1978 NCAA Division I-AA football season

The 1978 NCAA Division I-AA football season was the first season of Division I-AA college football; Division I-AA was created in 1978 when Division I was subdivided into Division I-A and Division I-AA for football only.[1] With the exception of seven teams from the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), Division I teams from the 1977 season played in Division I-A during the 1978 season. The SWAC teams, along with five conferences and five other teams formerly in Division II, played in Division I-AA.

This article is about the first Division I-AA (now FCS) season. For the first Division I-A (now FBS) season, see 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season.
1978 NCAA Division I-AA season
Regular season
Number of teams41
DurationAugust–November
Playoff
DurationDecember 9–December 16
Championship dateDecember 16, 1978
Championship siteMemorial Stadium
Wichita Falls, Texas
ChampionFlorida A&M
NCAA Division I-AA football seasons

The Division I-AA season began in August 1978 and concluded with the 1978 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game played on December 16 at Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, Texas. The Florida A&M Rattlers won the first I-AA championship, defeating the UMass Minutemen in the Pioneer Bowl, 35–28.[2] Florida A&M of 1978 remains the only team from an HBCU to play in the I-AA/FCS national championship game.

Conference changes and new programs
School1977 Conference1978 Conference
BucknellD-II IndependentI-AA Independent
LafayetteD-II IndependentI-AA Independent
LehighD-II IndependentI-AA Independent
NevadaD-II IndependentI-AA Independent
Northwestern StateD-I IndependentI-AA Independent
Portland StateD-II IndependentI-AA Independent

Conference standings
1978 Big Sky Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 7 Northern Arizona $ 6 –0 –0  8 –2 –0
No. T–9 Montana State 4 –2 –0  8 –2 –0
Montana 4 –2 –0  5 –6 –0
Boise State 3 –3 –0  7 –4 –0
Weber State 2 –4 –0  4 –7 –0
Idaho 2 –4 –0  2 –9 –0
Idaho State 0 –6 –0  2 –9 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA AP Poll
1978 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 6 South Carolina State $ 5 –0 –1  8 –2 –1
North Carolina A&T 4 –2 –0  6 –6 –0
Delaware State 3 –3 –0  3 –7 –0
Morgan State 2 –3 –1  4 –6 –1
Howard 2 –4 –0  4 –6 –0
Maryland Eastern Shore 2 –4 –0  3 –8 –0
North Carolina Central 2 –4 –0  3 –8 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from Associated Press poll
1978 Ohio Valley Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. T–4 Western Kentucky $ 6 –0 –0  8 –2 –0
No. 8 Eastern Kentucky 5 –1 –0  8 –2 –0
Tennessee Tech 4 –2 –0  5 –6 –0
Austin Peay 3 –3 –0  6 –4 –0
Murray State 1 –5 –0  4 –7 –0
Morehead State 1 –5 –0  2 –6 –1
Middle Tennessee 1 –5 –0  1 –9 –1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from Associated Press poll
1978 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Grambling State $ 5 –0 –1  9 –1 –1
No. 2 Jackson State ^ 5 –1 –0  10 –2 –0
Mississippi Valley State 3 –2 –1  6 –3 –1
Alcorn State 2 –3 –1  5 –4 –1
Southern 2 –4 –0  4 –7 –0
Texas Southern 1 –4 –1  3 –6 –1
Prairie View A&M 1 –5 –0  3 –7 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from Associated Press poll
1978 Yankee Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. T–4 UMass $^ 5 –0 –0  9 –4 –0
No. 7 Rhode Island 3 –2 –0  7 –3 –0
Connecticut 3 –2 –0  4 –7 –0
Boston University 2 –3 –0  6 –4 –0
New Hampshire 1 –3 –1  6 –4 –1
Maine 0 –4 –1  3 –7 –1
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from Associated Press poll
1978 NCAA Division I-AA independents football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 1 Nevada ^   –    11 –1 –0
No. 9 Lehigh   –    8 –3 –0
Northeastern   –    6 –5 –0
Bucknell   –    5 –5 –0
Northwestern State   –    5 –6 –0
Portland State   –    5 –6 –0
Lafayette   –    4 –7 –0
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from Associated Press poll

Conference champions
See also: List of NCAA Division I-AA/FCS football seasons
Conference champions

Big Sky Conference – Northern Arizona
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – South Carolina State
Ohio Valley Conference – Western Kentucky
Southwestern Athletic Conference – Grambling State
Yankee Conference – UMass

Postseason

NCAA Division I-AA Playoff bracket

The bracket consisted of three regional selections (West, East, and South) plus an at-large team.[3] Florida A&M (FAMU) of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) was the at-large selection.[4] While the SIAC was a Division II conference, FAMU had successfully petitioned the NCAA for Division I classification (Division I-AA in football), which took effect on September 1, 1978.[5]

Semifinals
December 9
Campus Sites 		National Championship Game
December 17
Pioneer Bowl
Memorial Stadium–Wichita Falls, TX
      
AtLg Florida A&M 15
South Jackson State* 10
AtLg Florida A&M 35
East UMass 28
East UMass 44
West Nevada* 21

* Denotes host institution

See also

References
  1. "Big schools win battle". St. Petersburg Independent. (Florida). Associated Press. January 13, 1978. p. 5C.
  2. "1978 NCAA Division I Football Championship" (PDF). NCAA.org. p. 14. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  3. Climer, David (July 22, 1978). "I-AA Finals Set At Pioneer Bowl". The Tennessean. Nashville, Tennessee. p. 20. Retrieved February 9, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  4. "FAMU Gains I-AA Playoffs". Fort Lauderdale News. Fort Lauderdale, Florida. December 4, 1978. p. 19. Retrieved February 9, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  5. Cooper, Barry (August 31, 1978). "Florida A&M granted Division 1 status". Tallahassee Democrat. Tallahassee, Florida. p. 1B. Retrieved May 13, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
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