1998 NCAA Division II football season
Regular season	September 5 – November 14, 1998
Playoffs	November 21 – December 12, 1998^[1]
National Championship	Braly Municipal Stadium Florence, AL
Champion	Northwest Missouri State
Harlon Hill Trophy	Brian Shay, Emporia State
← 1997 NCAA Division II football seasons 1999 →

The 1998 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 on September 5, 1998, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship on December 12, 1998, at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama, hosted by the University of North Alabama. The Northwest Missouri State Bearcats defeated the Carson–Newman, 24–6, to win their first Division II national title.^[2]

The Harlon Hill Trophy was awarded to Brian Shay, running back from Emporia State.

Conference changes and new programs

School	1997 Conference	1998 Conference
Alabama A&M	Southern Intercollegiate	D-II Independent
Findlay	MSFA (NAIA)	MIFC
Mercyhurst	D-II Independent	MIFC
Sacred Heart	Eastern	Northeast (I-AA)
Westminster (PA)	MSFA (NAIA)	MIFC

Program changes

Mankato State University changed its name to Minnesota State University, Mankato in 1998, the Mankato State Mavericks became the Minnesota State Mavericks during the 1998 season.^[3]

Conference standings

1998 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Livingstone +	5	–	2	7	–	3
Winston-Salem State +	5	–	2	5	–	5
Virginia Union	4	–	3	8	–	3
Bowie State	4	–	3	6	–	3
Johnson C. Smith	4	–	3	6	–	4
Fayetteville State	4	–	3	5	–	5
North Carolina Central	3	–	4	4	–	6
Virginia State	2	–	5	3	–	7
Elizabeth City State	1	–	7	2	–	9

+ – Conference co-champions

1998 Eastern Football Conference standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Atlantic Division
Albany xy$	7	–	1	10	–	1
Southern Connecticut	6	–	2	8	–	2
C. W. Post	6	–	2	7	–	3
Pace	3	–	5	5	–	5
Stony Brook	3	–	5	3	–	6
Bay State Division
Bentley x	7	–	2	8	–	2
American International xy	7	–	2	7	–	4
Merrimack	2	–	6	3	–	6
Stonehill	2	–	6	2	–	8
UMass Lowell	2	–	6	2	–	8
Assumption	0	–	8	0	–	9
Championship: Albany 25, American International 24
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant

1998 Gulf South Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 18 West Georgia +^	8	–	1	10	–	2
No. 17 Delta State +^	8	–	1	8	–	3
North Alabama	7	–	2	8	–	2
Southern Arkansas	7	–	2	8	–	2
Arkansas Tech	4	–	5	5	–	5
Central Arkansas	4	–	5	5	–	5
Valdosta State	4	–	5	5	–	6
West Alabama	2	–	7	3	–	7
Henderson State	1	–	8	2	–	9
Arkansas–Monticello	0	–	9	0	–	11

+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee poll

1998 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 2 NW Missouri State $^	9	–	0	15	–	0
No. 10 Emporia State	7	–	2	9	–	2
Central Missouri State	6	–	3	8	–	3
Pittsburg State	6	–	3	7	–	3
Truman State	6	–	3	6	–	5
Missouri Western	3	–	6	5	–	6
Washburn	3	–	6	4	–	6
Missouri Southern	3	–	6	3	–	7
Southwest Baptist	2	–	7	3	–	8
Missouri–Rolla	0	–	9	0	–	11

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee poll

1998 Midwest Intercollegiate Football Conference standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Grand Valley State $^	9	–	1	9	–	3
Saginaw Valley State	8	–	2	9	–	2
Indianapolis	8	–	2	8	–	2
Ashland	7	–	3	7	–	3
Northwood	7	–	3	7	–	3
Findlay	5	–	5	5	–	5
Mercyhurst	5	–	5	5	–	5
Ferris State	5	–	5	5	–	6
Northern Michigan	4	–	5	5	–	5
Michigan Tech	4	–	6	4	–	6
Hillsdale	3	–	7	3	–	8
Westminster (PA)	2	–	7	3	–	7
Wayne State (MI)	2	–	8	2	–	9
St. Francis (IL)	0	–	10	0	–	11

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant

1998 North Central Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 6 Northern Colorado +^	8	–	1	11	–	2
No. 16 Nebraska–Omaha +^	8	–	1	9	–	3
No. 7 North Dakota ^	7	–	2	8	–	3
North Dakota State	6	–	3	7	–	4
South Dakota State	5	–	4	6	–	5
Minnesota State	4	–	5	5	–	6
St. Cloud State	3	–	6	3	–	8
Augustana (SD)	2	–	7	4	–	7
South Dakota	1	–	8	3	–	8
Morningside	1	–	8	2	–	7

+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee poll

1998 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 20 Winona State $	6	–	0	9	–	2
Northern State	5	–	1	8	–	3
Bemidji State	4	–	2	6	–	4
Minnesota Duluth	3	–	3	4	–	7
Southwest State (MN)	2	–	4	3	–	7
Moorhead State	1	–	5	3	–	7
Minnesota Morris	0	–	6	1	–	9
Wayne State (NE) *	0	–	0	1	–	10

$ – Conference champion * – ineligible for conference championship Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee poll

