1998 NCAA Division II football season

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.

1998 NCAA Division II football season
Regular season	September 5 – November 14, 1998
Playoffs	November 21 – December 12, 1998
National Championship	Braly Municipal Stadium Florence, AL
Champion	Northwest Missouri State
Harlon Hill Trophy	Brian Shay, Emporia State

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.

Conference standings

1998 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf Overall 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 Columbia Football Association standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 15 Central Washington $   4 – 1     7 – 4   Western Washington   3 – 2     5 – 5   Humboldt State   3 – 2     4 – 7   Western Oregon   2 – 3     4 – 5   Southern Oregon   2 – 3     4 – 6   Simon Fraser   1 – 4     3 – 6   $ – Conference champion Rankings from NAIA poll	1998 Eastern Football Conference standings Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf 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

See also: List of NCAA Division II football seasons

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.

See also

• 1998 NCAA Division II football rankings
• 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season
• 1998 NCAA Division I-AA football season
• 1998 NCAA Division III football season
• 1998 NAIA football season