The 1981 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 in August 1981, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship on December 12, 1981, at McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium in McAllen, Texas. During the game's five-year stretch in McAllen, the "City of Palms", it was referred to as the Palm Bowl.
Southwest Texas State defeated North Dakota State in the championship game, 42–13, to win their first Division II national title.
Conference realignment Conference changes Prior to the 1981 season, the Mid-Continent Conference was shifted from Division II to Division I-AA; its four members, Eastern Illinois, Northern Iowa, Western Illinois, and Southwest Missouri State (now Missouri State), all made the transition. Northern Michigan and Youngstown State, who had been members of the Mid-Continent the previous season, departed the league before the shift. NMU remained in Division II while YSU departed for the Ohio Valley Conference in Division I-AA. After spending 1980 as a club team, Sonoma State University officially joined Division II this year. Four Members of the Lone Star Conference- Texas A&I, Angelo State, Abilene Christian, and Southwest Texas State- reclassified to Division II from the NAIA this year. The remaining members of the conference remained in the NAIA.
Membership changes School 1980 Conference 1981 Conference Abilene Christian Lone Star (NAIA) Lone Star (D-II) Angelo State Lone Star (NAIA) Lone Star (D-II) Eastern Washington Evergreen (NAIA) D-II Independent Liberty NAIA Independent D-II Independent Mankato State Northern Independent Northern Michigan Mid-Continent D-II Independent Portland State I-AA Independent D-II Independent Southwest Missouri State MIAA Mid-Continent (I-AA) New Haven NEFC (D-III) D-II Independent Sonoma State Club Team Independent St. Mary's D-III Independent D-II Independent Southwest Texas State Lone Star (NAIA) Lone Star (D-II) St. Cloud State Northern Independent Texas A&I Lone Star (NAIA) Lone Star (D-II) Youngstown State Mid-Continent (D-II) Ohio Valley (I-AA)
Conference standings
Conference summaries
Conference ChampionsCentral Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Virginia Union Far Western Football Conference – UC Davis and Cal State–Hayward Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Grand Valley State Gulf South Conference – Jacksonville State Heartland Collegiate Conference – Franklin and Indiana Central Lone Star Conference – Southwest Texas State Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Northeast Missouri State North Central Conference – North Dakota State Northern Intercollegiate Conference – Minnesota State–Moorhead Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference – Shippensburg Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference – New Mexico Highlands South Atlantic Conference – Elon Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Alabama A&M
Postseason
The 1981 NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs were the ninth single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college football. The championship game was held at McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium in McAllen, Texas, for the first time.
Playoff bracket
See also 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season 1981 NCAA Division I-AA football season 1981 NCAA Division III football season 1981 NAIA Division I football season 1981 NAIA Division II football season
References