1974 NAIA Division I football season

1974 NAIA Division I football season
Regular seasonAugust–November 1974
PostseasonNovember 30– December 14, 1974
National ChampionshipJavelina Stadium
Kingsville, TX
ChampionsTexas A&I (3)

The 1974 NAIA Division I football season was the 19th season of college football sponsored by the NAIA and the fifth season of the league's two-division structure.

The season was played from August to November 1974 and culminated in the 1974 NAIA Division I Champion Bowl, played on December 14, 1974, on the campus of Texas A&I University in Kingsville, Texas.[1] Texas A&I defeated Elon in the Champion Bowl, 34–23, to win their third NAIA national title.[2]

Conference realignment

Conferences changes

Membership changes

Team 1973 conference 1974 conference
Central State Oklahoma Collegiate Oklahoma Intercollegiate
East Central Oklahoma State Oklahoma Collegiate Oklahoma Intercollegiate
Northeastern Oklahoma State Oklahoma Collegiate Oklahoma Intercollegiate
Northwestern Oklahoma State Oklahoma Collegiate Oklahoma Intercollegiate
Southeastern Oklahoma State Oklahoma Collegiate Oklahoma Intercollegiate
Southwestern Oklahoma State Oklahoma Collegiate Oklahoma Intercollegiate

Conference standings

1974 Arkansas Intercollegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 2 Henderson State $^ 6 – 0 – 0 11 – 2 – 0
No. 13 Ouachita Baptist 4 – 1 – 1 7 – 2 – 1
Harding 3 – 2 – 1 5 – 4 – 1
Southern Arkansas 3 – 3 – 0 7 – 4 – 0
State College of Arkansas 2 – 2 – 2 6 – 3 – 2
Arkansas–Monticello 1 – 5 – 0 3 – 7 – 0
Arkansas Tech 0 – 6 – 0 1 – 9 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1974 Carolinas Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 4/15 Elon $^ 4 – 0 – 0 10 – 2 – 0
Lenoir Rhyne 2 – 1 – 0 7 – 3 – 1
Catawba 1 – 2 – 1 5 – 4 – 1
Mars Hill 1 – 3 – 0 7 – 4 – 0
Guilford 0 – 2 – 1 7 – 3 – 1
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll and AP small college poll
1974 Evergreen Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Eastern Washington $ 4 – 2 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Oregon College 3 – 2 – 1 3 – 4 – 1
Central Washington 3 – 2 – 1 3 – 5 – 1
Eastern Oregon 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Southern Oregon 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Oregon Tech 2 – 2 – 2 3 – 3 – 2
Western Washington 1 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 1
  • $ – Conference champion
1974 Great Plains Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Northern Colorado $ 5 – 0 – 0 8 – 1 – 0
Pittsburg State 4 – 1 – 0 4 – 7 – 0
Washburn 3 – 2 – 0 8 – 3 – 0
Southern Colorado 1 – 4 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
Emporia State 1 – 4 – 0 2 – 7 – 0
Fort Hays State 1 – 4 – 0 1 – 9 – 0
Kearney State * 0 – 0 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • * – ineligible for conference standings
1974 Gulf South Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 7 Jacksonville State $ 7 – 1 – 0 7 – 4 – 0
Delta State 7 – 2 – 0 8 – 3 – 0
No. 8 Livingston 5 – 3 – 0 8 – 3 – 0
Southeastern Louisiana 5 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Troy State 4 – 4 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
North Alabama 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 6 – 0
Nicholls State 4 – 5 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Northwestern State 1 – 6 – 0 1 – 10 – 0
Tennessee–Martin 1 – 7 – 0 2 – 9 – 0
Mississippi College 0 – 7 – 0 2 – 9 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1974 Lone Star Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1/3 Texas A&I $^ 9 – 0 – 0 13 – 0 – 0
No. 5 Stephen F. Austin 7 – 2 – 0 9 – 2 – 0
Abilene Christian 6 – 3 – 0 7 – 4 – 0
Southwest Texas State 6 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
East Texas State 5 – 4 – 0 7 – 4 – 0
Howard Payne 4 – 5 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Sam Houston State 4 – 5 – 0 4 – 7 – 0
Angelo State 3 – 4 – 0 4 – 6 – 0
Sul Ross 1 – 8 – 0 1 – 9 – 0
Tarleton State 0 – 9 – 0 1 – 10 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll and AP small college poll
1974 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 11 South Carolina State $ 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 4 – 0
Howard 4 – 1 – 1 8 – 2 – 1
North Carolina Central 4 – 1 – 1 7 – 2 – 2
Morgan State 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
North Carolina A&T 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Maryland Eastern Shore 1 – 5 – 0 2 – 6 – 0
Delaware State 0 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1974 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Concordia–Moorhead + 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
No. 20 Saint John's (MN) + 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
Minnesota–Duluth 4 – 2 – 1 7 – 2 – 1
Hamline 4 – 2 – 1 4 – 5 – 1
St. Thomas (MN) 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Gustavus Adolphus 4 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 0
Augsburg 3 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
St. Olaf 1 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
Macalester 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 8 – 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
  • Macalester's win over Gustavus Adolphus counted in the conference standings for Macalester, but not for Gustavus Adolphus.
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1974 Nebraska College Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Kearney State $ 3 – 0 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
Chadron State 2 – 1 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
Wayne State (NE) 1 – 2 – 0 4 – 6 – 0
Peru State 0 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1974 Northern Intercollegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Michigan Tech $ 6 – 0 – 0 9 – 0 – 0