1998 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
Millersville x	6	–	0	8	–	2
West Chester	5	–	1	8	–	3
Bloomsburg	4	–	2	6	–	5
Kutztown	3	–	3	5	–	5
East Stroudsburg	2	–	4	2	–	8
Cheyney	1	–	5	1	–	10
Mansfield	0	–	6	0	–	11
West Division
No. 5 Slippery Rock x^	6	–	0	12	–	2
No. 8 IUP ^	5	–	1	10	–	2
Shippensburg	4	–	2	7	–	4
Edinboro	2	–	4	4	–	7
Lock Haven	2	–	4	4	–	7
California (PA)	1	–	5	4	–	7
Clarion	1	–	5	3	–	8

x – Division champion/co-champions ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee poll

1998 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Chadron State +^	7	–	1	9	–	3
Western State (CO) +	7	–	1	7	–	3
New Mexico Highlands	6	–	2	8	–	3
Nebraska–Kearney	5	–	3	5	–	5
Fort Hays State	4	–	4	6	–	5
Adams State	3	–	5	4	–	6
Mesa State	2	–	6	5	–	6
Colorado Mines	2	–	6	3	–	7
Fort Lewis	0	–	8	0	–	10

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

1998 South Atlantic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 3 Carson–Newman $^	7	–	0	12	–	2
Presbyterian	6	–	1	8	–	3
Catawba	4	–	3	6	–	4
Gardner–Webb	4	–	3	6	–	5
Newberry	3	–	4	6	–	5
Wingate	3	–	4	5	–	6
Lenoir–Rhyne	1	–	6	2	–	9
Mars Hill	0	–	7	1	–	10
Tusculum *	0	–	0	5	–	6

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant * – provisional conference member Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee poll

1998 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Tuskegee $	6	–	0	10	–	2
No. 12 Fort Valley State ^	5	–	1	11	–	2
Albany State	5	–	1	9	–	2
Savannah State	4	–	2	7	–	4
Kentucky State	4	–	2	5	–	6
Lane	2	–	4	4	–	6
Miles	2	–	4	4	–	6
Clark Atlanta	2	–	4	3	–	7
Morehouse	0	–	6	3	–	8
Morris Brown	0	–	6	0	–	11

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee poll

1998 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 13 Shepherd $^	7	–	0	10	–	2
Fairmont State	5	–	2	5	–	5
Glenville State	4	–	3	6	–	5
West Virginia Wesleyan	4	–	3	4	–	6
Concord	3	–	4	6	–	5
West Liberty State	3	–	4	4	–	6
West Virginia State	2	–	5	3	–	8
West Virginia Tech	0	–	7	0	–	11

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee poll

1998 NCAA Division II independents football records
v t e				Overall
Team	W		L		W		L
No. 4 UC Davis ^		–			10	–	2
Saint Joseph's (IN)		–			7	–	4
New Haven		–			5	–	5
Elon		–			5	–	6
Quincy		–			4	–	6
Western New Mexico		–		2	–	7	–	0

^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee poll

Conference summaries

Conference Champions
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Livingstone and Winston-Salem State Eastern Collegiate Football Conference – Albany Gulf South Conference – Delta State and West Georgia Lone Star Conference – Central Oklahoma Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association – Northwest Missouri State Midwest Intercollegiate Football Conference – Grand Valley State North Central Conference – Nebraska–Omaha and Northern Colorado Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference – Winona State Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference – Millersville (East), Slippery Rock (West) Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference – Chadron State and Western State (CO) South Atlantic Conference – Carson-Newman Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Tuskegee West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Shepherd

Postseason

1998 NCAA Division II Football Championship
Teams	16
Finals Site	Braly Municipal Stadium Florence, AL
Champion	Northwest Missouri State (1st title, title game)
Runner-up	Carson–Newman (2nd title game)
Semifinalists	Slippery Rock Texas A&M–Kingsville†
Winning coach	championship

The 1998 NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs were the 25th single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college football. The championship game was held at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama, for the 12th time.

Playoff bracket

First round Campus sites		Quarterfinals Campus sites		Semifinals Campus sites		Championship Braly Municipal Stadium Florence, AL

Carson–Newman	30

West Georgia	20
		Carson–Newman	38

		Fort Valley State	31
Fort Valley State	21

Delta State	14
				Carson–Newman	47

				Slippery Rock	21
Slippery Rock	37

Grand Valley State	14
		Slippery Rock	31

		Shepherd	20
Shepherd	9

IUP	6
						Carson–Newman	6

						Northwest Missouri State	24
Northwest Missouri State	28

Nebraska–Omaha	14
		Northwest Missouri State	42

		Northern Colorado	17
Northern Colorado	52

North Dakota	24
				Northwest Missouri State	49

				Texas A&M–Kingsville†	34
Central Oklahoma	21

Chadron State	19
		Central Oklahoma	21

		Texas A&M–Kingsville†	24*
Texas A&M–Kingsville†	54

UC Davis	21

Note:† Texas A&M–Kingsville forfeited these games as a result of using ineligible players.

References

^ "1995-1999 Carson-Newman Schedules". College Football Warehouse. cfbdatawarehouse.com. Archived from the original on January 11, 2014. Retrieved January 8, 2014.
^ "1998 NCAA Division II National Football Championship Bracket" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. p. 14. Retrieved January 8, 2014.
^ "Mankato State University to Change Name to Minnesota State University, Mankato". Mankato State University. PRnewsWire. September 18, 1998. Retrieved March 5, 2018.

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