1973 NCAA Division III football season

American college football season

1973 NCAA Division III football season
Regular seasonAugust – November 1973
PlayoffsNovember – December 1973
National
championship
Garrett–Harrison Stadium
Phenix City, AL
ChampionWittenberg
← 1972 · NCAA Division III football seasons · 1974 →

The 1973 NCAA Division III football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division III level, began in August 1973, and concluded with the NCAA Division III Football Championship in December 1973 at Garrett–Harrison Stadium in Phenix City, Alabama. This was the first season for Division III (and Division II) football, which were formerly in the College Division in 1972 and prior.

Wittenberg won their first Division III championship, defeating Juniata in the championship game by a score of 41−0.[1]

Conference changes and new programs

School 1972 conference 1973 conference
Albany New program NCAA Division III independent

Conference standings

1973 College Athletic Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Southwestern (TN) $ 2 – 0 – 0 4 – 3 – 2
Sewanee 1 – 1 – 0 5 – 3 – 0
Centre 0 – 2 – 0 0 – 9 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 4 Carthage $^ 8 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0
No. 12 Millikin 6 – 2 – 0 8 – 2 – 0
No. 15 Augustana (IL) 6 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
Illinois Wesleyan 5 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Carroll (WI) 3 – 5 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Elmhurst 3 – 5 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
North Park 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
Wheaton (IL) 2 – 6 – 0 2 – 7 – 0
North Central (IL) 1 – 7 – 0 2 – 7 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NAIA Division II playoff participant
Rankings from NAIA Division II poll
1973 Eastern Football Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Central Connecticut State $ 3 – 0 – 0 9 – 1 – 0
Southern Connecticut State 2 – 1 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Montclair State 1 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Glassboro State 0 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Independent College Athletic Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Ithaca $ 2 – 0 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Hobart 3 – 1 – 1 7 – 1 – 1
Alfred 2 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
St. Lawrence 2 – 2 – 0 5 – 3 – 0
RIT 0 – 2 – 1 3 – 5 – 1
RPI 0 – 3 – 0 1 – 9 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Indiana Collegiate Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Butler $ 5 – 1 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
DePauw 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
Evansville 3 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Indiana Central 3 – 3 – 0 7 – 3 – 0
Valparaiso 3 – 3 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
Saint Joseph's (IN) 1 – 4 – 0 3 – 7 – 0
Wabash 0 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Iowa Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 9 Buena Vista $ 7 – 0 – 0 8 – 1 – 0
Central (IA) 6 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
Wartburg 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Dubuque 3 – 3 – 1 5 – 4 – 1
William Penn 3 – 4 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Luther 2 – 4 – 1 2 – 6 – 1
Simpson 1 – 5 – 1 2 – 6 – 1
Upper Iowa 0 – 6 – 1 1 – 7 – 1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from NAIA Division II poll
1973 Mason–Dixon Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Hampden–Sydney $ 3 – 1 – 0 7 – 3 – 0
Johns Hopkins 2 – 0 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
Bridgewater 2 – 1 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Randolph–Macon 2 – 1 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Western Maryland 0 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Towson State 0 – 3 – 0 4 – 4 – 0
Gallaudet 0 – 0 – 0 1 – 8 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Metropolitan Intercollegiate Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
C. W. Post $ 5 – 0 – 0 10 – 1 – 0
Hofstra 4 – 1 – 0 8 – 3 – 0
Fordham 2 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Merchant Marine 1 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Seton Hall 0 – 2 – 0 3 – 4 – 0
Saint Peter's 0 – 2 – 0 0 – 9 – 0
Wagner 0 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Hope $ 5 – 0 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
Olivet 3 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
Albion 3 – 2 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
Alma 2 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Kalamazoo 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 4 – 0
Adrian 0 – 5 – 0 1 – 8 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Middle Atlantic Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Northern
Juniata x^ 5 – 1 – 0 10 – 2 – 0
Wilkes 5 – 1 – 0 5 – 3 – 0
Albright 5 – 3 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Delaware Valley 4 – 3 – 1 4 – 3 – 0
Lycoming 2 – 5 – 0 2 – 6 – 0
Susquehanna 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 7 – 0
Upsala 0 – 7 – 0 1 – 8 – 0
Wagner * 2 – 1 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Southern
Franklin & Marshall x 8 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0
Widener 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0
Muhlenberg 7 – 1 – 1 7 – 1 – 1
Johns Hopkins 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
Western Maryland 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Moravian 3 – 5 – 1 3 – 5 – 1
Lebanon Valley 2 – 5 – 2 2 – 5 – 2
Dickinson 1 – 5 – 2 1 – 5 – 2
Ursinus 1 – 5 – 1 2 – 5 – 1
Swarthmore 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 7 – 0
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant
  • * – Ineligible due to insufficient conference games
    Juniata won Northern Section on Hazlett point system
1973 Midwest Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Coe $ 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0
