1986 NCAA Division III football season

The 1986 NCAA Division III football season, part of the college football season organized by the NCAA at the Division III level in the United States, began in August 1986, and concluded with the NCAA Division III Football Championship, also known as the Stagg Bowl, in December 1986 at Garrett-Harrison Stadium in Phenix City, Alabama. The Augustana (IL) Vikings won the fourth of their four consecutive Division III championships by defeating the Salisbury State Sea Gulls by a final score of 31−3.

1986 NCAA Division III football season
Regular season	August – November 1986
Playoffs	November – December 1986
National championship	Garrett-Harrison Stadium Phenix City, AL
Champion	Augustana (IL)
NCAA Division III football seasons

Conference standings

1986 Centennial Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Franklin & Marshall + 6 – 1 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 Muhlenberg + 6 – 1 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Gettysburg 5 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Swarthmore 4 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Johns Hopkins 2 – 4 – 1 3 – 5 – 1 Ursinus 2 – 4 – 1 2 – 6 – 1 Dickinson 2 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Western Maryland 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 10 – 0 + – Conference co-champions	1986 College Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Rose–Hulman $ 4 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 No. 13 Centre 3 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Rhodes 2 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Sewanee 1 – 3 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Earlham 0 – 4 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from NCAA Division III poll	1986 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 6 Augustana (IL) $^ 7 – 0 – 1 12 – 0 – 1 Millikin 6 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Wheaton (IL) 6 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Illinois Wesleyan 4 – 3 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 North Central (IL) 4 – 3 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 Carthage 3 – 5 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Elmhurst 2 – 5 – 1 2 – 6 – 1 Carroll (WI) 2 – 6 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 North Park 0 – 8 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division III poll
1986 Independent College Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 2 Ithaca $^ 3 – 0 – 0 11 – 1 – 0 Alfred 2 – 1 – 0 9 – 2 – 0 Hobart 2 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 St. Lawrence 1 – 3 – 0 3 – 5 – 1 RPI 0 – 2 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division III poll	1986 Iowa Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 3 Central (IA) $^ 8 – 0 – 0 11 – 1 – 0 No. T–15 Buena Vista ^ 7 – 1 – 0 9 – 2 – 0 Luther 6 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Loras 5 – 3 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 Wartburg 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 William Penn 3 – 5 – 0 3 – 6 – 1 Dubuque 2 – 6 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 Simpson (IA) 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Upper Iowa 0 – 8 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division III poll	1986 Liberty Football Conference standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Merchant Marine $ 4 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Fordham 3 – 1 – 1 4 – 5 – 1 St. John's 3 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Pace 2 – 2 – 1 5 – 4 – 1 C. W. Post 2 – 3 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Iona 0 – 5 – 0 0 – 11 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1986 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 11 Hope $^ 4 – 0 – 1 7 – 2 – 1 Adrian 4 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Albion 3 – 1 – 1 6 – 2 – 1 Alma 2 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Kalamazoo 1 – 4 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Olivet 0 – 5 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division III poll	1986 Middle Atlantic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 7 Susquehanna $^ 9 – 0 – 0 11 – 1 – 0 Juniata 7 – 2 – 0 9 – 2 – 0 Lycoming 7 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Wilkes 6 – 3 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Widener 6 – 3 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 Moravian 3 – 5 – 1 4 – 5 – 1 Delaware Valley 3 – 5 – 1 3 – 6 – 1 Albright 2 – 7 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Lebanon Valley 1 – 8 – 0 2 – 8 – 0 Upsala 0 – 9 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division III poll	1986 Midwest Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T North Division Lawrence xy 6 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Lake Forest 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 3 – 0 Beloit 3 – 4 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 St. Norbert 3 – 4 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Chicago 2 – 5 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Ripon 2 – 5 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 South Division Coe xy$ 7 – 0 – 0 9 – 1 – 0 Monmouth (IL) 6 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Cornell (IA) 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Knox 3 – 4 – 0 3 – 5 – 1 Grinnell 2 – 5 – 0 3 – 5 – 0 Illinois College 0 – 7 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Championship: Lawrence 14, Coe 10 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant
