American college football season
1985 NCAA Division I-AA season Duration August–November Duration November 30–December 21 Championship date December 21, 1985 Championship site Tacoma Dome Tacoma, Washington Champion Georgia Southern
The 1985 NCAA Division I-AA football season , part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division I-AA level, began in August 1985, and concluded with the 1985 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 21, 1985, at the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, Washington . The Georgia Southern Eagles won their first I-AA championship, defeating the Furman Paladins by a score of 44–42.[1]
Conference changes and new programs [ ]
School
1984 Conference
1985 Conference
Villanova Revived Program I-AA Independent
Conference standings [ ]
1985 Big Sky Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W
L
T W
L
T
No. 5 Idaho $^
6
–
1
–
0
9
–
3
–
0
No. T–2 Nevada ^
6
–
1
–
0
11
–
2
–
0
Boise State
5
–
2
–
0
7
–
4
–
0
Weber State
4
–
3
–
0
6
–
5
–
0
Idaho State
3
–
4
–
0
5
–
6
–
0
Montana
2
–
5
–
0
3
–
8
–
0
Northern Arizona
1
–
6
–
0
3
–
8
–
0
Montana State
1
–
6
–
0
2
–
9
–
0
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant NCAA Division I-AA Poll
1985 Gulf Star Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W
L
T W
L
T
Stephen F. Austin +
4
–
1
–
0
9
–
2
–
0
Sam Houston State +
4
–
1
–
0
8
–
3
–
0
Nicholls State
2
–
3
–
0
6
–
5
–
0
Northwestern State
2
–
3
–
0
3
–
8
–
0
Southwest Texas State
2
–
3
–
0
3
–
8
–
0
Southeastern Louisiana
1
–
4
–
0
2
–
9
–
0
+ – Conference co-champions
1985 Ivy League football standings
Conf Overall
Team W
L
T W
L
T
Penn $
6
–
1
–
0
7
–
2
–
1
Harvard
5
–
2
–
0
7
–
3
–
0
Princeton
5
–
2
–
0
5
–
5
–
0
Brown
4
–
3
–
0
5
–
4
–
1
Yale
3
–
3
–
1
4
–
4
–
1
Dartmouth
2
–
4
–
1
2
–
7
–
1
Cornell
2
–
5
–
0
3
–
7
–
0
Columbia
0
–
7
–
0
0
–
10
–
0
1985 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W
L
T W
L
T
No. T–12 Delaware State $
4
–
0
–
0
9
–
2
–
0
Bethune–Cookman
3
–
1
–
0
6
–
4
–
0
South Carolina State
2
–
2
–
0
5
–
6
–
0
North Carolina A&T
1
–
3
–
0
6
–
5
–
0
Howard
0
–
4
–
0
4
–
7
–
0
Morgan State
0
–
0
–
0
0
–
9
–
0
$ – Conference champion Morgan State games did not count as conference games. NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll
1985 Missouri Valley Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W
L
T W
L
T
Tulsa $
3
–
0
–
0
6
–
5
–
0
West Texas State
3
–
1
–
1
6
–
3
–
1
Illinois State
3
–
1
–
1
6
–
3
–
2
Indiana State
2
–
2
–
0
4
–
6
–
0
Wichita State
2
–
3
–
0
3
–
8
–
0
Southern Illinois
1
–
3
–
0
4
–
7
–
0
Drake
1
–
5
–
0
4
–
7
–
0
$ – Conference champion Tulsa also played Houston and East Carolina and recorded those games as conference games, but the league did not count them toward Tulsa's finish. The conference was a hybrid of NCAA Division I-A and I-AA programs. Tulsa and Wichita State were I-A and the other teams were I-AA.
