The 2004 NCAA Division III football season, part of the college football season organized by the

NCAA 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 ...

at the

Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Thir ...

level in the United States, began in August 2004, and concluded with the

NCAA Division III Football Championship The NCAA Division III Football Championship began in 1973. The Division III playoffs begin with 32 teams selected to participate in the Division III playoffs. The Division III championship game, known as the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl or Stagg Bowl ...

, also known as the Stagg Bowl, in December 2004 at

Salem Football Stadium Salem Stadium is a stadium in Salem, Virginia, United States. It is primarily used for football and hosts the home football games of the Salem High School Spartans. It was built in 1985 and seats 7,157 people. The stadium is part of the James E. ...

in Salem, Virginia. The

Linfield Wildcats Linfield University is a private university with campuses in McMinnville, and Portland, Oregon. Linfield Wildcats athletics participates in the NCAA Division III Northwest Conference. Linfield reported a combined 1,755 students after the fall ...

won their first Division III championship by defeating the Mary Hardin–Baylor Crusaders, 28−21. The

Gagliardi Trophy The Gagliardi Trophy was first presented in 1993 to the Outstanding Division III college football player of the year by the Jostens Company and the J-Club of Saint John's University in Minnesota. Since that time, the award has become one of the ...

, given to the most outstanding player in Division III football, was awarded to Rocky Myers, safety from Wesley (DE).

Conference changes and new programs

Conference standings

Conference champions

Postseason

The 2004 NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs were the 32nd annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's

NCAA Division III NCAA Division III (D-III) is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States. D-III consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletic scholarships to their st ...

college football. The championship Stagg Bowl game was held at

in Salem, Virginia for the 12th time. This was the last bracket to feature 28 teams before expanding to 32 teams in 2005.

Playoff bracket

* ''Overtime''

Final D3football.com Poll

Others receiving votes: Mount St. Joseph 39, Trinity (Conn.) 33, Alma 31, UW-Eau Claire 30, Whitworth 17, Texas Lutheran 17, Aurora 16, Augustana 16, Muhlenberg 14, Johns Hopkins 12, Springfield 9, Shenandoah 9, Hampden-Sydney 9, Moravian 8, Albright 3, Capital 2, Waynesburg 1, New Jersey 1, Curry 1, McDaniel 1.

Awards

: Rocky Myers, Wesley (DE)

AFCA Coach of the Year The AFCA Coach of the Year Award is given annually to a college football coach by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA). The award has had several different sponsors over the years, including Eastman Kodak Corporation, and thus also b ...

: Jay Locey, Linfield AFCA Regional Coach of the Year: Region 1:

Chuck Priore Chuck Priore (born February 17, 1960) is an American football coach and former player. He is the current head football coach at Stony Brook University, a position he has held since the 2006 season. Priore served the head football coach at Trinity C ...

, Trinity College (Conn.) Region 2: G.A. Mangus, Delaware Valley College Region 3: Jimmie Keeling, Hardin-Simmons University Region 4: Tim Rucks, Carthage College Region 5: Terry Horan, Concordia-Moorhead College (Minn.)

References

{{NCAA football season navbox