2002 NCAA Division II football season

2002 NCAA Division II Football Championship
2002 NCAA Division II Football Championship
Teams	16
Finals Site	Braly Municipal Stadium; Florence, AL;
Champion	Grand Valley State; (1st title, title game);
Runner-up	Valdosta State; (1st title game);
Semifinalists	Texas A&M–Kingsville; Northern Colorado;
Winning coach	championship;

2002 NCAA Division II football season
2002 NCAA Division II football season
Regular season	September 7 – November 16, 2002
Playoffs	November 23 – December 14, 2002
National Championship	Braly Municipal Stadium; Florence, AL
Champion	Grand Valley State
Harlon Hill Trophy	Curt Anes, Grand Valley State
	← 2001; NCAA Division II football seasons; 2003 →;

The 2002 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 7, 2002, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship on December 14, 2002, at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama, hosted by the University of North Alabama. The Grand Valley State Lakers defeated the Valdosta State Blazers, 31–24, to win their first Division II national title.^[2]

The Harlon Hill Trophy was awarded to Curt Anes, quarterback from Grand Valley State.

Conference changes and new programs

School	2001 Conference	2002 Conference
Gardner-Webb	D-II Independent	Big South (I-AA)
Saint Augustine's	Program Revived	CIAA (D-II)
Savannah State	D-II Independent	I-AA Independent

Conference standings

2002 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Eastern
Bowie State xy	5	–	2	6	–	5
Virginia State	5	–	2	7	–	3
Virginia Union	4	–	3	6	–	4
Elizabeth City State	2	–	5	2	–	8
Western
No. 16 Fayetteville State xy$^	7	–	0	10	–	2
Winston-Salem State	4	–	3	4	–	6
North Carolina Central	2	–	5	4	–	6
Livingstone	2	–	5	3	–	7
Johnson C. Smith	1	–	7	2	–	8
St. Augustine's	0	–	7	0	–	8
Championship: Fayetteville State 17, Bowie State 14
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA poll

2002 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 1 Grand Valley State $^	9	–	0	14	–	0
No. 15 Saginaw Valley State ^	8	–	2	9	–	3
No. 19 Findlay	8	–	2	9	–	2
Northwood	7	–	3	7	–	4
Northern Michigan	6	–	4	6	–	5
Ferris State	4	–	5	5	–	5
Indianapolis	4	–	6	5	–	6
Hillsdale	4	–	6	4	–	7
Michigan Tech	3	–	7	3	–	7
Wayne State (MI)	3	–	7	3	–	8
Ashland	2	–	8	2	–	9
Mercyhurst	1	–	9	2	–	9

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

2002 Great Northwest Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 5 Central Washington $^	3	–	0	11	–	1
Western Washington	2	–	1	6	–	4
Western Oregon	1	–	2	5	–	5
Humboldt State	0	–	3	1	–	10

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

2002 Gulf South Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 2 Valdosta State $^	9	–	0	14	–	1
Harding	7	–	2	9	–	2
Central Arkansas	6	–	3	8	–	3
Southern Arkansas	6	–	3	7	–	4
Ouachita Baptist	5	–	4	5	–	5
Henderson State	5	–	4	5	–	6
Delta State	4	–	5	4	–	7
West Alabama	3	–	6	5	–	6
North Alabama	3	–	6	4	–	7
Arkansas Tech	3	–	6	4	–	7
Arkansas–Monticello	2	–	7	2	–	8
West Georgia	1	–	8	3	–	8

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

2002 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 4 NW Missouri State $^	9	–	0	12	–	1
No. 8 Central Missouri State ^	8	–	1	10	–	2
No. 23 Emporia State	6	–	3	9	–	3
No. 13 Pittsburg State	6	–	3	8	–	3
Missouri Western	4	–	5	6	–	5
Truman	3	–	6	5	–	6
Missouri Southern	3	–	6	5	–	6
Washburn	3	–	6	3	–	8
Southwest Baptist	2	–	7	3	–	8
Missouri–Rolla	0	–	9	0	–	11

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

2002 North Central Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 7 Northern Colorado $^	8	–	0	12	–	2
No. 21 St. Cloud State	6	–	2	9	–	2
Nebraska–Omaha	5	–	3	6	–	5
Augustana (SD)	4	–	4	7	–	4
South Dakota State	4	–	4	6	–	4
North Dakota	3	–	5	5	–	6
Minnesota State	3	–	5	4	–	7
South Dakota	2	–	6	3	–	8
North Dakota State	1	–	7	2	–	8

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

2002 Northeast-10 Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 10 C. W. Post $^	10	–	1	11	–	1
No. 24 Bentley	9	–	1	10	–	1
Southern Connecticut	7	–	3	8	–	3
Merrimack	6	–	4	6	–	4
Saint Anselm	5	–	5	5	–	5
American International	5	–	5	5	–	6
Bryant	5	–	5	5	–	6
Pace	3	–	7	3	–	7
UMass Lowell	3	–	7	3	–	8
Assumption	1	–	9	2	–	9
Stonehill	1	–	9	2	–	9

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

2002 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 11 Minnesota Duluth $^	9	–	0	11	–	1
Winona State	8	–	1	8	–	4
Concordia–St. Paul	7	–	2	9	–	2
Bemidji State	6	–	3	6	–	5
Minnesota State–Moorhead	4	–	5	5	–	5
Northern State	4	–	5	4	–	7
Southwest State (MN)	3	–	6	4	–	7
Wayne State (NE)	3	–	6	3	–	8
Minnesota–Crookston	1	–	8	1	–	10
Minnesota Morris	0	–	9	0	–	11

