2004 NCAA Division II football season
Regular season	August 26 – November 6, 2004
Playoffs	November 13 – December 11, 2004^[1]
National Championship	Braly Municipal Stadium Florence, AL
Champion	Valdosta State
Harlon Hill Trophy	Chad Friehauf, Colorado Mines
← 2003 NCAA Division II football seasons 2005 →

The 2004 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 August 26, 2004, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship on December 11, 2004 at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama, hosted by the University of North Alabama. The Valdosta State Blazers defeated the Pittsburg State Gorillas, 36–31, to win their first Division II national title.^[2]

The Harlon Hill Trophy was awarded to Chad Friehauf, quarterback from Colorado Mines.

Conference changes and new programs

School	Former conference	New conference
Gannon	Independent	GLIAC
Kentucky Wesleyan	Independent	Mid-South (NAIA)
Minnesota–Duluth	NSIC	NCC
New Haven	Independent	Dropped program
Northern Colorado	Independent	Great West (I-AA)
North Dakota State	NCC	Great West (I-AA)
South Dakota State	NCC	Great West (I-AA)
Upper Iowa	IIAC (D-III)	Independent

Regional realignment

The South Region was renamed the Southeast Region but stayed the same, while the Northeast Region lost the GLIAC. The West Region lost the GNAC, gained the MIAA, and became the Southwest Region. The new Northwest Region contained the GLIAC and GNAC, plus the NCC and NSIC from the former Midwest Region.

Conference standings

Northeast Region

2004 Northeast-10 Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 20 Bentley +^	8	–	1	8	–	2
C. W. Post +^	8	–	1	8	–	3
Southern Connecticut	7	–	2	8	–	2
Merrimack	7	–	2	8	–	2
American International	5	–	4	5	–	4
Bryant	4	–	5	4	–	5
Saint Anselm	3	–	6	4	–	6
Stonehill	2	–	7	2	–	7
Assumption	1	–	8	1	–	9
Pace	0	–	9	0	–	10

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

2004 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East
No. 7 West Chester x^	6	–	0	11	–	4
No. 12 East Stroudsburg ^	5	–	1	10	–	2
Bloomsburg	4	–	2	7	–	3
Millersville	3	–	3	5	–	5
Kutztown	2	–	4	4	–	6
Mansfield	1	–	5	1	–	9
Cheyney	0	–	6	1	–	10
West
No. 15 Shippensburg x^	5	–	1	10	–	2
No. 18 Edinboro x^	5	–	1	9	–	3
IUP x	5	–	1	7	–	3
California (PA)	2	–	4	6	–	4
Slippery Rock	2	–	4	4	–	7
Clarion	1	–	5	3	–	8
Lock Haven	1	–	5	3	–	8

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

2004 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Shepherd $	7	–	0	7	–	3
Glenville State	5	–	2	5	–	6
West Virginia Wesleyan	4	–	3	6	–	5
Fairmont State	4	–	3	5	–	5
Concord	4	–	3	5	–	6
West Virginia State	2	–	5	3	–	8
West Virginia Tech	2	–	5	2	–	9
West Liberty State	0	–	7	2	–	8

$ – Conference champion

2004 NCAA Division II Northeast Region independents football records
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Charleston (WV)		–		3	–	7

Southeast Region

2004 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Eastern
Shaw # xy$	5	–	2	10	–	2
Bowie State	4	–	3	5	–	5
Virginia State	3	–	4	6	–	4
Virginia Union	2	–	5	2	–	8
Elizabeth City State	2	–	5	3	–	7
Western
Fayetteville State xy^	6	–	1	8	–	4
North Carolina Central x	6	–	1	8	–	2
Winston-Salem State	4	–	3	4	–	6
Livingstone	2	–	5	2	–	8
St. Augustine's @	0	–	4	0	–	6
Johnson C. Smith	0	–	7	0	–	10
Championship: Shaw 10, Fayetteville State 7
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant # – [Pioneer Bowl]] participant @ – St. Augustine's vacated 4 wins including 3 in conference play.

