The 1987 NAIA Division II football season, as part of the 1987 college football season in the United States and the 32nd season of
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
sponsored by the
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its stu ...
(NAIA), was the 18th season of play of the NAIA's lower division for football.
The season was played from August to November 1987 and culminated in the 1987
NAIA Division II Football National Championship
The NAIA Division II Football National Championship was a post-season playoff system featuring the best NAIA Division II college football teams in the United States. It was played annually between 1970 and 1996 when NAIA football play was divided ...
, played at the
Tacoma Dome near the campus of
Pacific Lutheran University
Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) is a private Lutheran university in Parkland, Washington. It was founded by Norwegian Lutheran immigrants in 1890. PLU is sponsored by the 580 congregations of Region I of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Ame ...
in
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...
.
Pacific Lutheran and
Wisconsin–Stevens Point played to a tie, 16–16, and were declared co-national champions. It was Pacific Lutheran's second NAIA national title and Wisconsin–Stevens Point's first. However, the Pointers later forfeited their shared of title after it was discovered they had been used two ineligible players during the season.
Conference realignment
Conference changes
* This was the first season for the
Mid-South Conference
The Mid-South Conference (MSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Member institutions are located in Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee. The league is headquartered in Lou ...
.
Conference standings
Conference champions
Postseason
* ‡ ''Game played at
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...
''
* ‡‡ ''Game played at
Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is the county seat of Douglas County, Kansas, Douglas County, Kansas, United States, and the sixth-largest city in the state. It is in the northeastern sector of the state, astride Interstate 70, between the Kansas River, Kansas and Waka ...
''
See also
*
1987 NCAA Division I-A football season
The 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with Miami winning its second national championship of the 1980s in an Orange Bowl game featuring a rare No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup between the top ranked Oklahoma Sooners and the Hurricanes.
Miami's ...
*
1987 NCAA Division I-AA football season
*
1987 NCAA Division II football season
The 1987 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, began in August 1987, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football C ...
*
1987 NCAA Division III football season
The 1987 NCAA Division III football season, part of the college football season organized by the NCAA at the Division III level in the United States, began in August 1987, and concluded with the NCAA Division III Football Championship, also known ...
References
{{NAIA football
NAIA Football National Championship