2011 NCAA Division I FCS football season

2011 NCAA Division I FCS season
2011 NCAA Division I FCS season
Regular season
Number of teams	126
Duration	September – November
Payton Award	Bo Levi Mitchell, Eastern Washington
Buchanan Award	Matt Evans, New Hampshire
Playoff
Duration	November 26 – December 17
Championship date	January 7, 2012
Championship site	Pizza Hut Park, Frisco, TX
Champion	North Dakota State
NCAA Division I FCS football seasons
	«2010 2012»

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.

Conference changes and new programs

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

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

FCS team wins over FBS teams

September 3: Richmond 23, Duke 21
September 3: Sacramento State 29, Oregon State 28^OT
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 standings

2011 Big Sky Conference football standings

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Team	W		L	W		L
South Alabama		–		6	–	4
Texas State		–		6	–	6
UTSA		–		4	–	6
Georgia State		–		3	–	8

Playoff qualifiers

Automatic berths for conference champions

Big Sky Conference – Montana
Big South Conference – Stony Brook
Colonial Athletic Association – Towson
Missouri Valley Football Conference – North Dakota State
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – Norfolk State
Northeast Conference – Albany
Ohio Valley Conference – Tennessee Tech
Patriot League – Lehigh
Southern Conference – Georgia Southern
Southland Conference – Sam Houston State

At large qualifiers

Big Sky Conference – Montana State
Colonial Athletic Association – James Madison, Maine, New Hampshire, Old Dominion
Missouri Valley Football Conference – Northern Iowa
Ohio Valley Conference – Eastern Kentucky
Southern Conference – Appalachian State, Wofford
Southland Conference – Central Arkansas

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

Abstains

Ivy League – Harvard
Southwestern Athletic Conference – Grambling State

Postseason

NCAA Division I playoff bracket

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

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]

References

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

[SWAC2011-1] Benson, Reggie (December 10, 2011). "Bulldogs come up short again against Tigers". The Huntsville Times. Retrieved December 10, 2011.

[1]

NCAA football seasons
Pre-NCAA	1869 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905
NCAA pre-divisional	1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961
NCAA University Division	1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972
NCAA Division I	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977
NCAA Division I-A/FBS	1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
NCAA Division I-AA/FCS	1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
NCAA College Division	1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972
NCAA Division II	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
NCAA Division III	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025