&I | 20–7 | Lenoir-Rhyne | Saint Petersburg, Florida |
| 1960 | Lenoir-Rhyne | 15–14 | Humboldt State | Saint Petersburg, Florida |
| 1961 | Pittsburg State | 12–7 | Linfield | Sacramento, California |
| 1962 | Central State (OK) | 28–13 | Lenoir-Rhyne | Sacramento, California |
| 1963 | Saint John's | 33–27 | Prairie View A&M | Sacramento, California |
| 1964 | Concordia-Moorhead Sam Houston State | 7–7[c] | Augusta, Georgia | |
| 1965 | Saint John's | 33–0 | Linfield | Augusta, Georgia |
| 1966 | Waynesburg | 42–21 | Wisconsin–Whitewater | Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| 1967 | Fairmont State | 28–21 | Eastern Washington | Morgantown, West Virginia |
| 1968 | Troy State | 43–35 | Texas A&I | Montgomery, Alabama |
| 1969 | Texas A&I | 32–7 | Concordia-Moorhead | Kingsville, Texas |
| 1970 | Texas A&I | 48–7 | Wofford | Greenville, South Carolina |
| 1971 | Livingston | 14–12 | Arkansas Tech | Birmingham, Alabama |
| 1972 | East Texas State | 21–18 | Carson-Newman | Commerce, Texas |
| 1973 | Abilene Christian | 42–14 | Elon | Shreveport, Louisiana |
| 1974 | Texas A&I | 34–23 | Henderson State | Kingsville, Texas |
| 1975 | Texas A&I | 37–0 | Salem | Kingsville, Texas |
| 1976 | Texas A&I | 26–0 | Central Arkansas | Kingsville, Texas |
| 1977 | Abilene Christian | 24–7 | Southwestern Oklahoma | Seattle, Washington |
| 1978 | Angelo State | 34–14 | Elon | McAllen, Texas |
| 1979 | Texas A&I | 20–14 | Central State (OK) | McAllen, Texas |
| 1980 | Elon | 17–10 | Northeastern State | Burlington, North Carolina |
| 1981 | Elon | 3–0 | Pittsburg State | Burlington, North Carolina |
| 1982 | Central State (OK) | 14–11 | Mesa State | Edmond, Oklahoma |
| 1983 | Carson-Newman | 36–28 | Mesa State | Grand Junction, Colorado |
| 1984 | Carson-Newman Central Arkansas | 19–19[c] | Conway, Arkansas | |
| 1985 | Hillsdale Central Arkansas | 10–10[c] | Conway, Arkansas | |
| 1986 | Carson-Newman | 17–0 | Cameron | Jefferson City, Tennessee |
| 1987 | Cameron | 30–2 | Carson-Newman | Lawton, Oklahoma |
| 1988 | Carson-Newman | 56–21 | Adams State | Jefferson City, Tennessee |
| 1989 | Carson-Newman | 34–20 | Emporia State | Jefferson City, Tennessee |
| 1990 | Central State (OH) | 38–16 | Mesa State | Grand Junction, Colorado |
| 1991 | Central Arkansas | 19–16 | Central State (OH) | Wilberforce, Ohio |
| 1992 | Central State (OH) | 19–16 | Gardner–Webb | Boiling Springs, North Carolina |
| 1993 | East Central | 49–35 | Glenville State | Ada, Oklahoma |
| 1994 | Northeastern State | 13–12 | Arkansas-Pine Bluff | Pine Bluff, Arkansas |
| 1995 | Central State (OH) | 37–7 | Northeastern State | Tahlequah, Oklahoma |
| 1996 | Southwestern Oklahoma | 33–31 | Montana Tech | Weatherford, Oklahoma |
| 1997 | Findlay | 14–7 | Willamette | Savannah, Tennessee |
| 1998 | Azusa Pacific | 17–14 | Olivet Nazarene | Savannah, Tennessee |
| 1999 | Northwestern Oklahoma State | 34–26 | Georgetown (KY) | Savannah, Tennessee |
| 2000 | Georgetown (KY) | 20–0 | Northwestern Oklahoma State | Savannah, Tennessee |
| 2001 | Georgetown (KY) | 49–27 | Sioux Falls | Savannah, Tennessee |
| 2002 | Carroll | 28–7 | Georgetown (KY) | Savannah, Tennessee |
| 2003 | Carroll | 41–28 | Northwestern Oklahoma State | Savannah, Tennessee |
| 2004 | Carroll | 15–13 (2 OT) | Saint Francis (IN) | Savannah, Tennessee |
| 2005 | Carroll | 27–10 | Saint Francis (IN) | Savannah, Tennessee |
