# 1979 NCAA Division II football season

The 1979 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level, began in August 1979, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship in December 1979 at University Stadium in Albuquerque, NM. During the game's two-year stretch in New Mexico, it was referred to as the Zia Bowl. The Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens defeated the Youngstown State Penguins, 38–21, to win their first Division II national title.

## Conference changes and new programs

* One program upgraded to Division I-AA while two others downgraded back to Division II.
| School | 1978 Conference | 1979 Conference |
| Bethune-Cookman | SIAC (II) | MEAC (I-AA) |
| Eastern Washington | Evergreen (NAIA) | Independent |
| Morgan State | MEAC (I-AA) | Independent |
| Nicholls State | Gulf South | Independent |
| North Carolina Central | MEAC (I-AA) | CIAA (II) |
| Northern Colorado | Independent | North Central |
| Southeastern Louisiana | Gulf South | Independent |

## Conference standings

1979 Association of Mid-Continent Universities football standings :
| 1979 Association of Mid-Continent Universities football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 2 Youngstown State $^ 5 –0 –011 –2 –0 Northern Iowa 4 –1 –06 –5 –0 Akron 3 –2 –06 –5 –0 Eastern Illinois 1 –4 –07 –4 –0 Northern Michigan 1 –4 –04 –6 –0 Western Illinois 1 –4 –03 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division II playoff participantRankings from NCAA Division II AP Poll | 1979 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 7 Cal Poly $ 2 –0 –07 –3 –0 Cal State Northridge 1 –1 –03 –7 –0 Cal Poly Pomona 0 –2 –00 –11 –0 $ – Conference championRankings from NCAA Division II AP Poll | 1979 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 6 Virginia Union $^ 8 –0 –010 –2 –0 Winston-Salem State 6 –1 –18 –2 –1 Norfolk State 6 –1 –18 –3 –1 Virginia State 5 –2 –16 –4 –1 Fayetteville State 4 –3 –14 –4 –1 Elizabeth City State 2 –6 –03 –7 –0 Hampton 2 –6 –03 –8 –0 Livingstone 2 –6 –03 –8 –0 Johnson C. Smith 1 –6 –11 –9 –1 Saint Paul's (VA) 0 –8 –00 –9 –0 Bowie State * 0 –0 –02 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant * – ineligible for conference title Rankings from NCAA Division II AP Poll |
| 1979 Far Western Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T UC Davis $ 5 –0 –07 –2 –1 Humboldt State 4 –1 –08 –2 –0 Chico State 2 –3 –05 –6 –0 Sacramento State 2 –3 –04 –6 –0 San Francisco State 1 –4 –03 –7 –0 Cal State Hayward 1 –4 –02 –8 –0 $ – Conference championAdjusted for Cal Poly Pomona forfeits to UC Davis and Sacramento State | 1979 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 8 Saginaw Valley State $^ 4 –0 –18 –2 –1 Wayne State (MI) 3 –1 –13 –5 –1 Ferris State 3 –2 –05 –4 –1 Grand Valley State 2 –3 –04 –5 –0 Northwood 1 –4 –05 –4 –0 Hillsdale 1 –4 –03 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NAIA Division I playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division I poll | 1979 Gulf South Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 5 Mississippi College $^ 5 –1 –010 –3 –0 Troy State 4 –1 –06 –3 –1 Tennessee–Martin 3 –2 –05 –5 –0 North Alabama 3 –3 –06 –5 –0 Delta State 2 –4 –04 –6 –0 Jacksonville State 1 –5 –04 –6 –0 Livingston 1 –5 –03 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division II playoff participantRankings from AP Poll |
| 1979 Heartland Collegiate Conference standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Saint Joseph's (IN) $ 4 –1 –08 –2 –0 Franklin (IN) 5 –2 –06 –4 –0 Butler 3 –2 –05 –5 –0 Valparaiso 2 –3 –05 –4 –0 Indiana Central 2 –4 –03 –6 –0 Evansville 0 –6 –02 –9 –0 Georgetown (KY) * 3 –0 –04 –6 –0 Ashland * 0 –1 –03 –6 –0 $ – Conference champion * – ineligible for conference title | 1979 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Morgan State $ 5 –0 –09 –2 –0 South Carolina State 4 –1 –08 –3 –0 North Carolina A&T 2 –2 –14 –6 –1 Howard 2 –3 –05 –6 –0 Delaware State 1 –4 –14 –5 –1 North Carolina Central 1 –4 –02 –8 –1 Maryland Eastern Shore 0 –0 –03 –7 –1 $ – Conference championMaryland Eastern Shore games did not count as conference games in 1979 | 1979 Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T NW Missouri State $ 5 –1 –06 –5 –0 SE Missouri State 5 –1 –06 –4 –1 Missouri-Rolla 3 –3 –07 –3 –1 SW Missouri State 3 –3 –07 –4 –0 NE Missouri State 3 –3 –04 –7 –0 Central Missouri State 1 –5 –02 –8 –0 Lincoln (MO) 1 –5 –04 –7 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant |
| 1979 North Central Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 3 North Dakota $^ 5 –1 –010 –2 –0 No. 8 South Dakota State * ^ 4 –2 –09 –3 –0 North Dakota State 4 –2 –06 –4 –0 Nebraska–Omaha 3 –3 –08 –3 –0 South Dakota * 3 –3 –05 –6 –0 Augustana (SD) 2 –4 –04 –5 –0 Morningside 0 –6 –00 –10 –0 Northern Colorado † 0 –0 –02 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant * – South Dakota State won two head-to-head games over South Dakota, which counted as one game for each team in the conference standings. † – Northern Colorado was ineligible for the conference title. Rankings from AP Poll | 1979 Northern Intercollegiate Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Minnesota Duluth + 7 –1 –08 –2 –0 Moorhead State + 7 –1 –08 –3 –0 Minnesota Morris ^ 6 –2 –09 –2 –0 St. Cloud State 5 –3 –05 –6 –0 Mankato State 4 –4 –05 –5 –0 Michigan Tech 4 –4 –04 –6 –0 Southwest State (MN) 2 –6 –04 –7 –0 Bemidji State 1 –7 –01 –8 –1 Winona State 0 –8 –00 –11 –0 + – Conference co-champions^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant | 1979 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T East Division Cheyney xy 4 –1 –09 –2 –0 Millersville x^ 4 –1 –08 –2 –0 East Stroudsburg 3 –2 –07 –3 –0 Kutztown 3 –2 –06 –3 –0 Bloomsburg 1 –4 –02 –8 –0 Mansfield 0 –5 –00 –9 –0 West Division Lock Haven xy$ 6 –0 –09 –2 –0 Clarion 5 –1 –09 –1 –0 Indiana (PA) 3 –3 –07 –3 –0 Slippery Rock 2 –4 –03 –6 –0 Edinboro 2 –4 –04 –6 –0 Shippensburg 2 –4 –04 –6 –0 California (PA) 1 –5 –03 –7 –0 Championship: Lock Haven 48, Cheyney 14 $ – Conference championx – Division champion/co-championsy – Championship game participant^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant |
| 1979 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Northern Division No. 10 Fairmont State xy$ 7 –1 –19 –1 –1 No. T–15th West Liberty State x 7 –1 –17 –2 –1 Salem 6 –2 –16 –3 –1 Shepherd 5 –4 –05 –5 –0 West Virginia Wesleyan 1 –8 –01 –8 –0 Southern Division West Virginia State xy 6 –3 –06 –5 –0 Concord 4 –3 –25 –3 –2 Glenville State 3 –6 –04 –6 –0 West Virginia Tech 1 –6 –21 –6 –2 Bluefield State 1 –7 –11 –8 –1 Championship: Fairmont State 14, West Virginia State 13 $ – Conference championx – Division champion/co-championsy – Championship game participantRankings from NAIA Division I poll | 1979 NCAA Division II independents football records vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 1 Delaware ^   –  13 –1 –0 Towson State   –  9 –1 –0 No. 4 Morgan State ^   –  9 –2 –0 Eastern Washington   –  7 –2 –0 Nicholls State   –  8 –3 –0 United States International   –  8 –3 –0 American International   –  6 –3 –0 No. 10 Santa Clara   –  6 –3 –0 Kentucky State   –  6 –5 –0 Central State (OH)   –  5 –5 –0 Central Connecticut   –  4 –5 –0 James Madison   –  4 –5 –0 West Chester   –  4 –7 –0 Southern Connecticut State   –  3 –7 –0 Arkansas–Pine Bluff   –  2 –8 –0 ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participantRankings from Associated Press poll |

