American college football season
2001 NCAA Division I-AA season Duration August–November Payton Award Brian Westbrook (RB, Villanova)Buchanan Award Derrick Lloyd (LB, James Madison) Duration December 1–December 21 Championship date December 21, 2001 Championship site Finley Stadium Chattanooga, Tennessee Champion Montana
The 2001 NCAA Division I-AA football season , part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I-AA level, began in August 2001, and concluded with the 2001 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 21, 2001, at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga, Tennessee . The Montana Grizzlies won their second I-AA championship, defeating the Furman Paladins by a score of 13–6.[1]
Conference changes and new programs [ ]
Conference standings [ ]
2001 Atlantic 10 Conference football standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
No. 11 Hofstra +^
7
–
2
9
–
3
No. 10 Maine +^
7
–
2
9
–
3
No. 20 Villanova +
7
–
2
8
–
3
No. 17 William & Mary +^
7
–
2
8
–
4
No. 21 Rhode Island
6
–
3
8
–
3
Delaware
4
–
5
4
–
6
Northeastern
4
–
5
5
–
6
UMass
3
–
6
3
–
8
Richmond
3
–
6
3
–
8
New Hampshire
2
–
7
4
–
7
James Madison
0
–
9
2
–
9
+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2001 Big Sky Conference football standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
No. 1 Montana $^
7
–
0
15
–
1
No. 16 Northern Arizona ^
5
–
2
9
–
4
Portland State
5
–
2
7
–
4
Montana State
4
–
3
5
–
6
Eastern Washington
3
–
4
6
–
4
Weber State
2
–
5
3
–
8
Idaho State
1
–
6
4
–
7
Sacramento State
1
–
6
2
–
9
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2001 Gateway Football Conference standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
No. 4 Northern Iowa $^
6
–
1
11
–
3
No. 12 Western Kentucky ^
5
–
2
8
–
4
No. 15 Youngstown State
5
–
2
8
–
3
Western Illinois
4
–
3
5
–
5
Southwest Missouri State
3
–
4
6
–
5
Indiana State
2
–
5
3
–
8
Illinois State
2
–
5
2
–
9
Southern Illinois
1
–
6
1
–
10
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2001 Ivy League football standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
No. 19 Harvard $
7
–
0
9
–
0
No. 24 Penn
6
–
1
8
–
1
Brown
5
–
2
6
–
3
Princeton
3
–
4
3
–
6
Columbia
3
–
4
3
–
7
Cornell
2
–
5
2
–
7
Dartmouth
1
–
6
1
–
8
Yale
1
–
6
3
–
6
Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2001 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference football standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
Duquesne $
6
–
0
8
–
3
Saint Peter's
6
–
1
10
–
1
Fairfield
5
–
2
5
–
5
Iona
3
–
3
4
–
5
La Salle
2
–
4
5
–
4
Marist
2
–
4
3
–
6
Siena
1
–
6
1
–
8
Canisius
1
–
6
1
–
9
2001 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
No. 22 Florida A&M $^
7
–
1
7
–
4
Hampton
6
–
2
7
–
4
North Carolina A&T
5
–
3
8
–
3
Bethune–Cookman
5
–
3
6
–
4
South Carolina State
5
–
3
6
–
5
Delaware State
3
–
5
5
–
6
Norfolk State
3
–
5
5
–
6
Howard
1
–
7
2
–
9
Morgan State
1
–
7
2
–
9
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2001 Northeast Conference football standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
Sacred Heart $
8
–
0
11
–
0
Robert Morris
6
–
1
6
–
3
Albany
5
–
2
7
–
3
Monmouth
5
–
2
7
–
3
Stony Brook
3
–
5
3
–
6
Wagner
3
–
5
3
–
6
Central Connecticut
2
–
5
2
–
7
St. John's
1
–
6
1
–
9
Saint Francis (PA)
0
–
7
0
–
10
2001 Ohio Valley Conference football standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
No. 9 Eastern Illinois $^
6
–
0
9
–
1
No. 18 Eastern Kentucky
5
–
1
8
–
2
No. 23 Tennessee Tech
4
–
2
7
–
3
No. 25 Tennessee State
3
–
3
8
–
3
Murray State
2
–
4
4
–
6
Southeast Missouri State
1
–
5
4
–
7
Tennessee–Martin
0
–
6
1
–
10
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2001 Patriot League football standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
No. 5 Lehigh $^
7
–
0
11
–
1
Colgate
5
–
1
7
–
3
Fordham
5
–
2
7
–
4
Bucknell
4
–
3
6
–
4
Holy Cross
3
–
4
4
–
6
Towson
2
–
5
3
–
7
Lafayette
1
–
6
2
–
8
Georgetown
0
–
6
3
–
7
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2001 Pioneer Football League standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
North Division
Dayton xy$
3
–
0
10
–
1
Butler
