2002 NCAA Division II football season

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.

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

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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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 Conf Overall 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

See also: List of NCAA Division II football seasons

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

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

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

See also

• 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season
• 2002 NCAA Division I-AA football season
• 2002 NCAA Division III football season
• 2002 NAIA football season