The 1988 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game was a postseason

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 ...

game between the Georgia Southern Eagles and the Furman Paladins. The game was played on December 17, 1988, at Holt Arena in

Pocatello, Idaho Pocatello () is the county seat of and largest city in Bannock County, with a small portion on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in neighboring Power County, in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Idaho. It is the principal city of the ...

. The culminating game of the

1988 NCAA Division I-AA football season The 1988 NCAA Division I-AA football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division I-AA level, began in August 1988, and concluded with the 1988 NCAA Division I-AA ...

, it was won by Furman, 17–12.

Teams

The participants of the Championship Game were the finalists of the 1988 I-AA Playoffs, which began with a 16-team

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Georgia Southern Eagles

Georgia Southern finished their regular season with a 9–2 record; one of their losses was to Florida State of Division I-A. Ranked second in the final NCAA I-AA in-house poll and seeded second in the tournament, the Eagles defeated The Citadel, Stephen F. Austin, and Eastern Kentucky to reach the final. This was the third appearance for Georgia Southern in a Division I-AA championship game, having won in 1985 and 1986.

Furman Paladins

Furman also finished their regular season with a 9–2 record (6–1 in conference); one of their losses was to Clemson of Division I-A. Ranked fourth in the final NCAA I-AA in-house poll and seeded fourth in the tournament, the Paladins defeated Delaware, Marshall, and top-seed Idaho to reach the final. This was the second appearance for Furman in a Division I-AA championship game, having lost to Georgia Southern in 1985.

Game summary

Scoring summary

Game statistics

Holt Arena, Idaho State University, Pocatello, Idaho

References

External links

1988 I-AA National Championship - Furman vs Ga. Southern
via YouTube {{1988–89 NCAA Division I championships navbox Championship Game NCAA Division I Football Championship Games Furman Paladins football games Georgia Southern Eagles football games American football in Idaho Sports in Pocatello, Idaho Sports competitions in Idaho NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game