2004 Gulf South Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 1 Valdosta State $^	9	–	0	13	–	1
No. 16 Arkansas Tech ^	8	–	1	10	–	2
Central Arkansas	6	–	3	8	–	3
Delta State	6	–	3	6	–	4
Arkansas–Monticello	5	–	4	6	–	5
Harding	4	–	5	6	–	5
North Alabama	4	–	5	5	–	5
Southern Arkansas	3	–	6	5	–	6
West Georgia	2	–	6	2	–	7
Ouachita Baptist	2	–	6	2	–	7
Henderson State	2	–	7	2	–	8
West Alabama	2	–	7	2	–	9

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

2004 South Atlantic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 14 Carson–Newman $^	6	–	1	9	–	3
Wingate	4	–	3	8	–	3
Catawba ^	4	–	3	7	–	4
Tusculum	4	–	3	6	–	4
Presbyterian	4	–	3	6	–	5
Mars Hill	3	–	4	6	–	4
Lenoir–Rhyne	2	–	5	3	–	8
Newberry	1	–	6	5	–	6

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

2004 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 5 Albany State $^	8	–	0	11	–	1
No. 22 Tuskegee	7	–	1	10	–	2
Miles	6	–	2	7	–	3
Kentucky State	5	–	3	7	–	4
Fort Valley State	4	–	4	7	–	4
Morehouse	3	–	5	4	–	6
Benedict	2	–	6	3	–	8
Clark Atlanta	1	–	7	1	–	9
Lane	0	–	8	2	–	9

+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA Poll

2004 NCAA Division II Southeast Region independents football records
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Stillman #		–		5	–	5
North Greenville		–		3	–	7

# – Provisional Division II member

Northwest Region

2004 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 10 Northwood +^	9	–	1	10	–	2
No. 11 Michigan Tech +^	9	–	1	9	–	2
No. 9 Grand Valley State ^	8	–	2	10	–	3
No. 25 Saginaw Valley State	7	–	3	7	–	3
Ferris State	6	–	4	6	–	5
Findlay	5	–	5	6	–	5
Ashland	4	–	6	5	–	6
Hillsdale	4	–	6	4	–	7
Mercyhurst	4	–	6	4	–	7
Gannon	3	–	7	4	–	7
Indianapolis	3	–	7	4	–	7
Northern Michigan	2	–	8	2	–	8
Wayne State (MI)	1	–	9	1	–	9

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

2004 Great Northwest Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Central Washington $	5	–	1	7	–	4
Western Washington	3	–	3	6	–	4
Humboldt State	3	–	3	5	–	5
Western Oregon	1	–	5	1	–	9

$ – Conference champion

2004 North Central Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 24 Nebraska–Omaha $	5	–	1	8	–	3
No. 19 South Dakota	4	–	2	9	–	2
No. 4 North Dakota ^	4	–	2	11	–	3
No. 17 St. Cloud State ^	4	–	2	8	–	3
Minnesota State	3	–	3	6	–	5
Minnesota–Duluth	1	–	5	4	–	7
Augustana (SD)	0	–	6	3	–	8

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

2004 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 13 Winona State $^	7	–	0	10	–	2
Bemidji State	5	–	2	8	–	3
Northern State #	5	–	2	6	–	5
Concordia–St. Paul	4	–	3	7	–	4
SW Minnesota State	3	–	4	5	–	6
Minnesota–Crookston	2	–	5	2	–	8
Wayne State (NE)	2	–	5	3	–	8
Minnesota State–Moorhead	0	–	7	0	–	11

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant # – Mineral Water Bowl participant Rankings from AFCA Poll

2004 NCAA Division II Northwest Region independents football records
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Saint Joseph's (IN)		–		7	–	4
Tiffin		–		5	–	6
Upper Iowa #		–		2	–	8

# – Provisional Division II member

Southwest Region

2004 Lone Star Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
North
No. 21 Central Oklahoma	7	–	2	8	–	2
No. 23 SE Oklahoma State ^	7	–	2	8	–	3
Tarleton State	6	–	3	7	–	4
East Central	5	–	4	6	–	4
SW Oklahoma State	1	–	8	1	–	9
Northeastern State	0	–	9	0	–	10
South
No. 6 Texas A&M–Kingsville $^	8	–	1	9	–	2
Midwestern State ^	7	–	2	8	–	3
Eastern New Mexico	5	–	4	6	–	5
Abilene Christian	5	–	4	5	–	5
Texas A&M–Commerce	4	–	5	4	–	6
West Texas A&M	2	–	7	2	–	8
Angelo State	2	–	7	2	–	9

