2011 NCAA Division I FCS football season

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2011 NCAA Division I FCS season
Regular season
Number of teams126
DurationSeptember – November
Payton AwardBo Levi Mitchell, Eastern Washington
Buchanan AwardMatt Evans, New Hampshire
Playoff
DurationNovember 26 – December 17
Championship dateJanuary 7, 2012
Championship sitePizza Hut Park, Frisco, TX
ChampionNorth Dakota State
NCAA Division I FCS football seasons

The 2011 NCAA Division I FCS football season, part of college football in the United States, was organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level. The season began on September 1, 2011, and concluded with the 2012 NCAA Division I Football Championship Game on January 7, 2012, at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas. North Dakota State won their first FCS championship, defeating Sam Houston State by a final score of 17–6.

FCS team wins over FBS teams[edit]

September 3: Richmond 23, Duke 21
September 3: Sacramento State 29, Oregon State 28OT
September 17: Indiana State 44, Western Kentucky 16
September 24: North Dakota State 37, Minnesota 24
September 24: Sam Houston State 48, New Mexico 45 OT
September 24: Southern Utah 41, UNLV 16

Conference changes and new programs[edit]

School 2010 conference 2011 conference
Lamar FCS Independent Southland
Old Dominion FCS Independent CAA
Savannah State FCS Independent MEAC
South Alabama New program+ FCS Independent
UTSA New program FCS Independent
Texas State Southland FCS Independent

+ "unclassified" for 2009 (partial season) and 2010 (full season)

Conference standings[edit]

2011 Big Sky Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 7 Montana State $^   7 1     10 3  
No. 5 Montana† ^   5 1     6 2  
Portland State   5 3     7 4  
Eastern Washington   5 3     6 5  
Weber State   5 3     5 6  
Northern Arizona   3 5     4 7  
Sacramento State   3 5     4 7  
Idaho State*   1 7     2 9  
Northern Colorado   0 8     0 11  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
  • † Montana vacated two conference wins, five total wins, their conference co-championship, and playoff participation (three games, including two of the five total wins) in 2011
    * Idaho State ineligible for FCS playoffs due to APR violations
Rankings from The Sports Network poll, using Montana's later-diminished W–L record
2011 Big South Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 18 Stony Brook $^   6 0     9 4  
No. 25 Liberty   5 1     7 4  
Coastal Carolina   3 3     7 4  
Presbyterian   3 3     4 7  
Gardner–Webb   2 4     4 7  
VMI   2 4     2 9  
Charleston Southern   0 6     0 11  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2011 Colonial Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 9 Towson $^   7 1     9 3  
No. 10 Old Dominion ^   6 2     10 3  
No. 8 Maine ^   6 2     9 4  
No. 11 New Hampshire ^   6 2     8 4  
No. 17 Delaware   5 3     7 4  
No. 15 James Madison ^   5 3     8 5  
William & Mary   3 5     5 6  
Rhode Island   2 6     3 8  
Villanova   1 7     2 9  
Richmond   0 8     3 8  
UMass *   0 0     5 6  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
  • * – UMass' conference record was 0–0 because they were transitioning to FBS.
Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2011 Great West Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 23 North Dakota +   3 1     8 3  
Cal Poly +   3 1     6 5  
South Dakota   2 2     6 5  
Southern Utah   1 3     6 5  
UC Davis   1 3     4 7  
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2011 Ivy League football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 16 Harvard $   7 0     9 1  
Brown   4 3     7 3  
Dartmouth   4 3     5 5  
Penn   4 3     5 5  
Yale   4 3     5 5  
Cornell   3 4     5 5  
Columbia   1 6     1 9  
Princeton   1 6     1 9  
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2011 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 19 Norfolk State $^   7 1     9 3  
Bethune–Cookman   6 2     8 3  
South Carolina State   6 2     7 4  
Florida A&M   5 3     7 4  
Hampton   5 3     7 4  
Howard   4 4     5 6  
Morgan State   4 4     5 6  
North Carolina A&T   4 4     5 6  
Delaware State   1 7     3 8  
North Carolina Central   1 7     2 9  
Savannah State   1 7     1 10  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2011 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 1 North Dakota State +^   7 1     14 1  
No. 6 Northern Iowa +^   7 1     10 3  
No. 20 Illinois State   5 3     7 4  
Indiana State   4 4     6 5  
Youngstown State   4 4     6 5  
South Dakota State   4 4     5 6  
Southern Illinois   2 6     4 7  
Missouri State   2 6     2 9  
Western Illinois   1 7     2 9  
  • + – Conference co-champions
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2011 Northeast Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
Duquesne +   7 1     9 2  
Albany +^   7 1     8 4  
Bryant   5 3     7 4  
Monmouth   4 4     5 6  
Wagner   4 4     4 7  
Sacred Heart   3 5     5 6  
Central Connecticut   3 5     4 7  
Robert Morris   2 6     2 9  
Saint Francis (PA)   1 7     2 9  
  • + – Conference co-champions
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
2011 Ohio Valley Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 21 Tennessee Tech +^   6 2     7 4  
Eastern Kentucky +^   6 2     7 5  
Jacksonville State +   6 2     7 4  
Murray State   5 3     7 4  
Tennessee State   4 4     5 6  
UT Martin   4 4     5 6  
Austin Peay   2 6     3 8  
Southeast Missouri State   2 6     3 8  
Eastern Illinois   1 7     2 9  
  • + – Conference co-champions
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2011 Patriot League football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 6 Lehigh $^   6 0     11 2  
Georgetown   4 2     8 3  
Holy Cross   4 2     6 5  
Bucknell   3 3     6 5  
Colgate   2 4     5 6  
Lafayette   2 4     4 7  
Fordham   0 6     1 10  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
  • Fordham was ineligible for conference title because they offered football scholarships while other Patriot League members did not.
Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2011 Pioneer Football League standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
San Diego +   7 1     9 2  
Drake +   7 1     9 2  
Jacksonville   6 2     7 4  
Campbell   5 3     6 5  
Dayton   4 4     6 5  
Marist   3 5     4 7  
Butler   3 5     5 6  
Davidson   2 6     4 7  
Morehead State   2 6     3 8  
Valparaiso   1 7     1 10  
  • + – Conference co-champions
2011 Southern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 3 Georgia Southern $^   7 1     11 3  
No. 12 Wofford ^   6 2     8 4  
No. 9 Appalachian State ^   6 2     8 4  
Furman   5 3     6 5  
Samford   4 4     6 5  
Chattanooga   3 5     5 6  
Elon   3 5     5 6  
The Citadel   2 6     4 7  
Western Carolina   0 8     1 10  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network Poll
2011 Southland Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 2 Sam Houston State $^   7 0     14 1  
No. 14 Central Arkansas ^   6 1     9 4  
Stephen F. Austin   5 2     6 5  
McNeese State   4 3     6 5  
Northwestern State   3 4     5 6  
Lamar   2 5     4 7  
Southeastern Louisiana   1 6     3 8  
Nicholls State   0 7     1 10  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2011 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
East Division
No. 21 Jackson State x   7 2     9 2  
Alabama State x   7 2     8 3  
Alabama A&M xy   7 2     8 4  
Alcorn State   1 8     2 8  
Mississippi Valley State   1 8     1 10  
West Division
Grambling State xy$   6 3     8 4  
Arkansas–Pine Bluff   5 4     6 5  
Prairie View A&M   5 4     5 6  
Southern   4 5     4 7  
Texas Southern   2 7     4 7  
Championship: Grambling State 16, Alabama A&M 15
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
  • Jackson State and Southern were ineligible to participate in the SWAC Championship Game due to low APR scores.
Rankings from The Sports Network Poll
2011 NCAA Division I FCS independents football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
South Alabama       6 4  
Texas State       6 6  
UTSA       4 6  
Georgia State       3 8  

