The NAIA football national championship is decided by a postseason playoff system featuring the best National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) college football teams in the United States. Under sponsorship of the NAIA, the championship game has been played annually since 1956.
History The NAIA has contested a national championship game since 1956. In 1970, NAIA football was divided into two divisions based on enrollment, Division I and Division II, with a championship game played in each division. In 1997, NAIA football was again consolidated back into one division.
NAIA schools are allowed to offer 24 full varsity football scholarships, which can be divided up as they wish. Junior varsity scholarship players do not count towards the total.
Texas A&I (now known as Texas A&M–Kingsville) is still the most prolific program with seven NAIA championships, despite having been in NCAA Division II since 1980. Carroll College of Montana is the most successful team still playing in the NAIA, with six national titles.
Grand View is the current champion, having defeated Keiser in the 2025 title game, 22–16.
Game name Over the years, the NAIA championship games were played under a variety of names: Aluminum Bowl (1956) Holiday Bowl (1957–1960) Camellia Bowl (1961–1963) Champion Bowl (1964–1976 and 1980–1996, Division I games only) Apple Bowl (1977, Division I game only) Palm Bowl (1978–1979, Division I games only)
Results 1956 December 22, 1956 Montana State Saint Joseph's (IN) 0–0 Little Rock, Arkansas Tony StortiBob Jauron1957 December 21, 1957 Pittsburg State 27–26 Saint Petersburg, Florida Carnie Smith1958 December 20, 1958 Northeastern State 19–13 Arizona State–FlagstaffSaint Petersburg, Florida Harold "Tuffy" Stratton1959 December 19, 1959 Texas A&I 20–7 Saint Petersburg, Florida Gil Steinke1960 December 17, 1960 Lenoir–Rhyne 15–14 Humboldt State Saint Petersburg, Florida Clarence Stasavich1961 December 9, 1961 Pittsburg State 12–7Linfield Sacramento, California Carnie Smith1962 December 8, 1962 Central State (OK) 28–13 Sacramento, California Al Blevins1963 December 14, 1963 Saint John's (MN) 33–27Prairie View A&M Sacramento, California John Gagliardi1964 December 12, 1964 Concordia (MN)Sam Houston State 7–7 Augusta, Georgia Jake ChristiansenPaul Pierce1965 December 11, 1965 Saint John's (MN) 33–0 Augusta, Georgia John Gagliardi1966 December 10, 1966 Waynesburg 42–21 Tulsa, Oklahoma Carl DePasqua1967 December 9, 1967 Fairmont State 28–21 Morgantown, West Virginia Harold "Deacon" Duvall1968 December 14, 1968 Troy State 43–35 Texas A&I Montgomery, Alabama Billy Atkins1969 December 13, 1969 Texas A&I 32–7 Kingsville, Texas Gil Steinke1970 December 12, 1970 Texas A&I 48–7Greenville, South Carolina Gil Steinke1971 December 11, 1971 Livingston 14–12Birmingham, Alabama Mickey Andrews1972 December 9, 1972 East Texas State 21–18 Commerce, Texas Ernest Hawkins1973 December 8, 1973 Abilene Christian 42–14 Shreveport, Louisiana Wally Bullington1974 December 14, 1974 Texas A&I 34–23 Kingsville, Texas Gil Steinke1975 December 13, 1975 Texas A&I 37–0 Kingsville, Texas Gil Steinke1976 December 11, 1976 Texas A&I 26–0 Kingsville, Texas Gil Steinke1977 December 10, 1977 Abilene Christian 24–7 Seattle, Washington DeWitt Jones1978 December 16, 1978 Angelo State 34–14McAllen, Texas Jim Hess1979 December 15, 1979 Texas A&I 20–14Central State (OK) McAllen, Texas Ron Harms1980 December 20, 1980Elon 17–10 Burlington, North Carolina Jerry Tolley1981 December 19, 1981 Elon 3–0 Burlington, North