1997 NAIA football season
| 1997 NAIA Division I football season | |
|---|---|
| Regular season | August–November 1997 |
| Postseason | November 18–December 20, 1997 |
| National Championship |
Jim Carroll Stadium Savannah, TN |
| Champions | Findlay (4) |
| Player of the Year |
Bo Hurley (QB, Findlay) |
The 1997 NAIA football season, as part of the 1997 college football season in the United States, was the 42nd season of college football sponsored by the NAIA. It was the first season after 27 season of the NAIA's two-division structure.
The season was played from August to November 1997, culminating in the 1997 NAIA Football National Championship, played this year on December 20, 1997 at Jim Carroll Stadium in Savannah, Tennessee.[1]
Findlay defeated Willamette in the championship game, 14–7, to win their fourth NAIA national title.[2]
Conference champions
| Conference | Champion | Record |
|---|---|---|
| Columbia | Western Oregon Central Washington |
3–1 |
| Frontier | Montana Tech | 6–0 |
| Heart of America | Benedictine Evangel |
8–1 |
| Kansas | Ottawa Southwestern (KS) |
7–1 |
| Mid-South | Campbellsville Georgetown (KY) |
5–1 |
| Mid-States | Mideast Division: Geneva Midwest Division: Findlay |
6–0 6–0 |
| Nebraska-Iowa | Doane | 6–0 |
| North Dakota | Jamestown | 6–0 |
| South Dakota-Iowa | Sioux Falls | — |
Season events
The 1997 Linfield vs. Willamette football game was played between the Linfield Wildcats and the Willamette Bearcats played on October 18, 1997. The game was played at McCulloch Stadium in Salem, Oregon. Willamette won the game by a score of 27 to 0. During the game, Liz Heaston became the first woman to not only play but also to score in a college football game.[3]
Postseason
| First Round November 18, 1997 Campus sites | Quarterfinals December 6, 1997 Campus sites | Semifinals December 13, 1997 Campus sites | Championship December 20, 1997 Savannah, TN | ||||||||||||||||
| Benedictine (KS) | 30 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Jamestown | 55 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Jamestown | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Sioux Falls | 29 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Ottawa | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Sioux Falls | 57 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Sioux Falls | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Willamette | 17 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota–Crookston | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Montana Tech | 51 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Montana Tech | 24 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Willamette | 50 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Western Oregon | 20 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Willamette | 26 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Willamette | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Findlay | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Southwestern (KS) | 28 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Doane | 53 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Doane | 59 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Evangel | 20 | ||||||||||||||||||
| McKendree | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Evangel | 46 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Doane | 25 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Findlay | 26 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Campbellsville | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Geneva | 34 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Geneva | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Findlay | 28 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Westminster (PA) | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Findlay | 40 | ||||||||||||||||||
See also
References
- ↑ "1997 NAIA Football Playoffs". JonFMorse.com. Retrieved November 26, 2015.
- ↑ "NAIA Championship History" (PDF). NAIA. pp. 4–11. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
- ↑ "Woman Kicks Extra Points". The New York Times. October 20, 1997.