Monmouth (IL) 6 – 1 – 1 6 – 1 – 1
Knox 5 – 2 – 1 6 – 2 – 1
Ripon 5 – 2 – 1 5 – 3 – 1
St. Olaf 5 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Lawrence 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 4 – 0
Carleton 3 – 4 – 1 3 – 4 – 1
Cornell (IA) 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
Beloit 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 8 – 0
Grinnell 0 – 8 – 0 0 – 9 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 11 St. Thomas (MN) + 6 – 1 – 0 9 – 1 – 0
No. 9 Minnesota–Duluth + 6 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0
Augsburg 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
Gustavus Adolphus 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Concordia–Moorhead 3 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Saint John's (MN) 3 – 4 – 0 4 – 4 – 0
Hamline 1 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
Macalester 0 – 7 – 0 1 – 9 – 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1973 New England Football Conference standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Nichols $ 4 – 0 – 0 8 – 1 – 0
Plymouth State 3 – 2 – 0 6 – 2 – 0
Bridgewater State 2 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Curry 2 – 2 – 1 3 – 5 – 1
Maine Maritime 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Boston State 0 – 4 – 1 1 – 6 – 1
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 New Jersey State Athletic Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Montclair State $ 4 – 0 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Jersey City State 4 – 1 – 0 9 – 1 – 0
Trenton State 3 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0
Glassboro State 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 0
Kean 1 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
William Paterson 0 – 5 – 0 3 – 7 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Ohio Athletic Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Blue Division
Marietta xy 3 – 1 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Muskingum 2 – 1 – 1 5 – 3 – 1
Ohio Wesleyan 2 – 1 – 1 3 – 5 – 1
Otterbein 1 – 2 – 1 4 – 4 – 1
Denison 0 – 3 – 1 3 – 5 – 1
Red Division
No. 4 Wittenberg xy$^ 5 – 0 – 0 12 – 0 – 0
Baldwin–Wallace 4 – 1 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
Wooster 3 – 2 – 0 5 – 3 – 0
Heidelberg 2 – 3 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
Capital 1 – 4 – 0 4 – 4 – 0
Mount Union 0 – 5 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
Not competing for championship
Kenyon   –   5 – 4 – 0
Oberlin   –   4 – 5 – 0
Championship: Wittenberg 35, Marietta 7
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
  • ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant
Rankings from AP small college poll
1973 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
East Division
West Chester xy 4 – 0 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
East Stroudsburg 5 – 1 – 0 6 – 1 – 1
Millersville 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
Cheyney 3 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Bloomsburg 2 – 4 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Kutztown 1 – 5 – 0 2 – 7 – 0
Mansfield 0 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 0
West Division
No. T–20 Slippery Rock xy$ 5 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0
Clarion 3 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Edinboro 3 – 2 – 0 4 – 4 – 1
Lock Haven 2 – 3 – 0 2 – 7 – 0
California (PA) 1 – 4 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
Shippensburg 1 – 4 – 0 2 – 7 – 0
Indiana (PA) * 0 – 0 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Championship: Slippery Rock 28, West Chester 14
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
  • * – Ineligible for conference title
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1973 Presidents' Athletic Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
John Carroll $ 5 – 0 – 2 7 – 1 – 2
Allegheny 5 – 1 – 1 5 – 3 – 1
Thiel 4 – 2 – 1 6 – 2 – 1
Hiram 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Carnegie Mellon 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 3 – 0
Bethany (WV) 2 – 5 – 0 3 – 5 – 1
Washington & Jefferson 2 – 5 – 0 2 – 7 – 0
Case Western Reserve 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 9 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1973 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 10 Redlands $ 5 – 0 – 0 8 – 1 – 0
Whittier 3 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
La Verne 3 – 2 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Claremont-Mudd 2 – 3 – 0 3 – 5 – 0
Occidental 2 – 3 – 0 2 – 6 – 0
Pomona-Pitzer 0 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from NAIA Division II poll
1973 Wisconsin State University Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 6 Wisconsin–La Crosse $^ 7 – 1 – 0 9 – 2 – 0
No. 14 Wisconsin–Platteville 6 – 1 – 1 8 – 1 – 1
Wisconsin–Whitewater 4 – 2 – 2 6 – 2 – 2
Wisconsin–Eau Claire 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Wisconsin–Oshkosh 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 6 – 0
Wisconsin–River Falls 3 – 4 – 1 4 – 5 – 1
Wisconsin–Stevens Point 3 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0
Wisconsin–Superior 2 – 6 – 0 2 – 8 – 0
Wisconsin–Stout 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 9 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1973 NCAA Division III independents football records
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Colorado College   –   9 – 1 – 0
Bridgeport ^   –   9 – 2 – 0
San Diego ^   –   9 – 2 – 1
Albany   –   7 – 2 – 0
Salisbury State   –   7 – 2 – 0
Ashland   –   7 – 3 – 0
Norwich   –   6 – 3 – 0
Rochester (NY)   –   6 – 3 – 0
Brockport   –   5 – 3 – 0
Maryville (TN)   –   5 – 4 – 0
Millsaps   –   5 – 4 – 0
Madison   –   4 – 5 – 0
St. Norbert   –   4 – 5 – 0
Lake Forest   –   3 – 4 – 1
Saint Mary's   –   3 – 4 – 1
Georgetown   –   3 – 5 – 0
Grove City   –   2 – 6 – 1
Cortland   –   1 – 7 – 1
Chicago   –   0 – 6 – 1
  • ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant

