# 1987 NAIA Division II football season

The 1987 NAIA Division II football season, as part of the 1987 college football season in the United States and the 32nd season of college football sponsored by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), was the 18th season of play of the NAIA's lower division for football.
The season was played from August to November 1987 and culminated in the 1987 NAIA Division II Football National Championship, played at the Tacoma Dome near the campus of Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington. Pacific Lutheran and Wisconsin–Stevens Point played to a tie, 16–16, and were declared co-national champions. It was Pacific Lutheran's second NAIA national title and Wisconsin–Stevens Point's first. However, the Pointers later forfeited their shared of title after it was discovered they had been used two ineligible players during the season.

## Conference realignment
### Conference changes

* This was the first season for the Mid-South Conference.

## Conference standings

1987 Columbia Football League standings :
| 1987 Columbia Football League standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Northern Division No. 8 Central Washington * x 5 –1 –07 –3 –0 No. 6 Pacific Lutheran ^ 4 –1 –111 –1 –1 No. 17 Puget Sound 4 –2 –06 –3 –0 Simon Fraser 4 –2 –04 –6 –0 Western Washington 2 –3 –14 –3 –2 Whitworth 1 –5 –03 –6 –0 Lewis & Clark 0 –6 –00 –9 –0 Southern Division Oregon Tech x 5 –1 –05 –4 –0 No. 15 Southern Oregon * 4 –2 –07 –4 –0 Linfield 4 –2 –05 –4 –0 Pacific (OR) 3 –2 –14 –3 –2 Western Oregon 3 –3 –05 –4 –0 Willamette 1 –4 –13 –5 –1 Eastern Oregon 0 –6 –01 –8 –0 x – Division champion/co-champions * – NAIA Division I playoff participant ^ – NAIA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division I poll for Central Washington, Puget Sound, and Southern Oregon and NAIA Division II poll for Pacific Lutheran | 1987 Frontier Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 5 Carroll (MT) $^ 5 –0 –08 –2 –0 Montana Tech 2 –3 –04 –5 –0 Rocky Mountain 0 –4 –02 –6 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll | 1987 Heart of America Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 2 Baker $^ 6 –0 –09 –2 –0 No. 21 Missouri Valley 4 –1 –16 –3 –1 William Jewell 3 –3 –05 –5 –0 Tarkio 2 –2 –22 –6 –2 Culver–Stockton 1 –3 –23 –5 –2 Graceland 1 –4 –12 –6 –1 MidAmerica Nazarene 1 –5 –01 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll |
| 1987 Illini–Badger Football Conference standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Concordia (IL) $ 5 –0 –07 –2 –0 Concordia (WI) 4 –1 –06 –3 –0 Lakeland 3 –2 –06 –3 –0 Northeastern Illinois 2 –3 –02 –7 –0 Eureka 1 –4 –02 –8 –0 Principia 0 –5 –00 –9 –0 $ – Conference champion | 1987 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 8 Bethany (KS) +^ 8 –1 –08 –2 –0 No. 17 Southwestern (KS) +^ 8 –1 –08 –2 –0 Kansas Wesleyan 7 –2 –07 –3 –0 Sterling 6 –3 –06 –4 –0 Friends 5 –4 –06 –4 –0 St. Mary of the Plains 3 –6 –04 –6 –0 Bethel (KS) 3 –6 –03 –6 –0 Ottawa 3 –6 –03 –7 –0 McPherson 1 –8 –01 –8 –0 Tabor 1 –8 –01 –8 –0 + – Conference co-champions^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll | 1987 Nebraska Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 16 Midland $^ 4 –1 –07 –3 –0 No. 14 Dana ^ 3 –2 –08 –3 –0 Nebraska Wesleyan 3 –2 –06 –4 –0 Doane 2 –3 –05 –5 –0 Hastings 2 –3 –04 –5 –0 Concordia (NE) 1 –4 –06 –4 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll |
| 1987 North Dakota College Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 1 Dickinson State $^ 5 –0 –09 –1 –0 No. 19 Valley City State 4 –1 –06 –3 –0 Minot State 3 –2 –06 –3 –0 Jamestown 2 –3 –05 –4 –0 NDSCS–Wahpeton 1 –4 –04 –4 –0 Mayville State 0 –5 –01 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll | 1987 South Dakota Intercollegiate Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Dakota Wesleyan + 4 –1 –06 –4 –0 Black Hills State + 4 –1 –04 –5 –0 Huron 3 –2 –05 –4 –0 South Dakota Tech 2 –3 –03 –6 –0 Sioux Falls 2 –3 –03 –7 –0 Dakota State 0 –5 –00 –10 –0 $ – Conference champion | 1987 Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Tarleton State $^ 6 –0 –09 –3 –0 Sul Ross 2 –2 –25 –2 –2 McMurry 1 –3 –23 –5 –2 Austin 0 –4 –22 –5 –3 Howard Payne 0 –0 –05 –5 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NAIA Division II playoff participant |
| 1987 Wisconsin State University Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Wisconsin–Whitewater + 6 –2 –08 –2 –1 No. 25 Wisconsin–River Falls + 6 –2 –07 –3 –0 No. 24 Wisconsin–Eau Claire 5 –3 –06 –4 –0 Wisconsin–La Crosse 5 –3 –06 –4 –0 Wisconsin–Stout 5 –3 –06 –5 –0 Wisconsin–Platteville 4 –4 –06 –5 –0 Wisconsin–Oshkosh 3 –5 –06 –5 –0 Wisconsin–Superior 2 –6 –03 –7 –0 No. 4 Wisconsin–Stevens Point ^ 0 –8 –00 –15 –0 + – Conference co-champions^ – NAIA Division II playoff participant Wisconsin–Stevens Point finished the season with an overall record of 12–2–1 and a conference mark of 7–1, winning the WSUC title and advancing to the NAIA Division II Football National Championship playoffs, where they tied Pacific Lutheran in the title game, sharing the NAIA Division II title. In May 1988, Stevens Point forfeited its 12 wins, the one tie, and the conference and NAIA titles because of the use of two ineligible players.Rankings from NAIA Division II poll | 1987 NAIA Division II independents football records vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 3 St. Ambrose ^   –  11 –0 –1 No. 15 Geneva ^   –  11 –2 –0 No. 12 Westmar ^   –  9 –2 –0 No. 7 Westminster (PA) ^   –  9 –2 –0 No. 10 Bluffton ^   –  8 –2 –0 No. 13 St. Francis (IL) ^   –  8 –3 –0 Findlay   –  5 –4 –0 Waynesburg   –  5 –4 –0 Wilmington (OH)   –  5 –4 –0 Evangel   –  5 –4 –1 Peru State   –  5 –5 –0 Benedictine (KS)   –  4 –7 –0 Iowa Wesleyan   –  4 –7 –0 Northwestern (IA)   –  3 –7 –0 Oklahoma Panhandle State   –  2 –7 –0 Franklin (IN)   –  2 –8 –0 Azusa Pacific   –  2 –8 –0 Texas Lutheran   –  2 –8 –0 Chadron State   –  1 –8 –0 Tiffin   –  1 –9 –0 ^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll |

## Conference champions

| Conference | Champion | Record |
| Columbia | Mount Rainier Division: Central Washington Mount Hood Division: Oregon Tech | 5–1 5–1 |
| Frontier | Carroll (MT) | 8–2 |
| Heart of America | Baker | 6–0 |
| Illini–Badger | Concordia (IL) | 5–0 |
| Kansas | Bethany Southwestern (KS) | 8–1 |
| Mid-South | Georgetown (KY) | 8–3 |
| Nebraska | Midland | 4–1 |
| North Dakota | Dickinson State | 5–0 |
| South Dakota | Black Hills State | 4–1 |
| Texas | Tarleton State | 6–0 |
| WSUC | Wisconsin–River Falls Wisconsin–Whitewater | 6–2 |

## Postseason

| First Round Campus sites | First Round Campus sites | Quarterfinals Campus sites | Quarterfinals Campus sites | Semifinals Campus sites | Semifinals Campus sites | | Championship Tacoma, WA | Championship Tacoma, WA |
| Westminster (PA) | 24 | | | | | | | |
| Georgetown (KY) ‡ | 17 | | | | | | | |
| Georgetown (KY) ‡ | 17 | Westminster (PA)* | 15 | | | | | |
| | | Geneva | 16 | | | | | |
| Bluffton | 13 | Geneva | 16 | | | | | |
| Geneva* | 16 | | | | | | | |
| Geneva* | 16 | | | Geneva | 25 | | | |
| | | | | Wisconsin–Stevens Point* | 48 | | | |
| Westmar | 24 | | | | | Wisconsin–Stevens Point* | 48 | | | |
| Wisconsin–Stevens Point* | 50 | | | | | | | |
| Wisconsin–Stevens Point* | 50 | Wisconsin–Stevens Point | 30 | | | | | |
| | | Saint Ambrose* | 14 | | | | | |
| Saint Ambrose | 21 | Saint Ambrose* | 14 | | | | | |
| St. Francis (IL)* | 3 | | | | | | | |
| St. Francis (IL)* | 3 | | | | | | Wisconsin–Stevens Point | 16 |
| | | | | | | | Pacific Lutheran* | 16 |
| Bethany | 26 | | | | | | | | Pacific Lutheran* | 16 |
| Tarleton State* | 38 | | | | | | | |
| Tarleton State* | 38 | Tarleton State* | 12 | | | | | |
| | | Baker | 13 | | | | | |
| Dana | 35 | Baker | 13 | | | | | |
| Baker ‡‡ | 37 | | | | | | | |
| Baker ‡‡ | 37 | | | Baker | 14 | | | |
| | | | | Pacific Lutheran* (OT) | 17 | | | |
| Dickinson State | 21 | | | | | Pacific Lutheran* (OT) | 17 | | | |
| Carroll (MT)* (OT) | 28 | | | | | | | |
| Carroll (MT)* (OT) | 28 | Carroll (MT)* | 26 | | | | | |
| | | Pacific Lutheran | 36 | | | | | |
| Midland | 21 | Pacific Lutheran | 36 | | | | | |
| Pacific Lutheran* | 40 | | | | | | | |
* ‡ Game played at Lexington, Kentucky
* ‡‡ Game played at Lawrence, Kansas