2001 NCAA Division II football season

The 2001 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 30, 2001, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship on December 8, 2001 at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama, hosted by the University of North Alabama.

2001 NCAA Division II football season
Regular season	August 30 – November 10, 2001
Playoffs	November 17 – December 8, 2001
National Championship	Braly Municipal Stadium Florence, AL
Champion	North Dakota
Harlon Hill Trophy	Dusty Bonner, Valdosta State

North Dakota defeated Grand Valley State in the championship game, 17–14, to win their first Division II national title.

The Harlon Hill Trophy was awarded to Dusty Bonner, quarterback from Valdosta State, his second consecutive Hill Trophy.

Conference and program changes

• The Northeast-10 Conference began sponsorship of football this season with 10 member teams from the Northeast.
• The Great Northwest Athletic Conference began its first sponsorship of football during the 2001 season (it was disbanded in 2006 and re-formed again in 2008).

School	2000 Conference	2001 Conference
American International	Eastern Football Conference	Northeast 10
Assumption	Eastern Football Conference	Northeast 10
Bentley	Eastern Football Conference	Northeast 10
Bryant	Eastern Football Conference	Northeast 10
Central Washington	Columbia Football Association (NAIA)	GNAC
C.W. Post	Eastern Football Conference	Northeast 10
Humboldt State	Columbia Football Association (NAIA)	GNAC
Lincoln (MO)	Central States Football League (NAIA)	D-II Independent
Pace	Eastern Football Conference	Northeast 10
Saint Anselm	Eastern Football Conference	Northeast 10
Southern Connecticut	Eastern Football Conference	Northeast 10
Stonehill	Eastern Football Conference	Northeast 10
UMass Lowell	Eastern Football Conference	Northeast 10
Western Oregon	Columbia Football Association (NAIA)	GNAC
Western Washington	Columbia Football Association (NAIA)	GNAC

