The 1986 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 1986, and concluded with the 1986 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 19, 1986, at the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, Washington. The Georgia Southern Eagles won their second consecutive I-AA championship, defeating the Arkansas State Indians by a score of 48–21.
Conference changes and new programs Prior to the season, the Colonial League was established as a five-member, football-only league for teams in Massachusetts, New York, and Pennsylvania. The Colonial League was a forerunner of today's Patriot League and has no connection to the later Colonial Athletic Association (today's Coastal Athletic Association).
School 1985 Conference 1986 Conference Bucknell I-AA Independent Colonial Colgate I-AA Independent Colonial Delaware I-AA Independent Yankee Drake Missouri Valley (I-AA) D-III Independent Holy Cross I-AA Independent Colonial Indiana State Missouri Valley Gateway Lafayette I-AA Independent Colonial Lehigh I-AA Independent Colonial Richmond I-AA Independent Yankee Southeastern Louisiana Gulf Star Dropped Program Texas–Arlington Southland Dropped Program West Texas State Missouri Valley (I-AA) Lone Star (II)
Conference standings
Conference champions
Conference ChampionsBig Sky Conference – Nevada Colonial League – Holy Cross Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference – Eastern Illinois Gulf Star Conference – Sam Houston State Ivy League – Penn Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – North Carolina A&T Ohio Valley Conference – Murray State Southern Conference – Appalachian State Southland Conference – Arkansas State Southwestern Athletic Conference – Jackson State Yankee Conference – Connecticut, Delaware, and Massachusetts
Postseason The playoffs expanded from twelve to sixteen teams this season, eliminating the bye for the top four seeds.
The I-AA playoff field remained at sixteen through the 2009 season, expanding to twenty in 2010 and 24 in 2013.
NCAA Division I-AA playoff bracket The top four teams were seeded, with remaining teams placed in the bracket based on geographical considerations.
* Denotes host institution
References