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

2004 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 2 Pittsburg State $^	9	–	0	14	–	1
No. 3 NW Missouri State ^	8	–	1	11	–	2
Washburn #	6	–	3	8	–	4
Central Missouri State	5	–	4	7	–	4
Emporia State	4	–	5	5	–	6
Missouri Southern	4	–	5	5	–	6
Missouri Western	4	–	5	5	–	6
Missouri–Rolla	2	–	7	3	–	8
Truman	2	–	7	2	–	9
Southwest Baptist	1	–	8	2	–	9

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant # – Mineral Water Bowl participant Rankings from AFCA Poll

2004 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 8 Colorado Mines $^	8	–	0	12	–	1
Chadron State	6	–	2	7	–	3
Adams State	6	–	2	7	–	4
Fort Hays State	5	–	3	6	–	5
Nebraska–Kearney	4	–	4	5	–	6
Fort Lewis	3	–	5	4	–	6
New Mexico Highlands	2	–	6	3	–	8
Western State	2	–	6	3	–	8
Mesa State	0	–	8	0	–	11

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

2004 NCAA Division II Southwest Region independents football records
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
OK Panhandle State		–		6	–	5
Western New Mexico		–		2	–	8
Lincoln (MO)		–		1	–	9

Conference summaries

Conference Champions
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Shaw Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Michigan Tech and Northwood Great Northwest Athletic Conference – Central Washington Gulf South Conference – Valdosta State Lone Star Conference – Texas A&M–Kingsville Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association – Pittsburg State North Central Conference – Nebraska–Omaha Northeast-10 Conference – Bentley and C.W. Post Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference – Winona State Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference – West Chester (East), Edinboro, Indiana (PA), and Shippensburg (West) Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference – Colorado Mines South Atlantic Conference – Carson-Newman Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Albany State West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Shepherd

Postseason

2004 NCAA Division II Football Championship
Teams	24
Finals Site	Braly Municipal Stadium Florence, AL
Champion	Valdosta State (1st title, title game)
Runner-up	Pittsburg State (4th title game)
Semifinalists	North Dakota West Chester
Winning coach	championship

The 2004 NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs were the 31st 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 17th time. This was the first year of a 24-team playoff bracket.

Seeded teams

Playoff bracket

First round November 13 Campus Sites			Second round November 20 Campus Sites			Quarterfinals November 27 Campus Sites			Semifinals December 4 Campus Sites			National Championship Game December 11 Braly Municipal Stadium, Florence, Alabama

			1	Michigan Tech*	3

			5	North Dakota	20
5	North Dakota††	20

4	St. Cloud State	17
						5	North Dakota	19
Super Region 3
						6	Grand Valley State	15



			2	Northwood*	7

			6	Grand Valley State	10
6	Grand Valley State	16

3	Winona State	13
									5	North Dakota	19

									1	Pittsburg State	31



			1	Pittsburg State*	70

			4	Colorado Mines	35
4	Colorado Mines	52

5	Midwestern State	33
						1	Pittsburg State	50
Super Region 4
						2	Northwest Missouri State	36



			2	Northwest Missouri State*	34

			3	Texas A&M–Kingsville	14
3	Texas A&M–Kingsville	40

6	SE Oklahoma State	30
												1	Pittsburg State	31

												2	Valdosta State	36



			1	Shippensburg	28

			4	West Chester	33
4	West Chester	35

5	C.W. Post	3
						4	West Chester	48
Super Region 1
						2	East Stroudsburg	38



			2	East Stroudsburg*	36

			6	Edinboro	32
6	Edinboro	47

3	Bentley	44
									4	West Chester	21

									2	Valdosta State	45



			1	Albany State*	42

			4	Arkansas Tech	24
4	Arkansas Tech	24

5	Catawba	20
						1	Albany State (GA)	24
Super Region 2
						2	Valdosta State	38



			2	Valdosta State*	38

			3	Carson–Newman	12
3	Carson–Newman	35

6	Fayetteville State	14

* Home team † Overtime

References

^ "2000-2004 Pittsburg Schedules". College Football Warehouse. cfbdatawarehouse.com. Archived from the original on February 1, 2014. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
^ "2003 NCAA Division II National Football Championship Bracket" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. p. 14. Retrieved January 20, 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