Carolina Jerry Tolley1982 December 18, 1982 Central State (OK) 14–11 Edmond, Oklahoma Gary Howard1983 December 17, 1983 Carson–Newman 36–28Grand Junction, Colorado Ken Sparks1984 December 15, 1984 Carson–NewmanCentral Arkansas 19–19 Conway, Arkansas Ken SparksHarold Horton1985 December 21, 1985 HillsdaleCentral Arkansas 10–10 Conway, Arkansas Dick LowryHarold Horton1986 December 20, 1986 Carson–Newman 17–0 Jefferson City, Tennessee Ken Sparks1987 December 19, 1987 Cameron 30–2 Lawton, Oklahoma Brian Naber1988 December 17, 1988 Carson–Newman 56–21 Jefferson City, Tennessee Ken Sparks1989 December 16, 1989 Carson–Newman 34–20 Jefferson City, Tennessee Ken Sparks1990 December 8, 1990 Central State (OH) 38–16 Grand Junction, Colorado Billy Joe1991 December 14, 1991 Central Arkansas 19–16 Wilberforce, Ohio Mike Isom1992 December 12, 1992 Central State (OH) 19–16 Boiling Springs, North Carolina Billy Joe1993 December 11, 1993 East Central 49–35 Ada, Oklahoma Hank Walbrick1994 December 10, 1994 Northeastern State 13–12 Pine Bluff, Arkansas Tom Eckert1995 December 2, 1995 Central State (OH) 37–7 Tahlequah, Oklahoma Rick Comegy1996 December 7, 1996 Southwestern Oklahoma State 33–31 Weatherford, Oklahoma Paul Sharp1997 December 20, 1997 Findlay 14–7 Savannah, Tennessee Dick Strahm1998 December 19, 1998 Azusa Pacific 17–14 Savannah, Tennessee Vic Shealy1999 December 18, 1999 Northwestern Oklahoma State 34–26 Savannah, Tennessee Tim Albin2000 December 16, 2000 Georgetown (KY) 20–0 Savannah, Tennessee Bill Cronin2001 December 15, 2001 Georgetown (KY) 49–27 Savannah, Tennessee Bill Cronin2002 December 21, 2002 Carroll (MT) 28–7 Savannah, Tennessee Mike Van Diest2003 December 20, 2003 Carroll (MT) 41–28 Savannah, Tennessee Mike Van Diest2004 December 18, 2004 Carroll (MT) 15–13 (2 OT) Saint Francis (IN) Savannah, Tennessee Mike Van Diest2005 December 17, 2005 Carroll (MT) 27–10 Saint Francis (IN) Savannah, Tennessee Mike Van Diest2006 December 16, 2006 Sioux Falls 23–19 Saint Francis (IN) Savannah, Tennessee Kalen DeBoer2007 December 15, 2007 Carroll (MT) 17–9 Savannah, Tennessee Mike Van Diest2008 December 20, 2008 Sioux Falls 23–7 Rome, Georgia Kalen DeBoer2009 December 19, 2009 Sioux Falls 25–22 Rome, Georgia Kalen DeBoer2010 December 18, 2010 Carroll (MT) 10–7 Rome, Georgia Mike Van Diest2011 December 17, 2011 Saint Xavier 24–20 Rome, Georgia Mike Feminis2012 December 13, 2012 Marian (IN) 30–27 (OT) Rome, Georgia Ted Karras Jr. 2013 December 21, 2013 Grand View 35–23 Rome, Georgia Mike Woodley 2014 December 19, 2014 Southern Oregon 55–31 Daytona Beach, Florida Craig Howard 2015 December 19, 2015 Marian (IN) 31–14 Daytona Beach, Florida Mark Henninger 2016 December 17, 2016 Saint Francis (IN) 38–17 Daytona Beach, Florida Kevin Donley 2017 December 16, 2017 Saint Francis (IN) 24–13 Daytona Beach, Florida Kevin Donley 2018 December 15, 2018 Morningside 35–28 Daytona Beach, Florida Steve Ryan 2019 December 21, 2019 Morningside 40–38 Grambling, Louisiana Steve Ryan 2020 May 10, 2021 Lindsey Wilson 45–13 Grambling, Louisiana Chris Oliver 2021 December 18, 2021 Morningside 38–28 Durham, North Carolina Steve Ryan 2022 December 17, 2022 Northwestern (IA) 35–25 Durham, North Carolina Matt McCarty 2023 December 18, 2023 Keiser 31–21 Northwestern (IA) Durham, North Carolina Doug Socha 2024 December 21, 2024 Grand View 35–7 Keiser Durham, North Carolina Joe Woodley 2025 December 20, 2025 Grand View 22–16 Keiser Fort Worth, Texas E. J. Peterson
Champions
NAIA Division II titles are not included in this list.