1986 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 10 Concordia–Moorhead $^ 9 – 0 – 0 11 – 2 – 0 Macalester 6 – 2 – 1 7 – 2 – 1 Carleton 6 – 3 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 St. Thomas (MN) 6 – 3 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Saint John's (MN) 4 – 4 – 1 4 – 4 – 1 St. Olaf 4 – 5 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Gustavus Adolphus 4 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Hamline 4 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Augsburg 1 – 8 – 0 1 – 9 – 0 Bethel (MN) 0 – 9 – 0 1 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division III poll	1986 New England Football Conference standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Plymouth State $ 8 – 0 – 1 9 – 1 – 1 Curry 8 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Bridgewater State 6 – 1 – 2 6 – 1 – 2 Framingham State 6 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Westfield State 5 – 4 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Massachusetts Maritime 5 – 4 – 1 5 – 4 – 1 Worcester State 4 – 5 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Nichols 3 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Western New England 2 – 7 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Maine Maritime 1 – 8 – 0 1 – 9 – 0 Fitchburg State 0 – 9 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1986 New Jersey Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 8 Montclair State $^ 6 – 0 – 0 10 – 2 – 0 Glassboro State 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 William Paterson 3 – 2 – 1 6 – 3 – 1 Jersey City State 3 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Trenton State 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Kean 1 – 5 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Ramapo 0 – 5 – 1 0 – 9 – 1 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division III poll
1986 North Coast Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. T–15 Denison $ 6 – 0 – 0 9 – 1 – 0 Case Western Reserve 5 – 1 – 0 7 – 1 – 1 Allegheny 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Wooster 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Kenyon 2 – 4 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Oberlin 1 – 5 – 0 2 – 8 – 0 Ohio Wesleyan 0 – 6 – 0 0 – 10 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from NCAA Division III poll	1986 Ohio Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 4 Mount Union $^ 8 – 0 – 0 11 – 1 – 0 Baldwin–Wallace 6 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Muskingum 6 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Wittenberg 5 – 3 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Marietta 4 – 4 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Heidelberg 3 – 5 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Capital 3 – 5 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Otterbein 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 9 – 0 Ohio Northern 0 – 8 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division III poll	1986 Old Dominion Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 14 Emory & Henry $^ 5 – 0 – 0 10 – 2 – 0 Hampden–Sydney 4 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Randolph–Macon 3 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Maryville (TN) 1 – 4 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Bridgewater 1 – 4 – 0 2 – 6 – 1 Washington and Lee 1 – 4 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division III poll
1986 Presidents' Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 18 Washington & Jefferson $^ 6 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Carnegie Mellon 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Grove City 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Hiram 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 3 – 1 John Carroll 2 – 4 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Thiel 1 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 Bethany (WV) 1 – 5 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division III poll	1986 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 19 Claremont-Mudd $ 4 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 La Verne 3 – 1 – 1 6 – 3 – 0 Occidental 3 – 1 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 Whittier 2 – 2 – 1 5 – 5 – 0 Pomona-Pitzer 1 – 3 – 1 3 – 6 – 0 Redlands 0 – 5 – 0 0 – 10 – 0 $ – Conference champion Each team played one other conference member twice. A head-to-head sweep of the two games counted as one win for the winner and one loss for the loser in the conference standings. A split of the two games counted as a tie for each team. Rankings from NCAA Division III poll	1986 Wisconsin State University Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 2 Wisconsin–La Crosse +* 7 – 1 – 0 10 – 2 – 0 Wisconsin–River Falls + 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 No. T–15 Wisconsin–Stevens Point +^ 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 4 – 0 Wisconsin–Whitewater 4 – 3 – 1 6 – 3 – 1 Wisconsin–Platteville 3 – 5 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 Wisconsin–Eau Claire 3 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Wisconsin–Stout 2 – 5 – 1 2 – 8 – 1 Wisconsin–Oshkosh 2 – 6 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Wisconsin–Superior 0 – 8 – 0 1 – 9 – 0 + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant * – NAIA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division II poll for Wisconsin–La Crosse and NCAA Division III poll for Wisconsin–Stevens Point
1986 NCAA Division III independents football records Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 5 Salisbury State ^   –   13 – 1 – 0 No. 1 Dayton ^   –   10 – 1 – 0 No. 9 Union (NY) ^   –   9 – 1 – 0 Villanova   –   8 – 1 – 0 No. 20 Buffalo   –   9 – 2 – 0 No. 12 Hofstra ^   –   9 – 2 – 0 Wagner   –   9 – 2 – 0 Millsaps   –   7 – 2 – 0 MacMurray   –   6 – 3 – 0 Wabash   –   6 – 3 – 0 Duquesne   –   5 – 3 – 1 DePauw   –   6 – 4 – 0 Mercyhurst   –   6 – 4 – 0 Western Connecticut State   –   6 – 4 – 0 Canisius   –   5 – 4 – 0 Colorado College   –   5 – 4 – 0 Stony Brook   –   5 – 4 – 0 Georgetown   –   4 – 4 – 0 Menlo   –   4 – 4 – 1 Fairleigh Dickinson–Florham   –   4 – 5 – 0 Saint Francis (PA)   –   4 – 5 – 0 UC Santa Barbara   –   4 – 5 – 0 Albany   –   4 – 6 – 0 Brockport   –   4 – 6 – 0 Brooklyn   –   4 – 6 – 0 San Diego   –   4 – 6 – 0 Marist   –   3 – 5 – 0 Frostburg State   –   3 – 7 – 0 Ferrum   –   3 – 8 – 0 Catholic University   –   2 – 8 – 1 Aurora   –   1 – 4 – 0 Norwich   –   2 – 8 – 0 Rochester (NY)   –   1 – 7 – 1 Buffalo State   –   1 – 8 – 0 Cortland   –   1 – 8 – 0 Saint Peter's   –   0 – 8 – 0 Wesley   –   0 – 8 – 0 ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division III poll

