FCS/I-AA Playoff History:

What is the Play-Off?

The NCAA division I FCS is the highest level of college football to determine its' national champion through a play-off system. In fact, the FBS is the only division that does not sponsor a championship tournament to settle their champion. The year 2010, will be the 33rd for the NCAA I-AA football play-off system ...now known as the Division I Football Championship. Participating teams are extended an invitation, based on the selections made by the Division I football committee, assisted by four regional advisory committees. The advisory committees are designed to promote equal representation throughout the nation, and in this case, serve in an advisory capacity only. Although teams are selected on an individual basis, the NCAA has historically offered bids to teams based on conference and region.

Championship (play-off) Format

There are 20 teams selected for the championship. These 20 teams are then bracketed. The top-5 teams are seeded, usually on a regional and performance basis. All games, up to the final, are played on the campuses of the participating teams ... with the final being played on a neutral site. In addition to being seeded, the top-3 seeds are granted "home" site selection for the duration of the teams participation in the play-off {in other words ... they play "at home" until they lose, play a higher-seeded team, or participate in the final at a pre-selected site that is not their own}. The first-round is a play-in round, which will take the field to the traditional "Sweet-16" style tournament format.

Click here for an example of the 20-team bracket.

Since the 2010 20-team format is new, it will be a couple of weeks before the specifics on team and site selections are released.

Championship (play-off) Team Selections

There are four NCAA I-AA regions (West, South, Central and East) with 15 conferences (although 2 of these conferences do not participate in the play-off: SWAC & Ivy). Of the remaining 13 conferences, 10 have automatic bids to the play-off ... by virtue of being the respective conference champion.

The Division I Football Championship provides for a maximum field of 20 teams, with ten receiving an automatic berth based on winning the team's respective conference. The ten member conferences have been granted automatic qualification for the 2010 championship:

• The Colonial Athletic Association (fka the Atlantic-10 Conference)
• The Big Sky Conference
• The Missouri Valley Football Conference (fka The Gateway Conference)
• The Mid-East Athletic Conference
• The Ohio Valley Conference
• The Patriot League
• The Southern Conference
• The Southland Conference
• The Big South Conference*
• The Northeast Conference*

*The conference will have an automatic qualifier for the first time in 2010.

The remaining ten (10) teams are selected at-large by the NCAA Selection Committee.

Championship (play-off) Site Selections

Teams will play the first four rounds on the campuses of competing teams. Teams will play first-round games on the campuses of competing institutions.

• The committee shall select the best available teams.
• There is no limit to the number of teams they may select from a single conference.
• The won-lost record of a team will be scrutinized to determine a team’s strength of schedule; however, less than seven Division-I wins will place a team in jeopardy of not being selected.
• The committee may give more consideration to those teams that have played all Division I opponents.
• If the team of a committee member is under consideration, the member may not vote for the team being considered and will not be in the room when a vote is taken.
  

1. Wichita Falls, TX (1978, 1981-82)
2. Orlando, FL (1979)
3. Sacramento, CA (1980)
4. Charleston, SC (1983-84)
5. Tacoma, WA (1985-86)
6. Pocatello, ID (1987-88)
7. Statesboro, GA (1989-91)
8. Huntington, WV (1992-96)
9. Chattanooga, TN (1997-2009)
10. Frisco, TX (2010-present)
    

Originally, only four teams qualified for the NCAA I-AA Football Championship in the event’s first three years. The field was expanded to 8 teams in 1981, 12 teams in 1982 and 16 teams in 1986 ... with the field moving t0 20-teams beginning in 2010. The following factors are used, by the NCAA, in determining which institutions will host play-off contests:

• Quality and availability of facility and other necessary accommodations.
• Revenue potential, which shall include minimum financial guarantees of $30,000, $40,000 and $50,000 for the first-round, quarterfinal and semifinal contests, respectively, with consideration given to revenue potential in excess of the minimum guarantees.
• Attendance history and potential.
• Team performance, with strong consideration of conference place finish, head-to-head results with other teams under consideration, non-Division I schedule.
  
  

It should be noted, that a school must submit a budget to host a play-off game, which does include financial guarantees to the NCAA. It is also important to realize that not all universities will do so. Therefore, an institution can participate the NCAA Division I Championship, without having the ability to host a game ... regardless of seed.

Independent Teams:

Independents can also qualify for the play-off, if they meet the selection committee's criteria. There have been several Independents selected, for the play-off field, in the past ... including national champions in Southern Illinois, Georgia Southern, and Youngstown St..

The following is a list of I-AA Championship game participants:

The following is a list of all the annual participants in the I-AA play-offs, since the inception in 1978.