The 2007 NCAA Division III football season, part of the college football season organized by the NCAA at the Division III level in the United States, began in August 2007, and concluded with the NCAA Division III Football Championship, also known as the Stagg Bowl, in December 2007 at Salem Football Stadium in Salem, Virginia. The Wisconsin–Whitewater Warhawks won their first Division III championship by defeating the Mount Union Purple Raiders, 31−21. This was the third of seven straight championship games between Mount Union (3 wins) and Wisconsin–Whitewater (4 wins).
The Gagliardi Trophy, given to the most outstanding player in Division III football, was awarded to Justin Beaver, running back from Wisconsin–Whitewater.
Conference standings
Conference champions Conference championsAmerican Southwest Conference – Mary Hardin–Baylor Atlantic Central Football Conference – Wesley Centennial Conference – Muhlenberg College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin – Illinois Wesleyan and North Central (IL) Empire 8 Conference – Hartwick and St. John Fisher Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference – Franklin Illini-Badger Football Conference‡ – Concordia (WI) and Lakeland Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Central (IA) Liberty League – Hobart and RPI Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Hope and Olivet Middle Atlantic Conference – Widener Midwest Conference – St. Norbert Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Bethel (MN) New England Football Conference – Coast Guard (Bogan Division), Curry (Boyd Division) Championship Game: Curry 10, Coast Guard 7 New England Small College Athletic Conference – Middlebury New Jersey Athletic Conference – SUNY Cortland and TCNJ North Coast Athletic Conference – Wabash Northwest Conference – Whitworth Ohio Athletic Conference – Mount Union Old Dominion Athletic Conference – Hampden–Sydney Presidents' Athletic Conference – Washington & Jefferson Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Cal Lutheran and Redlands Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference – Millsaps and Trinity (TX) University Athletic Association – Case Western Reserve Upper Midwest Athletic Conference – Northwestern–St. Paul USA South Athletic Conference – North Carolina Wesleyan Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Wisconsin–Whitewater
Postseason The 2007 NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs were the 35th annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division III college football. The championship Stagg Bowl game was held at Salem Football Stadium in Salem, Virginia for the 15th time.
Qualification Twenty-two conferences met the requirements for an automatic ("Pool A") bid to the playoffs. Besides the NESCAC, which does not participate in the playoffs, four conferences had no Pool A bid. The NWC was in the second year of the two-year waiting period, while the ACFC, UAA, and UMAC failed to meet the seven-member requirement. The PAC received a Pool A bid for the first time, having attained seven members and passed through the waiting period.
Schools not in Pool A conferences were eligible for Pool B. The number of Pool B bids was determined by calculating the ratio of Pool A conferences to schools in those conferences and applying that ratio to the number of Pool B schools. The 22 Pool A conferences contained 190 schools, an average of 8.6 teams per conference. Thirty schools were in Pool B, enough for three bids.
The remaining seven playoff spots were at-large ("Pool C") teams.
Playoff bracket
* Overtime
Bowl games DateBowlLocationHome teamAway teamScoreNovember 17ECAC North Atlantic BowlCurrier FieldPlymouth, New HampshirePlymouth StateBridgewater State24–21November 17Victory BowlReeves FieldBeaver Falls, PennsylvaniaMalone(NAIA)Geneva45–17
See also 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season 2007 NCAA Division I FCS football season 2007 NCAA Division II football season
References