1979 NCAA Division II football season
Regular season	August – November 1979
Playoffs	December 1979
National Championship	Zia Bowl University Stadium Albuquerque, NM
Champion	Delaware
← 1978 NCAA Division II football seasons 1980 →

The 1979 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level, began in August 1979, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship in December 1979 at University Stadium in Albuquerque, NM. During the game's two-year stretch in New Mexico, it was referred to as the Zia Bowl. The Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens defeated the Youngstown State Penguins, 38–21, to win their first Division II national title.^[1]

Conference changes and new programs

One program upgraded to Division I-AA while two others downgraded back to Division II.

School	1978 Conference	1979 Conference
Bethune-Cookman	SIAC (II)	MEAC (I-AA)
Eastern Washington	Evergreen (NAIA)	Independent
Morgan State	MEAC (I-AA)	Independent
Nicholls State	Gulf South	Independent
North Carolina Central	MEAC (I-AA)	CIAA (II)
Northern Colorado	Independent	North Central
Southeastern Louisiana	Gulf South	Independent

Conference standings

1979 Association of Mid-Continent Universities football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 2 Youngstown State $^	5	–	0	–	0	11	–	2	–	0
Northern Iowa	4	–	1	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
Akron	3	–	2	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
Eastern Illinois	1	–	4	–	0	7	–	4	–	0
Northern Michigan	1	–	4	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Western Illinois	1	–	4	–	0	3	–	8	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division II AP Poll

1979 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 7 Cal Poly $	2	–	0	–	0	7	–	3	–	0
Cal State Northridge	1	–	1	–	0	3	–	7	–	0
Cal Poly Pomona	0	–	2	–	0	0	–	11	–	0

$ – Conference champion Rankings from NCAA Division II AP Poll

1979 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 6 Virginia Union $^	8	–	0	–	0	10	–	2	–	0
Winston-Salem State	6	–	1	–	1	8	–	2	–	1
Norfolk State	6	–	1	–	1	8	–	3	–	1
Virginia State	5	–	2	–	1	6	–	4	–	1
Fayetteville State	4	–	3	–	1	4	–	4	–	1
Elizabeth City State	2	–	6	–	0	3	–	7	–	0
Hampton	2	–	6	–	0	3	–	8	–	0
Livingstone	2	–	6	–	0	3	–	8	–	0
Johnson C. Smith	1	–	6	–	1	1	–	9	–	1
Saint Paul's (VA)	0	–	8	–	0	0	–	9	–	0
Bowie State *	0	–	0	–	0	2	–	8	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant * – ineligible for conference title Rankings from NCAA Division II AP Poll

1979 Far Western Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
UC Davis $	5	–	0	–	0	7	–	2	–	1
Humboldt State	4	–	1	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
Chico State	2	–	3	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Sacramento State	2	–	3	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
San Francisco State	1	–	4	–	0	3	–	7	–	0
Cal State Hayward	1	–	4	–	0	2	–	8	–	0

$ – Conference champion Adjusted for Cal Poly Pomona forfeits to UC Davis and Sacramento State

1979 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 8 Saginaw Valley State $^	4	–	0	–	1	8	–	2	–	1
Wayne State (MI)	3	–	1	–	1	3	–	5	–	1
Ferris State	3	–	2	–	0	5	–	4	–	1
Grand Valley State	2	–	3	–	0	4	–	5	–	0
Northwood	1	–	4	–	0	5	–	4	–	0
Hillsdale	1	–	4	–	0	3	–	8	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1979 Gulf South Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 5 Mississippi College $^	5	–	1	–	0	10	–	3	–	0
Troy State	4	–	1	–	0	6	–	3	–	1
Tennessee–Martin	3	–	2	–	0	5	–	5	–	0
North Alabama	3	–	3	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
Delta State	2	–	4	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Jacksonville State	1	–	5	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Livingston	1	–	5	–	0	3	–	8	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AP Poll

1979 Heartland Collegiate Conference standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
Saint Joseph's (IN) $	4	–	1	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
Franklin (IN)	5	–	2	–	0	6	–	4	–	0
Butler	3	–	2	–	0	5	–	5	–	0
Valparaiso	2	–	3	–	0	5	–	4	–	0
Indiana Central	2	–	4	–	0	3	–	6	–	0
Evansville	0	–	6	–	0	2	–	9	–	0
Georgetown (KY) *	3	–	0	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Ashland *	0	–	1	–	0	3	–	6	–	0

$ – Conference champion * – ineligible for conference title

1979 Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
NW Missouri State $	5	–	1	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
SE Missouri State	5	–	1	–	0	6	–	4	–	1
Missouri-Rolla	3	–	3	–	0	7	–	3	–	1
SW Missouri State	3	–	3	–	0	7	–	4	–	0
NE Missouri State	3	–	3	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Central Missouri State	1	–	5	–	0	2	–	8	–	0
Lincoln (MO)	1	–	5	–	0	4	–	7	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant

1979 North Central Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 3 North Dakota $^	5	–	1	–	0	10	–	2	–	0
No. 8 South Dakota State * ^	4	–	2	–	0	9	–	3	–	0
North Dakota State	4	–	2	–	0	6	–	4	–	0
Nebraska–Omaha	3	–	3	–	0	8	–	3	–	0
South Dakota *	3	–	3	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Augustana (SD)	2	–	4	–	0	4	–	5	–	0
Morningside	0	–	6	–	0	0	–	10	–	0
Northern Colorado †	0	–	0	–	0	2	–	8	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant * – South Dakota State won two head-to-head games over South Dakota, which counted as one game for each team in the conference standings. † – Northern Colorado was ineligible for the conference title. Rankings from AP Poll