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

2002 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
Bloomsburg x	5	–	1	8	–	2
East Stroudsburg x	5	–	1	8	–	2
West Chester	4	–	2	5	–	6
Millersville	3	–	3	3	–	7
Kutztown	2	–	4	4	–	7
Mansfield	2	–	4	3	–	7
Cheyney	0	–	6	0	–	11
West Division
No. 6 IUP x^	6	–	0	11	–	2
Slippery Rock	4	–	2	7	–	4
Shippensburg	4	–	2	6	–	5
Clarion	3	–	3	7	–	4
Edinboro	2	–	4	5	–	6
California (PA)	1	–	5	6	–	5
Lock Haven	1	–	5	4	–	7

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

2002 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Nebraska–Kearney +^	7	–	1	9	–	2
Chadron State +	7	–	1	8	–	2
Mesa State	5	–	3	5	–	6
Colorado Mines	4	–	4	7	–	4
Adams State	4	–	4	5	–	6
Western State (CO)	4	–	4	5	–	6
Fort Hays State	3	–	5	5	–	6
Fort Lewis	2	–	6	3	–	8
New Mexico Highlands	0	–	8	0	–	10

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

2002 South Atlantic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 3 Carson–Newman $^	7	–	0	12	–	1
No. 18 Catawba ^	6	–	1	8	–	3
Presbyterian	5	–	2	8	–	3
Mars Hill	4	–	3	7	–	4
Tusculum	3	–	4	7	–	4
Wingate	2	–	5	5	–	6
Lenoir–Rhyne	1	–	6	3	–	7
Newberry	0	–	7	1	–	10

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

2002 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 9 Tuskegee $	7	–	1	10	–	1
Albany State	6	–	2	7	–	4
Fort Valley State	6	–	2	7	–	4
Miles	5	–	3	6	–	5
Morehouse	4	–	4	6	–	5
Lane	3	–	5	4	–	7
Kentucky State	2	–	6	3	–	8
Benedict	2	–	6	2	–	9
Clark Atlanta	1	–	7	2	–	9

$ – Conference champion Rankings from AFCA Poll

2002 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
West Virginia Wesleyan $	6	–	1	7	–	4
Shepherd	5	–	2	7	–	3
West Liberty State	5	–	2	6	–	5
West Virginia Tech	5	–	2	6	–	5
Glenville State	3	–	4	4	–	7
Fairmont State	2	–	5	3	–	7
Concord	2	–	5	3	–	8
West Virginia State	0	–	7	1	–	10

$ – Conference champion

2002 NCAA Division II independents football records
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 14 UC Davis ^		–		9	–	3
New Haven		–		4	–	6
Quincy		–		4	–	7
Saint Joseph's (IN)		–		4	–	7
Western New Mexico		–		2	–	7

^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA poll

Conference summaries

Conference Champions
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Fayetteville State Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Grand Valley State Great Northwest Athletic Conference – Central Washington Gulf South Conference – Valdosta State Lone Star Conference – Texas A&M–Kingsville Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association – Northwest Missouri State North Central Conference – Northern Colorado Northeast-10 Conference – C.W. Post Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference – Minnesota–Duluth Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference – Bloomsburg and East Stroudsburg (East), Indiana (PA) (West) Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference – Chadron State and Nebraska–Kearney South Atlantic Conference – Carson-Newman Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Tuskegee West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – West Virginia Wesleyan

Postseason

The 2002 NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs were the 29th 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 15th time.

Playoff bracket

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

Valdosta State	24

Catawba	7
		Valdosta State	31

		Carson–Newman	28
Carson–Newman	40

Fayetteville State	27
				Valdosta State	21

				Texas A&M–Kingsville	12
UC Davis	24

Central Washington	6
		UC Davis	20

		Texas A&M–Kingsville	27*
Texas A&M–Kingsville	58

Nebraska–Kearney	40
						Valdosta State	24

						Grand Valley State	31
Grand Valley State	62

C.W. Post	13
		Grand Valley State	62

		IUP	21
IUP	27

Saginaw Valley State	23
				Grand Valley State	44

				Northern Colorado	7
NW Missouri State	45

Minnesota–Duluth	41
		Northwest Missouri State	12

		Northern Colorado	23
Northern Colorado	49

Central Missouri State	28

References

^ "2000-2004 Grand Valley State Schedules". College Football Warehouse. cfbdatawarehouse.com. Archived from the original on January 11, 2014. Retrieved January 19, 2014.
^ "2002 NCAA Division II National Football Championship Bracket" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. p. 14. Retrieved January 19, 2014.

[1] "2000-2004 Grand Valley State Schedules". College Football Warehouse. cfbdatawarehouse.com. Archived from the original on January 11, 2014. Retrieved January 19, 2014.

[2] "2002 NCAA Division II National Football Championship Bracket" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. p. 14. Retrieved January 19, 2014.

[1]

[2]

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 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961
NCAA University Division	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	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

2002 NCAA Division II Football Championship
Teams	16
Finals Site	Braly Municipal Stadium Florence, AL
Champion	Grand Valley State (1st title, title game)
Runner-up	Valdosta State (1st title game)
Semifinalists	Texas A&M–Kingsville Northern Colorado
Winning coach	championship