Conference standings

2001 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Eastern Virginia Union xy   5 – 1     8 – 2   Bowie State   4 – 2     7 – 3   Virginia State   2 – 4     3 – 6   Elizabeth City State   0 – 6     2 – 8   Western Winston-Salem State xy$   5 – 1     9 – 3   Fayetteville State   4 – 2     6 – 4   North Carolina Central   3 – 3     5 – 4   Johnson C. Smith   1 – 5     2 – 7   Livingstone   0 – 6     1 – 8   Championship: Virginia Union 31, Winston-Salem State 24 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant	2001 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 2 Grand Valley State $^   9 – 0     13 – 1   No. 9 Saginaw Valley State ^   9 – 1     11 – 2   Ferris State   7 – 3     7 – 4   Indianapolis   6 – 4     7 – 4   Ashland   5 – 5     6 – 5   Michigan Tech   5 – 5     5 – 5   Northern Michigan   3 – 7     4 – 7   Northwood   3 – 6     3 – 6   Wayne State (MI)   3 – 6     3 – 7   Findlay   3 – 7     3 – 8   Hillsdale   3 – 7     3 – 8   Mercyhurst   2 – 7     2 – 7   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA poll	2001 Great Northwest Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 23 Western Washington $   3 – 0     8 – 3   Western Oregon   1 – 2     4 – 5   Humboldt State   1 – 2     4 – 7   Central Washington   1 – 2     4 – 7   $ – Conference champion First Humboldt State vs. Western Oregon game (Oct. 13) did not count as a conference game Rankings from AFCA Poll
2001 Gulf South Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 1 Valdosta State $^   9 – 0     12 – 1   No. 16 Arkansas Tech   7 – 2     8 – 2   No. 14 Central Arkansas ^   7 – 2     9 – 3   No. 25 West Georgia   6 – 3     8 – 3   Delta State   6 – 3     7 – 3   Southern Arkansas   5 – 4     5 – 5   Arkansas–Monticello   4 – 5     5 – 6   Harding   4 – 5     4 – 6   North Alabama   3 – 6     4 – 6   Ouachita Baptist   2 – 7     3 – 7   Henderson State   1 – 8     1 – 10   West Alabama   0 – 9     1 – 10   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA poll	2001 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 6 Pittsburg State $^   8 – 1     11 – 2   No. 20 Central Missouri State   7 – 2     10 – 2   Truman   6 – 3     8 – 3   Missouri Western   6 – 3     8 – 3   NW Missouri State   6 – 3     7 – 4   Southwest Baptist   4 – 5     6 – 5   Emporia State   3 – 6     5 – 6   Missouri Southern   3 – 6     4 – 6   Washburn   2 – 7     3 – 8   Missouri–Rolla   0 – 9     2 – 9   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA Poll	2001 North Central Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 4 North Dakota $^   7 – 1     14 – 1   No. 15 Nebraska–Omaha ^   6 – 2     8 – 3   No. 22 North Dakota State   5 – 3     7 – 3   Northern Colorado   4 – 4     7 – 4   South Dakota State   4 – 4     5 – 6   Augustana (SD)   3 – 5     5 – 5   Minnesota State   3 – 5     4 – 7   St. Cloud State   3 – 5     4 – 7   South Dakota   1 – 7     2 – 8   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA Poll
2001 Northeast-10 Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 19 C. W. Post y$   9 – 1     11 – 1   Bentley y   8 – 2     9 – 3   American International   8 – 2     8 – 2   Merrimack   6 – 4     6 – 4   Southern Connecticut   6 – 4     6 – 4   Saint Anselm   5 – 5     5 – 5   Bryant   4 – 5     4 – 5   Pace   4 – 5     4 – 5   Stonehill   3 – 7     4 – 7   UMass Lowell   1 – 9     1 – 9   Assumption   0 – 10     1 – 10   Championship: C. W. Post 43, Bentley 6 $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant Rankings from AFCA poll	2001 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 13 Winona State $^   9 – 0     10 – 2   No. 24 Minnesota Duluth   7 – 2     9 – 3   Concordia–St. Paul   6 – 3     8 – 3   Bemidji State   5 – 4     7 – 4   Minnesota State–Moorhead   4 – 5     4 – 6   Minnesota–Crookston   4 – 5     4 – 7   Northern State   4 – 5     4 – 7   Wayne State (NE)   3 – 6     4 – 7   Southwest State (MN)   3 – 6     3 – 8   Minnesota Morris   0 – 9     0 – 11   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA Poll	2001 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   East Division No. 5 Bloomsburg x^   6 – 0     9 – 2   East Stroudsburg   5 – 1     7 – 3   Kutztown   4 – 2     6 – 4   West Chester   3 – 3     5 – 4   Millersville   2 – 4     3 – 8   Mansfield   1 – 5     2 – 8   Cheyney   0 – 6     0 – 10   West Division No. 8 IUP x^   6 – 0     8 – 2   Shippensburg   5 – 1     8 – 3   Slippery Rock   3 – 3     6 – 4   Edinboro   3 – 3     4 – 6   Clarion   2 – 4     4 – 7   California (PA)   1 – 5     5 – 5   Lock Haven   1 – 5     3 – 8   x – Division champion/co-champions ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA poll
2001 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Chadron State $^   8 – 0     10 – 1   Nebraska–Kearney   7 – 1     8 – 2   Mesa State   5 – 3     7 – 4   Western State (CO)   5 – 3     6 – 5   Colorado Mines   4 – 4     7 – 4   New Mexico Highlands   3 – 5     4 – 7   Fort Hays State   2 – 6     3 – 8   Adams State   1 – 7     2 – 9   Fort Lewis   1 – 7     2 – 9   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant	2001 South Atlantic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 7 Catawba $^   6 – 1     11 – 2   No. 18 Tusculum   5 – 3     8 – 2   Carson–Newman   5 – 2     6 – 3   Presbyterian   5 – 2     7 – 4   Mars Hill   4 – 3     7 – 4   Lenoir–Rhyne   2 – 5     2 – 7   Wingate   1 – 6     4 – 7   Newberry   0 – 7     4 – 7   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA poll	2001 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 10 Tuskegee +   6 – 1     11 – 1   Morehouse +   6 – 1     8 – 2   No. 21 Fort Valley State +   6 – 1     8 – 3   Albany State   3 – 4     4 – 6   Miles   3 – 4     4 – 7   Kentucky State   2 – 5     3 – 8   Lane   1 – 6     3 – 7   Clark Atlanta   1 – 6     1 – 10   + – Conference co-champions Rankings from AFCA Poll
2001 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Glenville State $   6 – 1     6 – 3   Shepherd   5 – 2     8 – 2   Fairmont State   5 – 2     6 – 3   West Virginia Tech   4 – 3     5 – 6   West Liberty State   3 – 4     5 – 5   West Virginia Wesleyan   3 – 4     3 – 6   West Virginia State   2 – 5     4 – 7   Concord   0 – 7     1 – 9   $ – Conference champion	2001 NCAA Division II independents football records Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 12 UC Davis ^   –     10 – 3   New Haven   –     5 – 4   Western New Mexico   –     3 – 7   Quincy   –     2 – 8   Saint Joseph's (IN)   –     2 – 8   ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA poll

Conference summaries

See also: List of NCAA Division II football seasons

Conference Champions

Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Virginia Union Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Grand Valley State Great Northwest Athletic Conference – Western Washington Gulf South Conference – Valdosta State Lone Star Conference – Tarleton State and Texas A&M–Kingsville Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association – Pittsburg State North Central Conference – North Dakota Northeast-10 Conference – C.W. Post Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference – Winona State Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference – Bloomsburg (East), Indiana (PA) (West) Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference – Chadron State South Atlantic Conference – Catawba Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Fort Valley State, Morehouse and Tuskegee West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Glenville State

Postseason

2001 NCAA Division II Football Championship
Teams	16
Finals Site	Braly Municipal Stadium Florence, AL
Champion	North Dakota (1st title, title game)
Runner-up	Grand Valley State (1st title game)
Semifinalists	Catawba UC Davis
Winning coach	championship

The 2001 NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs were the 28th 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
	North Dakota	42
	Winona State	28
					North Dakota	38
					Pittsburg State	0
	Pittsburg State	20
	Nebraska–Omaha	7
									North Dakota	14
									UC Davis	2
	Tarleton State	28
	Chadron State	24
					Tarleton State	25
					UC Davis	42
	UC Davis	37
	Texas A&M–Kingsville	32
													North Dakota	17
													Grand Valley State	14
	Valdosta State	40
	Fort Valley State	24
					Valdosta State	34
					Catawba	37*
	Catawba	35
	Central Arkansas	34
									Catawba	16
									Grand Valley State	34
	Grand Valley State	42
	Bloomsburg	14
					Grand Valley State	33
					Saginaw Valley State	30
	Saginaw Valley State	33
	IUP	32

See also

• 2001 NCAA Division I-A football season
• 2001 NCAA Division I-AA football season
• 2001 NCAA Division III football season
• 2001 NAIA football season