1979 Northern Intercollegiate Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
Minnesota Duluth +	7	–	1	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
Moorhead State +	7	–	1	–	0	8	–	3	–	0
Minnesota Morris ^	6	–	2	–	0	9	–	2	–	0
St. Cloud State	5	–	3	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Mankato State	4	–	4	–	0	5	–	5	–	0
Michigan Tech	4	–	4	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Southwest State (MN)	2	–	6	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Bemidji State	1	–	7	–	0	1	–	8	–	1
Winona State	0	–	8	–	0	0	–	11	–	0

+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant

1979 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
East Division
Cheyney xy	4	–	1	–	0	9	–	2	–	0
Millersville x^	4	–	1	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
East Stroudsburg	3	–	2	–	0	7	–	3	–	0
Kutztown	3	–	2	–	0	6	–	3	–	0
Bloomsburg	1	–	4	–	0	2	–	8	–	0
Mansfield	0	–	5	–	0	0	–	9	–	0
West Division
Lock Haven xy$	6	–	0	–	0	9	–	2	–	0
Clarion	5	–	1	–	0	9	–	1	–	0
Indiana (PA)	3	–	3	–	0	7	–	3	–	0
Slippery Rock	2	–	4	–	0	3	–	6	–	0
Edinboro	2	–	4	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Shippensburg	2	–	4	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
California (PA)	1	–	5	–	0	3	–	7	–	0
Championship: Lock Haven 48, Cheyney 14
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant

1979 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
Northern Division
No. 10 Fairmont State xy$	7	–	1	–	1	9	–	1	–	1
No. T–15th West Liberty State x	7	–	1	–	1	7	–	2	–	1
Salem	6	–	2	–	1	6	–	3	–	1
Shepherd	5	–	4	–	0	5	–	5	–	0
West Virginia Wesleyan	1	–	8	–	0	1	–	8	–	0
Southern Division
West Virginia State xy	6	–	3	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
Concord	4	–	3	–	2	5	–	3	–	2
Glenville State	3	–	6	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
West Virginia Tech	1	–	6	–	2	1	–	6	–	2
Bluefield State	1	–	7	–	1	1	–	8	–	1
Championship: Fairmont State 14, West Virginia State 13
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1979 NCAA Division II independents football records
v t e	Conf			Overall
Team	W	L	T	W		L		T
No. 1 Delaware ^		–		13	–	1	–	0
Towson State		–		9	–	1	–	0
No. 4 Morgan State ^		–		9	–	2	–	0
Eastern Washington		–		7	–	2	–	0
Nicholls State		–		8	–	3	–	0
United States International		–		8	–	3	–	0
American International		–		6	–	3	–	0
No. 10 Santa Clara		–		6	–	3	–	0
Kentucky State		–		6	–	5	–	0
Central State (OH)		–		5	–	5	–	0
Central Connecticut		–		4	–	5	–	0
James Madison		–		4	–	5	–	0
West Chester		–		4	–	7	–	0
Southern Connecticut State		–		3	–	7	–	0
Arkansas–Pine Bluff		–		2	–	8	–	0

^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from Associated Press poll

Conference summaries

Conference	Champions
Association of Mid-Continent Universities	Youngstown State
California Collegiate Athletic Association	Cal Poly
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association	Virginia Union
Far Western Football Conference	UC Davis
Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Saginaw Valley State
Gulf South Conference	Mississippi College
Heartland Collegiate Conference	Saint Joseph's
Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association	Northwest Missouri State
North Central Conference	North Dakota
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Alabama A&M

Postseason

1979 NCAA Division II Football Championship
Teams	8
Finals Site	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM
Champion	Delaware (1st title, 3rd title game)
Runner-up	Youngstown State (1st title game)
Semifinalists	Mississippi College Alabama A&M
Winning coach	Tubby Raymond 1st championship

The 1979 NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs were the sixth single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college football. The championship game was held at University Stadium in Albuquerque, NM for the first time. With the game being played in New Mexico for the next two years, it was deemed the Zia Bowl.

Playoff bracket

First round Campus sites		Semifinals Campus sites		Championship University Stadium Albuquerque, NM

Delaware	58

Virginia Union	28
		Delaware	60

		Mississippi College	10
Mississippi College	35

North Dakota	15
				Delaware	38

				Youngstown State	21
Youngstown State	51

South Dakota State	7
		Youngstown State	52

		Alabama A&M	0
Alabama A&M	27

Morgan State	7

References

^ "1979 NCAA Division II National Football Championship Bracket" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. p. 13. Retrieved January 3, 2014.

NCAA Division II football

Seasons

Playoffs

Championship games

Bowl era	East: Tangerine Bowl (1964–1967), Boardwalk Bowl (1968–1972) Mideast: Grantland Rice Bowl (1964–1972) Midwest: Pecan Bowl (1964–1970), Pioneer Bowl (1971–1972) West: Camellia Bowl (1964–1967)
Playoff era	1973 2008 2009 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023

Records & statistics

v t e NCAA football seasons
Pre-NCAA	1869 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905
NCAA pre-divisional	1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955
NCAA University Division	1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972
NCAA Division I	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977
NCAA Division I-A/FBS	1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
NCAA Division I-AA/FCS	1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
NCAA College Division	1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972
NCAA Division II	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
NCAA Division III	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024