1973 NCAA Division II football season (Redirected from 1973 NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs)

1973 NCAA Division II football season
Regular seasonSeptember –
November 1973
PlayoffsDecember 1–15
National ChampionshipCamellia Bowl
Hughes Stadium
Sacramento, California
ChampionLouisiana Tech

The 1973 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level. The season began in September and concluded with the Division II Championship on December 15 at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento, California. This was the first season for Division II (and Division III) football, which were formerly in the College Division in 1972 and prior.

Louisiana Tech won their first Division II championship, defeating Western Kentucky 34–0 in the Camellia Bowl championship game.

Conference realignment

Membership changes

School 1972 Conference 1973 Conference
Akron Independent D-II Independent
Eastern Michigan Independent D-II Independent
Illinois State Independent D-II Independent
Nevada–Reno Independent D-II Independent

Conference standings

1973 Big Sky Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 5 Boise State $^ 6 0 0 10 3 0
Montana State 5 1 0 7 4 0
Idaho 3 2 0 4 7 0
Northern Arizona 2 3 0 4 6 0
Montana 2 4 0 4 6 0
Weber State 2 4 0 3 8 0
Idaho State 0 6 0 2 9 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant
Rankings from NCAA College Division AP Poll
1973 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 8 AP / #9 UPI Cal Poly $ 4 0 0 9 1 0
UC Riverside 3 1 0 8 2 0
Cal State Fullerton 1 3 0 7 4 0
Cal Poly Pomona 1 3 0 4 6 1
Cal State Northridge 1 3 0 2 9 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from College Division poll
1973 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Virginia Union $ 9 0 0 9 1 0
Livingstone 5 2 0 7 2 1
Norfolk State 5 3 0 5 5 0
Johnson C. Smith 3 2 0 7 4 0
Virginia State 3 2 0 5 5 0
Elizabeth City State 4 4 1 4 5 1
Fayetteville State 4 4 0 5 5 0
Winston-Salem State 2 5 1 3 7 1
Hampton 1 5 1 1 7 2
Shaw 1 5 1 1 6 1
Saint Paul's (VA) 1 6 0 1 9 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Eastern Football Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Central Connecticut State $ 3 0 0 9 1 0
Southern Connecticut State 2 1 0 6 4 0
Montclair State 1 2 0 6 4 0
Glassboro State 0 3 0 4 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Far Western Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
UC Davis + 4 1 0 7 3 0
Chico State + 4 1 0 7 3 0
San Francisco State 3 2 0 7 2 1
Cal State Hayward 3 2 0 3 7 0
Humboldt State 1 4 0 2 6 2
Sacramento State 0 5 0 1 9 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1973 Indiana Collegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Butler $ 5 1 0 5 5 0
DePauw 4 2 0 6 3 0
Evansville 3 2 0 5 5 0
Indiana Central 3 3 0 7 3 0
Valparaiso 3 3 0 6 5 0
Saint Joseph's (IN) 1 4 0 3 7 0
Wabash 0 4 0 5 5 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Gulf South Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. T–17 Troy State $ 6 1 0 7 2 1
No. 4 Jacksonville State 5 2 0 7 2 0
Delta State 6 3 0 8 3 0
Livingston 4 3 1 6 3 1
Northwestern State 3 4 0 5 6 0
Mississippi College 3 4 0 4 6 0
Southeastern Louisiana 3 4 0 4 6 0
Florence State 3 6 0 4 6 0
Nicholls State 2 7 0 2 9 0
Tennessee–Martin 1 5 1 2 8 1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1973 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
North Carolina Central $ 5 1 0 7 4 0
South Carolina State 4 1 1 7 3 1
Howard 4 2 0 8 2 0
Morgan State 4 2 0 6 3 0
Maryland Eastern Shore 2 4 0 4 5 0
North Carolina A&T 1 4 1 4 6 1
Delaware State 0 6 0 0 11 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
SE Missouri State $ 5 1 0 6 4 0
NW Missouri State 4 2 0 6 4 0
Lincoln (MO) 3 3 0 5 6 0
SW Missouri State 3 3 0 3 7 0
Missouri–Rolla 2 3 1 3 6 2
NE Missouri State 2 3 1 2 7 2
Central Missouri State 1 5 0 2 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 North Central Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
North Dakota State + 6 1 0 8 2 0
South Dakota +^ 6 1 0 8 3 0
Mankato State 4 3 0 7 4 0
North Dakota 4 3 0 6 4 0
Augustana (SD) 3 3 1 6 3 1
South Dakota State 2 4 1 5 5 1
Northern Iowa 2 5 0 5 5 0
Morningside 0 7 0 0 9 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
  • ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant
1973 Northern Intercollegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Moorhead State $ 5 1 0 7 3 0
Michigan Tech 4 2 0 5 4 1
St. Cloud State 4 2 0 4 6 0
Bemidji State 2 4 0 5 4 0
Southwest State (MN) 2 4 0 4 6 0
Minnesota Morris 2 4 0 3 6 0
Winona State 2 4 0 3 7 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Ohio Valley Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 3 Western Kentucky $^ 7 0 0 12 1 0
Murray State 5 2 0 7 3 0
Eastern Kentucky 4 3 0 7 4 0
Morehead State 4 3 0 6 5 0
East Tennessee State 3 4 0 4 7 0
Middle Tennessee 3 4 0 4 7 0
Tennessee Tech 1 6 0 2 8 1
Austin Peay 1 6 0 2 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant
Rankings from Associated Press poll
1973 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
East Division
West Chester xy 4 0 0 5 5 0
East Stroudsburg 5 1 0 6 1 1
Millersville 4 2 0 7 2 0
Cheyney 3 2 0 5 4 0
Bloomsburg 2 4 0 4 5 0
Kutztown 1 5 0 2 7 0
Mansfield 0 5 0 1 7 0
West Division
No. T–20 Slippery Rock xy$ 5 0 0 8 2 0
Clarion 3 2 0 5 4 0
Edinboro 3 2 0 4 4 1
Lock Haven 2 3 0 2 7 0
California (PA) 1 4 0 3 6 0
Shippensburg 1 4 0 2 7 0
Indiana (PA) * 0 0 0 4 5 0
Championship: Slippery Rock 28, West Chester 14
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
  • * – Ineligible for conference title
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1973 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Division I
Bethune–Cookman x 5 0 0 9 2 0
Florida A&M 4 1 0 5 6 0
No. 16 Albany State 3 2 0 6 3 1
Alabama A&M 3 2 0 5 5 0
Tuskegee 2 3 0 7 4 0
Morris Brown 1 4 0 1 8 1
Alabama State 0 5 0 3 8 0
Division II
No. 7 Fisk x 5 0 0 9 0 0
Fort Valley State 4 1 0 7 1 1
Clark (GA) 4 1 0 4 3 1
Morehouse 3 2 0 4 3 1
Savannah State 2 3 0 3 6 0
Lane 1 4 0 3 6 0
Miles 1 4 0 1 8 0
Knoxville 0 5 0 0 8 0
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
Rankings from NAIA Division II poll
1973 Southland Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 2 Louisiana Tech $^ 5 0 0 12 1 0
Arkansas State 3 2 0 7 3 0
Lamar 3 2 0 5 5 0
McNeese State 2 3 0 7 3 1
Texas–Arlington 2 3 0 4 6 0
SW Louisiana 0 5 0 0 10 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant
Rankings from AP Poll
1973 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 5/7 Grambling +^ 5 1 0 10 3 0
No. 10 Jackson State + 5 1 0 9 2 0
No. T–20 Alcorn A&M 3 2 1 7 2 1
Southern 3 3 0 6 4 0
Texas Southern 2 3 1 5 5 1
Mississippi Valley State 2 4 0 3 5 0
Prairie View A&M 0 6 0 2 6 1
  • + – Conference co-champions
  • ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll and AP small college poll
1973 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Northern Division
Fairmont State xy$ 3 0 0 6 3 1
West Liberty State 2 1 1 3 5 1
Salem 2 2 0 6 4 0
Shepherd 1 2 0 6 4 0
West Virginia Wesleyan 0 3 1 2 6 1
Southern Division
No. 2 Glenville State xy^ 4 0 0 10 2 0
Bluefield State 3 1 0 4 5 0
West Virginia State 2 2 0 5 5 0
West Virginia Tech 1 3 0 4 5 0
Concord 0 4 0 0 9 0
Championship: Fairmont State 21, Glenville State 7
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
  • ^ – NAIA Division II playoff participant
    Conference standings based on power ratings
Rankings from NAIA Division II poll
1973 Yankee Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Connecticut $ 5 0 1 8 2 1
Rhode Island 4 1 1 6 2 2
UMass 4 2 0 6 5 0
New Hampshire 2 3 0 4 5 0
Boston University 2 3 0 3 7 0
Maine 2 4 0 3 7 0
Vermont 1 5 0 3 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 NCAA Division II independents football records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 Tennessee State     10 0 0
No. 9 Hawaii     9 2 0
Nebraska–Omaha     7 2 1
Trinity (TX)     8 3 0
UNLV     8 3 0
No. 13 Delaware ^     8 4 0
Western Carolina     6 3 1
Central Michigan     7 4 0
Nevada     7 4 0
Western Illinois     7 4 0
Milwaukee     6 4 1
Eastern Michigan     6 4 0
American International     5 4 0
Akron     6 5 0
Central State (OH)     6 5 0
Wayne State (MI)     5 5 0
Drexel     4 4 0
Bucknell     3 4 2
Northeast Louisiana     3 5 2
Santa Clara     4 6 0
Youngstown State     4 6 0
Arkansas–Pine Bluff     3 5 1
Chattanooga     4 7 0
Indiana State     4 7 0
Northeastern     3 6 0
Northern Michigan     2 7 1
Eastern Illinois     2 9 0
Portland State     1 10 0
  • ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant
Rankings from Associated Press poll