1985 Ohio Valley Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W
L
T W
L
T
No. 1 Middle Tennessee $^
7
–
0
–
0
11
–
1
–
0
No. 10 Akron ^
5
–
2
–
0
8
–
4
–
0
No. 17 Murray State
5
–
2
–
0
7
–
3
–
1
No. 19 Eastern Kentucky
5
–
2
–
0
8
–
3
–
0
Youngstown State
4
–
3
–
0
5
–
6
–
0
Austin Peay
2
–
5
–
0
5
–
6
–
0
Tennessee Tech
1
–
6
–
0
1
–
10
–
0
Morehead State
0
–
7
–
0
1
–
10
–
0
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll
1985 Southern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W
L
T W
L
T
No. T–2 Furman $^
6
–
0
–
0
12
–
2
–
0
No. T–12 Appalachian State
6
–
1
–
0
8
–
3
–
0
Chattanooga
5
–
2
–
0
6
–
5
–
0
Marshall
3
–
3
–
1
7
–
3
–
1
The Citadel
2
–
4
–
1
5
–
5
–
1
Western Carolina
2
–
4
–
1
4
–
6
–
1
VMI
1
–
4
–
1
3
–
7
–
1
Davidson
0
–
6
–
0
1
–
10
–
0
East Tennessee State
0
–
7
–
0
0
–
10
–
1
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll
1985 Southland Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W
L
T W
L
T
No. 6 Arkansas State $^
5
–
1
–
0
9
–
4
–
0
No. 14 Louisiana Tech
4
–
2
–
0
8
–
3
–
0
McNeese State
3
–
1
–
2
6
–
3
–
2
Northeast Louisiana
3
–
3
–
0
6
–
5
–
0
North Texas State
2
–
3
–
1
4
–
6
–
1
Texas–Arlington
2
–
3
–
1
4
–
6
–
1
Lamar
0
–
6
–
0
2
–
9
–
0
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll
1985 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
No. 8 Grambling State +^
6
–
1
9
–
3
No. 15 Jackson State +^
6
–
1
8
–
3
Mississippi Valley State
5
–
2
8
–
3
No. 20 Alcorn State
5
–
2
7
–
3
Southern
3
–
4
6
–
5
Alabama State
2
–
5
3
–
8
Texas Southern
1
–
6
1
–
10
Prairie View A&M
0
–
7
2
–
9
+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Div I-AA Football Committee poll
1985 Yankee Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W
L
T W
L
T
No. 7 Rhode Island $^
5
–
0
–
0
10
–
3
–
0
UMass
4
–
1
–
0
7
–
4
–
0
New Hampshire
2
–
3
–
0
6
–
4
–
0
Maine
2
–
3
–
0
6
–
5
–
0
Connecticut
1
–
4
–
0
4
–
5
–
0
Boston University
1
–
4
–
0
3
–
8
–
0
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll
Conference champions [ ] See also: List of NCAA Division I-AA/FCS football seasons
Conference Champions
Big Sky Conference – Idaho Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference – Northern Iowa Penn Delaware State Middle Tennessee State Furman Paladins Arkansas State Rhode Island
Postseason [ ] NCAA Division I-AA playoff bracket [ ] The top four teams were seeded, and received first-round byes .[2]
First Round November 30
Quarterfinals December 7
Semifinals December 14
National Championship Game December 21
Murfreesboro, TN
Statesboro, GA
(1) Middle Tennessee
21
Georgia Southern
27
Cedar Falls, IA
Georgia Southern
28
Jackson State
0
Georgia Southern
40
Cedar Falls, IA
Moscow, ID
(4) Northern Iowa
33
(4) Northern Iowa
17
Idaho
38
Tacoma, WA – Tacoma Dome
Eastern Washington
14
Eastern Washington
42
Georgia Southern
44
Greenville, SC
Kingston, RI
(3) Furman
42
(3) Furman
59
Rhode Island
35
Greenville, SC
Rhode Island
15
Akron
27
(3) Furman
35
Reno, NV
Jonesboro, AR
(2) Nevada
12
(2) Nevada
24
Arkansas State
10
Arkansas State
23
Grambling State
7
References [ ]
Akron Arkansas State Eastern Washington Furman Georgia Southern Grambling State Idaho Jackson State Middle Tennessee Nevada Northern Iowa Rhode Island Champion – Georgia Southern Eagles
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 NCAA University Division
1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 NCAA Division I NCAA Division I-A/FBS NCAA Division I-AA/FCS NCAA College Division NCAA Division II NCAA Division III