Playoff qualifiers[edit]

Automatic berths for conference champions[edit]

At large qualifiers[edit]

No teams from the conferences that do not have automatic bids—currently the Great West Conference and Pioneer Football League—received bids.

Abstains[edit]

Postseason[edit]

NCAA Division I playoff bracket[edit]

First Round
November 26
Campus sites
Second Round
December 3
Campus sites
Quarterfinals
December 9 and December 10
Campus sites
Semifinals
December 16 and December 17
Campus sites
National Championship Game

January 7
Pizza Hut Park,
Frisco, Texas

Stony Brook 27
Albany 28 1 Sam Houston State* 34
Stony Brook* 31 1 Sam Houston State* 49
Montana State 13
New Hampshire 25
Montana State* 26
1 Sam Houston State* 31
4 Montana 28
Central Arkansas 14
Central Arkansas 34 4 Montana* 41
Tennessee Tech* 14 4 Montana* 48
5 Northern Iowa 10
Wofford 21
5 Northern Iowa* 28
1 Sam Houston State 6
2 North Dakota State 17
James Madison 14
James Madison 20 2 North Dakota State* 26
Eastern Kentucky* 17 2 North Dakota State* 24
Lehigh 0
Lehigh 40
Towson* 38
2 North Dakota State* 35
3 Georgia Southern 7
Old Dominion 48
Norfolk State 18 3 Georgia Southern* 55
Old Dominion* 35 3 Georgia Southern* 35
Maine 23
Maine 34
Appalachian State* 12

* Host institution

SWAC Championship Game[edit]

Date Location Venue West Div. Champion East Div. Champion Result
December 10 Birmingham, Alabama Legion Field Grambling State Alabama A&M GSU 16 – AAMU 15[1]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Benson, Reggie (December 10, 2011). "Bulldogs come up short again against Tigers". The Huntsville Times. Retrieved December 10, 2011.