The 1972 NAIA Division II football season was the 17th 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 NAIA and the third season of play of the NAIA's lower division for football. The season was played from August to November 1972 and culminated in the 1972

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 on December 9, 1972, in

Joplin, Missouri Joplin is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, Jasper and Newton County, Missouri, Newton counties in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Missouri. The bulk of the city is in Jasper County, while the southern portion is in Newton County. J ...

on the campus of

Missouri Southern State College Missouri Southern State University (Missouri Southern, MSSU, or MoSo) is a public university in Joplin, Missouri. It was established in 1937 as Joplin Junior College. The university enrolled 4,346 students in Fall 2021. History Missouri Southern ...

. Missouri Southern defeated in the championship game, 21–14, to win their first NAIA national title. As of 2015, this was the earliest championship to feature a team that remains a NAIA member.

Conference standings

Postseason

References

{{NAIA football NAIA Football National Championship

Conference standings

Postseason

See also

References