| 2006 | Sioux Falls | 23–19 | Saint Francis (IN) | Savannah, Tennessee |
| 2007 | Carroll | 17–9 | Sioux Falls | Savannah, Tennessee |
| 2008 | Sioux Falls | 23–7 | Carroll | Rome, Georgia |
| 2009 | Sioux Falls | 25–22 | Lindenwood | Rome, Georgia |
| 2010 | Carroll | 10–7 | Sioux Falls | Rome, Georgia |
| 2011 | Saint Xavier | 24–20 | Carroll | Rome, Georgia |
| 2012 | Marian | 30–27 (OT) | Morningside | Rome, Georgia |
| 2013 | Grand View | 35–23 | University of the Cumberlands | Rome, Georgia |
| 2014 | Southern Oregon | 55–31 | Marian | Daytona Beach, Florida |
| 2015 | Marian | 31–14 | Southern Oregon | Daytona Beach, Florida |
| 2016 | Saint Francis (IN) | 38–17 | Baker | Daytona Beach, Florida |
| 2017 | Saint Francis (IN) | 24–13 | Reinhardt | Daytona Beach, Florida |
| 2018 | Morningside | 35-28 | Benedictine | Daytona Beach, Florida |
^ Not to be confused with the NCAA Division I bowl of the same name.
^ Not to be confused with the NCAA Division I bowl of the same name.
^ abcd Game ended in a tie, and both teams are co-champions.
Championships by school
Division II titles are not included in this list.
| Team | Championships | Winning years |
|---|---|---|
Texas A&I (Texas A&M–Kingsville) | 7 | 1959, 1969, 1970, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979 |
| Carroll | 6 | 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2010 |
| Carson-Newman | 5 | 1983, 1984[a], 1986, 1988, 1989 |
| Central Arkansas | 3 | 1984[a], 1985[a], 1991 |
| Central State (OH) | 3 | 1990, 1992, 1995 |
| Sioux Falls | 3 | 2006, 2008, 2009 |
| Pittsburg State | 2 | 1957, 1961 |
| Saint John's (MN) | 2 | 1963, 1965 |
| Abilene Christian | 2 | 1973, 1977 |
| Elon | 2 | 1980, 1981 |
Central State (OK) (Central Oklahoma) | 2 | 1962, 1982 |
| Northeastern State | 2 | 1958, 1994 |
| Georgetown (KY) | 2 | 2000, 2001 |
| Marian | 2 | 2012, 2015 |
| Saint Francis (IN) | 2 | 2016, 2017 |
| Montana State | 1 | 1956[a] |
| Saint Joseph's (IN) | 1 | 1956[a] |
| Lenoir-Rhyne | 1 | 1960 |
| Concordia–Moorhead | 1 | 1964[a] |
| Sam Houston State | 1 | 1964[a] |
| Waynesburg | 1 | 1966 |
| Fairmont State | 1 | 1967 |
| Troy State | 1 | 1968 |
| Livingston | 1 | 1971 |
East Texas State (Texas A&M–Commerce) | 1 | 1972 |
| Angelo State | 1 | 1978 |
| Hillsdale | 1 | 1985[a] |
| Cameron | 1 | 1987 |
| East Central (OK) | 1 | 1993 |
| Southwestern Oklahoma | 1 | 1996 |
| Findlay (OH) | 1 | 1997 |
| Azusa Pacific | 1 | 1998 |
| Northwestern Oklahoma | 1 | 1999 |
| Saint Xavier | 1 | 2011 |
| Grand View | 1 | 2013 |
| Southern Oregon | 1 | 2014 |
^ abcdefgh Shared title
See also
- NAIA Football Player of the Year Award
- NAIA Football Coach of the Year Award
- NAIA Division II Football National Championship
- College football national championships in NCAA Division I FBS
- NCAA Division I Football Championship
- NCAA Division I FCS Consensus Mid-Major Football National Championship
- NCAA Division II National Football Championship
- NCAA Division III National Football Championship
- Black college football national championship
- NJCAA National Football Championship
References
^ "NAIA Football Championship History". National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. Retrieved 2008-04-07..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ http://www.naia.org/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=27900&ATCLID=205337130