Active NAIA programs Team Titles Years Carroll (MT) 6 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2010 Grand View 3 2013, 2024, 2025 Morningside 3 2018, 2019, 2021 Saint Francis (IN) 2 2016, 2017 Marian (IN) 2 2012, 2015 Georgetown (KY) 2 2000, 2001 Saint Xavier 1 2011Southern Oregon 1 2014 Lindsey Wilson 1 2020 Northwestern (IA) 1 2022 Keiser 1 2023
Former NAIA programs Team Titles Years Texas A&M–Kingsville 7 1959, 1969, 1970, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979 Carson–Newman 5 1983, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1989 Central Arkansas 3 1984, 1985, 1991 Central State (OH) 3 1990, 1992, 1995 Sioux Falls 3 2006, 2008, 2009 Pittsburg State 2 1957, 1961 Saint John's (MN) 2 1963, 1965 Abilene Christian 2 1973, 1977 Elon 2 1980, 1981 Central Oklahoma 2 1962, 1982 Northeastern State (OK) 2 1958, 1994 Montana State 1 1956 Saint Joseph's (IN) 1 1956 Lenoir–Rhyne 1 1960 Concordia Moorhead 1 1964 Sam Houston State 1 1964 Waynesburg 1 1966 Fairmont State 1 1967 Troy 1 1968 West Alabama 1 1971 East Texas A&M 1 1972 Angelo State 1 1978 Hillsdale 1 1985 Cameron 1 1987 East Central 1 1993 Southwestern Oklahoma State 1 1996 Findlay 1 1997 Azusa Pacific 1 1998 Northwestern Oklahoma State 1 1999
List of appearances by team
Current NAIA members
Qualified teams Teams in bold participated in the 2025 playoffs. Updated after the 2025 playoffs.
TeamAppearancesFirstLastWinsLossesTiesTotalPct. Arizona Christian Firestorm 2 2020 2022 0 2 0 2 Avila Eagles 1 2022 2022 0 1 0 1 Baker Wildcats 21 1980 2024 19 21 0 40 Benedictine Ravens 17 1985 2025 12 17 0 29 Bethany Swedes 10 1978 1999 3 10 0 13 Bethel (KS) Threshers 3 1984 2020 0 3 0 3 Bethel (TN) Wildcats 7 2006 2023 4 7 0 11 Campbellsville Tigers 5 1997 2025 1 5 0 6 Carroll Fighting Saints 25 1978 2025 43 19 0 62 Central Methodist Eagles 1 2021 2021 0 1 0 1 College of Idaho Coyotes 3 2019 2025 5 3 0 8 Concordia (NE) Bulldogs 1 2002 2002 1 1 0 2 Cumberland Bulldogs 1 1993 1993 0 1 0 1 Cumberlands Patriots 9 1988 2019 6 9 0 15 Dakota Wesleyan Tigers 1 1992 1992 0 1 0 1 Dickinson State Blue Hawks 25 1981 2024 9 25 0 34 Doane Tigers 6 1972 2016 3 6 0 9 Dordt Defenders 3 2020 2025 1 3 0 4 Eastern Oregon Mountaineers (Oregon College) 3 1975 2016 2 3 0 5 Evangel Valor 6 1988 2025 7 9 0 16 Faulkner Eagles 2 2013 2014 0 2 0 2 Friends Falcons 6 1992 2025 2 6 0 8 Georgetown Tigers 24 1987 2024 28 21 0 49 Graceland Yellowjackets 1 2005 2005 0 1 0 1 Grand View Vikings 14 2011 2025 23 11 0 34 Hastings Broncos 