Conference summaries

Conference Champion
Big Sky Conference Boise State
Eastern Football Conference Central Connecticut State
Far Western Football Conference UC Davis and Cal State Chico
Gulf South Conference Troy State
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference North Carolina Central
Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association Southeast Missouri State
North Central Conference North Dakota State and South Dakota
Ohio Valley Conference Western Kentucky
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Bethune-Cookman
Southland Conference Louisiana Tech
Southwestern Athletic Conference Grambling and Jackson State
Yankee Conference Connecticut

Postseason

1973 NCAA Division II Football Championship
Teams8
Finals Site
Champion
Runner-up
Semifinalists
Winning coach

The 1973 NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs were the first single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college football. The inaugural edition had only eight teams; of the four quarterfinal games, three were played on campus and a fourth was in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the final edition of the Boardwalk Bowl. The semifinals were held at the Grantland Rice Bowl in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and the Pioneer Bowl in Wichita Falls, Texas.

The championship game was the Camellia Bowl, held at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento, California. The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs defeated the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers 34–0 to win their first national title.

Playoff bracket

First round
Atlantic City, NJ
& 3 campus sites


December 1
Semifinals
Grantland Rice Bowl
Pioneer Bowl

December 8
Championship
Camellia Bowl
Hughes Stadium
Sacramento, CA
December 15
         
Grambling 17
Delaware 8
Grambling 20
Western Kentucky 28
Western Kentucky * 25
Lehigh 16
Western Kentucky 0
Louisiana Tech 34
Louisiana Tech * 18
Western Illinois 13
Louisiana Tech 38
Boise State 34
Boise State * 53
South Dakota 10

* Denotes host institution

Rankings

United Press International (UPI) and the Associated Press (AP) continued to rank teams in their College Division or "small college" polls, which had started in 1958 and 1960, respectively. In 1973, UPI published their final poll at the end of the regular season, while the AP waited until postseason games had been completed. Both wire services named the Tennessee State Tigers as the number one team; Tennessee State did not compete in the playoffs "because five of its starters would not be eligible to play." The players in question had sat out their freshmen year ("redshirt") and then played four seasons; under NCAA rules at the time, such players were not eligible for postseason play as fifth-year seniors. During the regular season, the Tigers were undefeated (10–0) and had outscored their opponents 333–87.

See also


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