St. Cloud State 5 – 1 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Winona State 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Moorhead State 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Southwest State (MN) 2 – 4 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Minnesota Morris 2 – 4 – 0 3 – 7 – 0
Bemidji State 0 – 6 – 0 2 – 7 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1974 Oklahoma Intercollegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 14 SW Oklahoma State $ 4 – 1 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
SE Oklahoma State 3 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
NW Oklahoma State 2 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0
Central State (OK) 2 – 3 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
East Central 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 7 – 0
Northeastern State 1 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1974 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
East Division
West Chester xy 5 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0
No. 6 Millersville 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0
East Stroudsburg 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Kutztown 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Cheyney 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Mansfield 0 – 4 – 1 1 – 7 – 1
Bloomsburg 0 – 5 – 1 1 – 7 – 1
West Division
No. 13 Slippery Rock xy$^ 5 – 0 – 1 9 – 1 – 1
Clarion 4 – 1 – 1 6 – 2 – 1
Indiana (PA) 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Shippensburg 3 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Edinboro 2 – 2 – 2 5 – 2 – 2
California (PA) 1 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 0
Lock Haven 0 – 6 – 0 1 – 8 – 0
Championship: Slippery Rock 20, West Chester 7
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
  • ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant
Rankings from AP small college poll for Slippery Rock and NAIA Division I poll for Millersville
1974 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Western State (CO) $ 5 – 1 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
Westminster (UT) 3 – 3 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
Adams State 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Fort Lewis 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Southern Utah 3 – 3 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
Western New Mexico 2 – 4 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Colorado Mines 2 – 4 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
New Mexico Highlands * 0 – 0 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • * – ineligible for conference standings
1974 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 7 Grambling State + 5 – 1 – 0 11 – 1 – 0
No. 14 Alcorn State +^ 5 – 1 – 0 9 – 2 – 0
No. 10 Jackson State 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0
No. 12 Southern 3 – 3 – 0 8 – 3 – 0
Texas Southern 3 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Mississippi Valley State 1 – 5 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Prairie View A&M 0 – 6 – 0 0 – 10 – 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
  • ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant
Rankings from AP small college poll for Grambling State and Alconrn State and NAIA Division I poll for Jackson State and Southern
1974 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Northern Division
Fairmont State xy$ 4 – 0 – 0 7 – 4 – 0
No. 15 Salem 3 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
West Liberty State 2 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Shepherd 1 – 2 – 0 2 – 9 – 0
West Virginia Wesleyan 0 – 4 – 0 1 – 8 – 0
Southern Division
Concord xy 3 – 1 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
Bluefield State 3 – 1 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
Glenville State 3 – 1 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
West Virginia Tech 1 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
West Virginia State 0 – 4 – 0 1 – 8 – 0
Championship: Fairmont State 30, Concord 6
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
  • Conference standings based on power ratings
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1974 Wisconsin State University Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 17 Wisconsin–Platteville + 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0
No. 18 Wisconsin–Whitewater + 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 3 – 0
No. 16 Wisconsin–La Crosse + 7 – 1 – 0 7 – 3 – 0
Wisconsin–River Falls 5 – 3 – 0 7 – 3 – 0
Wisconsin–Eau Claire 4 – 4 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Wisconsin–Oshkosh 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 7 – 0
Wisconsin–Stevens Point 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 7 – 0
Wisconsin–Stout 1 – 7 – 0 2 – 8 – 0
Wisconsin–Superior 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 9 – 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
  • Wisconsin–La Crosse forfeited one non-conference game.
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1974 NAIA Division I independents football records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 3 Cameron ^   –   9 – 3 – 0
No. 19 Eastern New Mexico   –   7 – 4 – 0
Wofford   –   7 – 4 – 0
Kentucky State   –   6 – 4 – 0
Presbyterian   –   6 – 5 – 0
New Mexico Highlands   –   4 – 5 – 0
Langston   –   1 – 9 – 0
  • ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant
Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

Postseason

Semifinals
November 30–December 7, 1974 		1974 NAIA Champion Bowl
December 7, 1974
Kingsville, TX
      
Henderson State 7
Elon* 21
Elon 23
Texas A&I* 34
Cameron 18
Texas A&I* 21

See also

References

  1. ^ "NAIA Championship History" (PDF). NAIA. pp. 4–11. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 15, 2015. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
  2. ^ "1974 Division I NAIA Football Playoffs". JonFMorse.com. Retrieved November 21, 2015.