The 1982 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 1982 and concluded with the 1982 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game in the Pioneer Bowl on December 18, at Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, Texas. The Eastern Kentucky Colonels won their second I-AA championship, defeating the Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens, 17−14.
Conference changes and new programs Upon the expiration of the four-year limit for compliance with Division I-A football criteria (set in January 1978), 41 NCAA Division I-A teams were reclassified from Division I-A to Division I-AA: Ivy League — all eight members. Yale met the requirements to stay in I-A, but voluntarily chose to downgrade to I-AA to remain with the rest of the Ivy League. Southern Conference — all eight members Southland Conference — five members. McNeese State and Southwestern Louisiana met the requirements to remain in I-A; McNeese State voluntarily chose to downgrade to I-AA to remain with the rest of the Southland, while Southwestern Louisiana remained in Division I-A as an Independent. Missouri Valley Conference — five members, with New Mexico State, Tulsa, and Wichita State remaining in I-A but also remaining in the conference. This was the onset of a four-year period in which the MVC functioned as a hybrid I-A/I-AA conference. Mid-American Conference — eight members, with only Central Michigan and Toledo maintaining I-A status. Several of the demoted schools appealed the demotion, with the result that all eight MAC members involuntarily reclassified to I-AA for 1982 were returned to I-A as of 1983. Independent Cincinnati was reclassified to I-AA along with the MAC schools but filed an injunction against the NCAA to postpone their demotion until after the 1982 season, and was successful in remaining in I-A. The successful appeals of Cincinnati (effective 1982) and the MAC schools (effective 1983) meant that 40 Division I-A members joined I-AA in 1982, of which 32 remained in 1983. School 1981 Conference 1982 Conference Alabama State D-II Independent Independent (I-AA) Appalachian State Southern (I-A) Southern (I-AA) Arkansas State Southland (I-A) Southland (I-AA) Ball State MAC (I-A) MAC (I-AA) Bowling Green MAC (I-A) MAC (I-AA) Brown Ivy (I-A) Ivy (I-AA) Chattanooga Southern (I-A) Southern (I-AA) Colgate I-A Independent I-AA Independent Columbia Ivy (I-A) Ivy (I-AA) Cornell Ivy (I-A) Ivy (I-AA) Dartmouth Ivy (I-A) Ivy (I-AA) Drake Missouri Valley (I-A) Missouri Valley (I-AA) East Tennessee State Southern (I-A) Southern (I-AA) Eastern Michigan MAC (I-A) MAC (I-AA) Furman Southern (I-A) Southern (I-AA) Harvard Ivy (I-A) Ivy (I-AA) Holy Cross I-A Independent I-AA Independent Illinois State Missouri Valley (I-A) Missouri Valley (I-AA) Indiana State Missouri Valley (I-A) Missouri Valley (I-AA) Kent State MAC (I-A) MAC (I-AA) Lamar Southland (I-A) Southland (I-AA) Northeast Louisiana I-A Independent Southland (I-AA) Louisiana Tech Southland (I-A) Southland (I-AA) Marshall Southern (I-A) Southern (I-AA) McNeese State Southland (I-A) Southland (I-AA) Miami (OH) MAC (I-A) MAC (I-AA) North Texas State I-A Independent I-AA Independent Northern Illinois MAC (I-A) MAC (I-AA) Ohio MAC (I-A) MAC (I-AA) Penn Ivy (I-A) Ivy (I-AA) Princeton Ivy (I-A) Ivy (I-AA) Richmond I-A Independent I-AA Independent Southern Illinois Missouri Valley (I-A) Missouri Valley (I-AA) Texas–Arlington Southland (I-A) Southland (I-AA) The Citadel Southern (I-A) Southern (I-AA) VMI Southern (I-A) Southern (I-AA) West Texas State Missouri Valley (I-A) Missouri Valley (I-AA) Western Carolina Southern (I-A) Southern (I-AA) Western Kentucky Ohio Valley I-AA Independent Western Michigan MAC (I-A) MAC (I-AA) William & Mary I-A Independent I-AA Independent Yale Ivy (I-A) Ivy (I-AA)
Conference standings
Conference champions
Conference championsBig Sky Conference – Montana (tiebreaker over Idaho, Montana State) Ivy League – Dartmouth, Harvard, and Penn Mid-Continent Conference – Eastern Illinois Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – South Carolina State Ohio Valley Conference – Eastern Kentucky Southern Conference– Furman Southland Conference – Louisiana Tech Southwestern Athletic Conference – Jackson State Yankee Conference – Boston University, Connecticut, Maine, and Massachusetts
Postseason The playoffs expanded from eight to twelve teams this season; four years later, in 1986, the field was expanded to sixteen teams.
NCAA Division I-AA playoff bracket The top four teams were seeded, and received first-round byes.
* Next to team name denotes host institution
References