The 2002 NCAA Division I-AA football season, part 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 ...

in the United States organized by the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

(NCAA) at the

Division I-AA The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athletic ...

level, began in August 2002, and concluded with the 2002 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 20, 2002, at

Finley Stadium W. Max Finley Stadium is the home stadium for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football team and Chattanooga FC ( NISA), a professional Division 3 soccer team. The stadium also hosts various high school sports and musical concerts. It ...

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...

. The

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and Lady Toppers are the athletic teams that represent Western Kentucky University (WKU), located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks, competing in the Co ...

won their first I-AA championship, defeating the

McNeese State Cowboys The McNeese Cowboys and Cowgirls are composed of 14 teams representing McNeese State University in intercollegiate athletics, including men's and women's basketball, cross country, golf, and track and field. Men's sports include baseball and foot ...

by a final score of 34−14.

Conference changes and new programs

Conference standings

Conference champions

Postseason

NCAA Division I-AA playoff bracket

The top four teams in the tournament were

seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiospe ...

ed; seeded teams were assured of hosting games in the first two rounds. * ''Denotes host institution''

References

{{NCAA football season navbox