1983 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game

The 1983 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game was a postseason college football game between the Southern Illinois Salukis and the Western Carolina Catamounts. The game was played on December 17, 1983, at Johnson Hagood Stadium in Charleston, South Carolina. The culminating game of the 1983 NCAA Division I-AA football season, it was won by Southern Illinois, 43–7.[3]

This article is about the Division I-AA (now FCS) championship game. For the Division I-A (now FBS) champions, see 1983 Miami Hurricanes football team.
1983 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship
I-AA National Championship Game
Western Carolina Catamounts Southern Illinois Salukis
(11–2–1) (12–1)
SoCon MVC
7 43
Head coach: 
Bob Waters		 Head coach: 
Rey Dempsey
NCAASeed
9–
NCAASeed
11
1234 Total
Western Carolina 0007 7
Southern Illinois 0102310 43
DateDecember 17, 1983
Season1983
StadiumJohnson Hagood Stadium
LocationCharleston, South Carolina
Attendance15,950[1]
United States TV coverage
NetworkABC Sports[2]
AnnouncersKeith Jackson and Frank Broyles

Teams

The participants of the Championship Game were the finalists of the 1983 I-AA Playoffs, which began with a 12-team bracket.[4]

Southern Illinois Salukis
See also: Southern Illinois Salukis football

Southern Illinois finished their regular season with a 10–1 record (5–1 in conference); their only loss was to Wichita State in their final regular season game.[5] Ranked first in the final NCAA I-AA in-house poll[6] and seeded first in the tournament, the Salukis received a first-round bye then defeated Indiana State and Nevada to reach the final. This was the first appearance for Southern Illinois in a Division I-AA championship game.

Western Carolina Catamounts
See also: Western Carolina Catamounts football

Western Carolina finished their regular season with an 8–2–1 record (5–0–1 in conference); their two losses were to Division I-A programs, Clemson and Wake Forest; the tie came against conference rival Furman.[7] Ranked ninth in the final NCAA I-AA in-house poll[6] and unseeded in the tournament, the Catamounts defeated Colgate, second-seed Holy Cross, and third-seed Furman to reach the final. This was also the first appearance for Western Carolina in a Division I-AA championship game.

Game summary

After a scoreless first quarter, Southern Illinois took a 10–0 lead into halftime, then broke the game open with 23 unanswered points in the third quarter. The Salukis' defense intercepted seven passes, with four of the interceptions made by safety Greg Shipp.[8][9]

Scoring summary
Scoring summary
Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score
Plays Yards TOP WCU SIU
2 11:45 20 SIU Derrick Taylor 10-yard touchdown reception from Rick Johnson, Ron Miller kick good 0 7
2 2:15 44 SIU 36-yard field goal by Miller 0 10
3 9:21 9 37 SIU Johnson 1-yard touchdown run, Miller kick good 0 17
3 4:33 1 26 SIU James Stevenson 26-yard touchdown reception from Johnson, Miller kick good 0 24
3 2:05 SIU Melvin Dorsey tackled in end zone for a safety by Ken Foster 0 26
3 0:56 3 13 SIU Terry Green 1-yard touchdown run, Miller kick good 0 33
4 7:48 SIU 23-yard field goal by Miller 0 36
4 5:35 85 WCU Kristy Kiser 7-yard touchdown reception from Jeff Gilbert, Dean Biasucci kick good 7 36
4 0:56 30 SIU Green 10-yard touchdown run, Miller kick good 7 43
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 7 43

[1][10][8][9]

Game statistics
1 2 3 4 Total
Catamounts 0 0 0 7 7
Salukis 0 10 23 10 43
Johnson Hagood Stadium, site of the 1983 Division I-AA championship game
StatisticsWCUSIU
First downs1519
Plays–yards61–23875–367
Rushes–yards27–8450–154
Passing yards154213
Passing: Comp–Att–Int16–34–719–25–0
Time of possession20:2239:38
TeamCategoryPlayerStatistics
Western CarolinaPassingJeff Gilbert16–33, 154 yds, 1 TD, 7 INT
RushingLeonard Williams7 car, 48 yds
ReceivingMelvin Dorsey4 rec, 49 yds
Southern IllinoisPassingRick Johnson19–25, 213 yds, 2 TD
RushingDerrick Taylor18 car, 40 yds
ReceivingJames Stevenson5 rec, 88 yds, 1 TD

[1][9]

References
  1. "S. Illinois 43, W. Carolina 7". Chicago Tribune. December 18, 1983. p. 3-13. Retrieved May 7, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  2. "Coaches expect I-AA title game to be close". Journal Gazette. Mattoon, Illinois. UPI. December 17, 1983. p. B-3. Retrieved May 8, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  3. Stracener, William (December 17, 1983). "Southern Illinois capitalized on eight Western Carolina turnovers". UPI. Retrieved May 7, 2018 – via upi.com/Archive.
  4. Sutton, Stan (November 21, 1983). "Eastern, minus a bye, to face Boston U. in playoff opener". The Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. p. D1. Retrieved May 8, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  5. "Southern Illinois Salukis 1983 Schedule". cfbinfo.com. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
  6. "Division I-AA poll". The Jackson Sun. Jackson, Tennessee. AP. November 22, 1983. p. 5B. Retrieved May 8, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  7. "Western Carolina Catamounts 1983 Schedule". cfbinfo.com. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
  8. Monserud, Scott (December 18, 1983). "Salukis crush W. Carolina". The Southern Illinoisan. Carbondale, Illinois. p. 17. Retrieved May 8, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  9. Monserud, Scott (December 18, 1983). "Salukis win national championship (cont'd)". The Southern Illinoisan. Carbondale, Illinois. p. 18. Retrieved May 8, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  10. Kiley, Mike (December 18, 1983). "SIU sinks teeth info I-AA title". Chicago Tribune. p. 3-3. Retrieved May 8, 2019 – via newspapers.com.

Further reading
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