Conference champions

Conference champions

Centennial Conference – Franklin & Marshall and Muhlenberg College Athletic Conference – Rose–Hulman College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin – Augustana (IL) Independent College Athletic Conference – Ithaca Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Central (IA) Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Hope Middle Atlantic Conference – Susquehanna Midwest Collegiate Athletic Conference – Lawrence Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Concordia–Moorhead New England Football Conference – Plymouth State New Jersey State Athletic Conference – Montclair State North Coast Athletic Conference – Denison Ohio Athletic Conference – Mount Union Old Dominion Athletic Conference – Emory & Henry Presidents' Athletic Conference – Washington & Jefferson Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Claremont–Mudd–Scripps Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Tarleton State Upper Midwest Athletic Conference – Northwestern–St. Paul Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Wisconsin–La Crosse, Wisconsin–River Falls, and Wisconsin–Stevens Point

Postseason

The 1986 NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs were the 14th annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division III college football. The championship Stagg Bowl game was held at Garrett-Harrison Stadium in Phenix City, Alabama for the twelfth time and for the second consecutive year. Like the previous tournament, this year's bracket featured sixteen teams.

Playoff bracket

	First Round Campus Sites					Quarterfinals Campus Sites					Semifinals Campus Sites					National Championship Game Garrett-Harrison Stadium Phenix City, Alabama
	Ithaca (OT)		24
	Union (NY)		17
						Ithaca		29
						Montclair State		15
	Montclair State		24
	Hofstra		21
											Ithaca		40
											Salisbury State		44
	Susquehanna		28
	Washington & Jefferson		20
						Susquehanna		17
						Salisbury State		31
	Salisbury State		34
	Emory and Henry		20
																Salisbury State		3
																Augustana (IL)		31
	Mount Union		42
	Dayton		36
						Mount Union		7
						Augustana (IL)		16
	Augustana (IL)		34
	Hope		10
											Augustana (IL)		41
											Concordia–Moorhead		7
	Central (IA)		37
	Buena Vista		0
						Central (IA)		14
						Concordia–Moorhead		17
	Concordia–Moorhead		24
	Wisconsin–Stevens Point		15

See also

• 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season
• 1986 NCAA Division I-AA football season
• 1986 NCAA Division II football season