2
–
2
5
–
5
San Diego
2
–
2
6
–
3
Drake
1
–
3
5
–
5
Valparaiso
1
–
3
3
–
8
South Division
Jacksonville xy
3
–
0
6
–
5
Morehead State
2
–
1
6
–
5
Davidson
1
–
2
5
–
4
Austin Peay
0
–
3
3
–
7
Championship: Dayton 46 , Jacksonville 14
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant
2001 Southern Conference football standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
No. 2 Furman $^
7
–
1
12
–
3
No. 3 Georgia Southern $^
7
–
1
12
–
2
No. 6 Appalachian State ^
6
–
2
9
–
4
Western Carolina
5
–
3
7
–
4
East Tennessee State
4
–
4
6
–
5
Wofford
3
–
5
4
–
7
The Citadel
2
–
6
3
–
7
Chattanooga
1
–
7
3
–
8
VMI
1
–
7
1
–
10
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network I-AA Poll
2001 Southland Football League standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
No. 7 Sam Houston State +^
5
–
1
10
–
3
No. 13 McNeese State +^
5
–
1
8
–
4
No. 14 Northwestern State ^
4
–
2
8
–
4
Stephen F. Austin
4
–
2
6
–
5
Jacksonville State
2
–
4
5
–
6
Nicholls State
1
–
5
3
–
8
Southwest Texas State
0
–
6
4
–
7
+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2001 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
W
L
East
Alabama State x
6
–
1
8
–
4
Jackson State
5
–
2
7
–
4
Alcorn State
5
–
2
6
–
5
Alabama A&M
3
–
4
4
–
7
Mississippi Valley State
0
–
7
0
–
11
West
No. 8 Grambling State x$
6
–
1
10
–
1
Southern
5
–
2
7
–
4
Prairie View A&M
2
–
5
3
–
7
Texas Southern
2
–
5
3
–
7
Arkansas–Pine Bluff
1
–
6
4
–
7
Championship: Grambling State 38, Alabama State 31 December 1, 2001
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions
Conference champions [ ]
See also: List of NCAA Division I-AA/FCS football seasons
Conference Champions
Atlantic 10 Conference – Hofstra , Maine , Villanova , and William & Mary
Big Sky Conference – Montana
Gateway Football Conference – Northern Iowa
Ivy League – Harvard
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference – Duquesne
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – Florida A&M
Northeast Conference – Sacred Heart
Ohio Valley Conference – Eastern Illinois
Patriot League – Lehigh
Pioneer Football League – Dayton
Southern Conference – Furman and Georgia Southern
Southland Football League – McNeese State and Sam Houston State
Southwestern Athletic Conference – Grambling State
Postseason [ ]
NCAA Division I-AA playoff bracket [ ]
The top four teams in the tournament were seeded ;[2] seeded teams were assured of hosting games in the first two rounds.[3] [4]
First Round December 1 Campus sites
Quarterfinals December 8 Campus sites
Semifinals December 15 Campus sites
National Championship Game December 21 Finley Stadium Chattanooga, TN
1
Montana *
28
Northwestern State
19
1
Montana *
49
Sam Houston State
24
Sam Houston State *
34
Northern Arizona
31
1
Montana *
38
Northern Iowa
0
McNeese State *
10
Maine
14
Maine
28
Northern Iowa *
56
4
Eastern Illinois *
43
Northern Iowa
49
1
Montana
13
3
Furman
6
2
Georgia Southern *
60
Florida A&M
35
2
Georgia Southern *
38
Appalachian State
24
Appalachian State *
40
William & Mary
27
2
Georgia Southern*
17
3
Furman
24
Lehigh *
27*
Hofstra
24
Lehigh
17
3
Furman *
34
3
Furman *
24
Western Kentucky
20
* By team name denotes host institution
* By score denotes overtime
References [ ]
^ "2001 NCAA Division I Football Championship" (PDF) . NCAA.org . p. 3. Retrieved December 29, 2013 .
^ "Griz will face NWestern State in playoffs" . Independent Record . Helena, Montana . AP . November 26, 2001. p. 1B. Retrieved February 2, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
^ Kasper, Jon (November 12, 2001). "NCAA changes format for playoff pairings" . Missoulian . Missoula, Montana . p. D1. Retrieved February 2, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
^ Kasper, Jon (November 12, 2001). "NCAA changes format for playoff pairings (cont'd)" . Missoulian . Missoula, Montana . p. D6. Retrieved February 2, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
Champion – Montana Grizzlies
Pre-NCAA
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NCAA Division I NCAA Division I-A/FBS NCAA Division I-AA/FCS NCAA College Division NCAA Division II NCAA Division III