Conference champions

Conference Champion(s)
College Athletic Conference Southwestern at Memphis
College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Carthage
Independent College Athletic Conference Champion unknown
Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Buena Vista
Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Hope
Middle Atlantic Conference North: Juniata
South: Franklin & Marshall
Midwest Collegiate Athletic Conference Coe
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Minnesota–Duluth
St. Thomas (MN)
New England Football Conference Nichols
New Jersey State Athletic Conference Montclair State
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (Division III) Fisk
Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Redlands

Postseason

The 1973 NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs were the first single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division III college football. The inaugural edition had only four teams (in comparison with the 32 teams competing as of 2014). The championship game was held at Garrett-Harrison Stadium in Phenix City, Alabama. The Wittenberg Tigers defeated the Juniata College Eagles, 41−0, to win their first national title.[2]

Playoff bracket

Semifinals
Campus sites 		National Championship Game
Garrett–Harrison Stadium
Phenix City, AL
      
Juniata 35
Bridgeport 14
Juniata 0
Wittenberg 41
Wittenberg 21
San Diego 14

See also

References

  1. ^ "All-Time Division III Football Championship Records" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. pp. 4–15. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
  2. ^ "1973 NCAA Division III National Football Championship Bracket" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. p. 14. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
  • v
  • t
  • e
NCAA football seasons
Pre-NCAA
NCAA pre-divisional
NCAA University Division
NCAA Division I
NCAA Division I-A/FBS
NCAA Division I-AA/FCS
NCAA College Division
NCAA Division II
NCAA Division III