## Conference summaries

| Conference | Champions |
| Association of Mid-Continent Universities | Youngstown State |
| California Collegiate Athletic Association | Cal Poly |
| Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association | Virginia Union |
| Far Western Football Conference | UC Davis |
| Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference | Saginaw Valley State |
| Gulf South Conference | Mississippi College |
| Heartland Collegiate Conference | Saint Joseph's |
| Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association | Northwest Missouri State |
| North Central Conference | North Dakota |
| Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference | Alabama A&M |

## Postseason

The 1979 NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs were the sixth single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college football. The championship game was held at University Stadium in Albuquerque, NM for the first time. With the game being played in New Mexico for the next two years, it was deemed the Zia Bowl.

### Playoff bracket

| First round Campus sites | First round Campus sites | First round Campus sites | Semifinals Campus sites | Semifinals Campus sites | Semifinals Campus sites | Championship University Stadium Albuquerque, NM | Championship University Stadium Albuquerque, NM | Championship University Stadium Albuquerque, NM |
| Delaware | Delaware | 58 | | | | | | |
| Virginia Union | Virginia Union | 28 | | | | | | |
| Virginia Union | Virginia Union | 28 | Delaware | Delaware | 60 | | | |
| | | | Mississippi College | Mississippi College | 10 | | | |
| Mississippi College | Mississippi College | 35 | Mississippi College | Mississippi College | 10 | | | |
| North Dakota | North Dakota | 15 | | | | | | |
| North Dakota | North Dakota | 15 | | | | Delaware | Delaware | 38 |
| | | | | | | Youngstown State | Youngstown State | 21 |
| Youngstown State | Youngstown State | 51 | | | | | | | Youngstown State | Youngstown State | 21 |
| South Dakota State | South Dakota State | 7 | | | | | | |
| South Dakota State | South Dakota State | 7 | Youngstown State | Youngstown State | 52 | | | |
| | | | Alabama A&M | Alabama A&M | 0 | | | |
| Alabama A&M | Alabama A&M | 27 | Alabama A&M | Alabama A&M | 0 | | | |
| Morgan State | Morgan State | 7 | | | | | | |