8 1991 2009 3 8 0 11 Indiana Wesleyan Wildcats 5 2021 2025 4 5 0 9 Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes 7 2001 2024 4 6 0 10 Keiser Seahawks 7 2019 2025 16 6 0 22 Langston Lions 8 1973 2018 2 8 0 10 Lindsey Wilson Blue Raiders 9 2014 2025 13 8 0 21 Louisiana Christian Wildcats 1 2023 2023 0 1 0 1 Marian Knights 13 2010 2025 21 11 0 32 McPherson Bulldogs 2 2009 2010 0 2 0 2 MidAmerica Nazarene Pioneers 12 2000 2024 6 12 0 18 Midland Warriors 3 1979 1994 0 3 0 3 Missouri Valley Vikings 13 1974 2016 11 13 0 24 Montana State–Northern Lights 1 2006 2006 0 1 0 1 Montana Tech Orediggers 12 1971 2025 6 12 0 18 Montana Western Bulldogs 6 1994 2024 2 6 0 8 Morningside Mustangs 22 2004 2025 36 19 0 55 Northwestern Red Raiders 26 1972 2024 34 23 0 57 Oklahoma Panhandle State Aggies (Panhandle State) 1 1981 1981 0 1 0 1 Olivet Nazarene Tigers 3 1998 2020 3 3 0 6 Ottawa (AZ) Spirit 3 2019 2024 0 3 0 3 Ottawa (KS) Braves 10 1997 2023 1 10 0 11 Peru State Bobcats 3 1989 1991 6 2 0 8 Pikeville Bears 2 2005 2024 1 2 0 3 Point Skyhawks 1 2015 2015 0 1 0 1 Reinhardt Eagles 10 2015 2025 6 9 0 15 Rocky Mountain Battlin' Bears 4 1998 2018 1 4 0 5 13 1984 2013 4 12 0 16 2 1987 2011 1 2 0 3 Saint Francis (IN) Cougars 21 1999 2025 34 19 0 53 3 2023 2025 1 3 0 4 Saint Xavier Cougars 16 2002 2023 19 15 0 34 Southeastern Fire 3 2016 2025 1 3 0 4 Southern Oregon Raiders 7 1987 2017 13 6 0 19 Southwestern Moundbuilders 8 1984 2024 3 7 0 10 Sterling Warriors 3 2013 2017 0 3 0 3 Tabor Bluejays 5 2003 2015 3 5 0 8 Taylor Trojans 2 1998 1999 1 2 0 3 Texas Wesleyan Rams 2 2024 2025 0 2 0 2 Union Commonwealth Bulldogs 1 2008 2008 0 1 0 1 Valley City State Vikings 9 1976 2014 1 9 0 10 William Penn Statesmen 10 1975 2025 1 3 0 4
Not yet qualified Appalachian Athletic Conference (3) – Bluefield, Kentucky Christian, Rio Grande Frontier Conference (3) – Dakota State, Mayville State, Simpson Great Plains Athletic Conference (3) – Briar Cliff, Mount Marty, Waldorf Heart of America Athletic Conference (5) – Clarke, Culver–Stockton, Missouri Baptist, Mount Mercy, William Woods Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (1) – Saint Mary Mid-States Football Association (5) – Defiance, Judson, Lawrence Tech, Madonna, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods Sooner Athletic Conference (4) – Arkansas Baptist, Nelson, Texas College, Wayland Baptist Sun Conference (5) – Ave Maria, Florida Memorial, Thomas, Warner, Webber International Independent (1) – Andrew
Former NAIA members