# 2003 NCAA Division I-AA football season

The 2003 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 2003, and concluded with the 2003 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 19, 2003, at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens won their first I-AA championship, defeating the Colgate Raiders by a final score of 40−0.

## Conference changes and new programs

| School | 2002 Conference | 2003 Conference |
| Canisius | MAAC | Dropped Program |
| Coastal Carolina | New Program | Big South |
| Elon | Big South | Southern |
| Fairfield | MAAC | Dropped Program |
| Jacksonville State | Southland | Ohio Valley |
| Morris Brown | I-AA Independent | Dropped Program |
| St. John's (NY) | MAAC | Dropped Program |
| Samford | I-AA Independent | Ohio Valley |
| Southeastern Louisiana | Revived Program | I-AA Independent |
| VMI | Southern | Big South |

## Conference standings

2003 Atlantic 10 Conference football standings :
| 2003 Atlantic 10 Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 1 Delaware +^  8 –1  15 –1   No. 11 UMass +^  8 –1  10 –3   No. 20 Northeastern  6 –3  8 –4   No. 25 Villanova  5 –4  7 –4   Maine  4 –4  6 –5   William & Mary  4 –4  5 –5   James Madison  4 –5  6 –6   New Hampshire  3 –6  5 –7   Rhode Island  3 –6  4 –8   Hofstra  2 –6  2 –10   Richmond  1 –8  2 –9   + – Conference co-champions^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll | 2003 Big Sky Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 14 Montana +^  5 –2  9 –4   No. 10 N Arizona +^  5 –2  9 –4   No. 21 Montana State +^  5 –2  7 –6   No. 22 Idaho State  4 –3  8 –4   Weber State  4 –3  8 –4   Eastern Washington  3 –4  6 –5   Portland State  1 –6  4 –7   Sacramento State  1 –6  2 –9   + – Conference co-champions^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll | 2003 Big South Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  Gardner–Webb $  4 –0  8 –4   Liberty  3 –1  6 –6   VMI  2 –2  6 –6   Coastal Carolina  1 –3  6 –5   Charleston Southern  0 –4  1 –11   $ – Conference champion |
| 2003 Gateway Football Conference standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 5 Northern Iowa +^  6 –1  10 –3   No. 9 Southern Illinois +^  6 –1  10 –2   No. 6 Western Illinois ^  5 –2  9 –4   No. 7 Western Kentucky ^  5 –2  9 –4   Illinois State  3 –4  6 –6   Youngstown State  2 –5  5 –7   Southwest Missouri State  1 –6  4 –7   Indiana State  0 –7  3 –9   + – Conference co-champions^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll | 2003 Ivy League football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 12 Penn $  7 –0  10 –0   Harvard  4 –3  7 –3   Brown  4 –3  5 –5   Yale  4 –3  6 –4   Dartmouth  4 –3  5 –5   Columbia  3 –4  4 –6   Princeton  2 –5  2 –8   Cornell  0 –7  1 –9   $ – Conference championRankings from The Sports Network poll | 2003 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  Duquesne $  5 –0  8 –3   Iona  4 –1  6 –5   Marist  2 –3  4 –6   La Salle  2 –3  3 –8   Saint Peter's  2 –3  2 –8   Siena  0 –5  0 –11   $ – Conference champion |
| 2003 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 16 North Carolina A&T $^  7 –1  10 –2   No. 15 Bethune–Cookman ^  6 –2  9 –2   South Carolina State  5 –2  8 –4   Hampton  5 –2  7 –4   Morgan State  4 –3  6 –5   Florida A&M  3 –4  6 –6   Howard  2 –5  4 –7   Delaware State  1 –6  1 –10   Norfolk State  0 –8  1 –11   $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll | 2003 Northeast Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  Monmouth +  6 –1  10 –2   Albany +  6 –1  7 –4   Robert Morris  4 –3  6 –4   Stony Brook  4 –3  6 –4   Sacred Heart  3 –4  6 –5   Wagner  3 –4  6 –5   Central Connecticut State  2 –4  3 –8   Saint Francis (PA)  0 –7  1 –9   + – Conference co-champions | 2003 Ohio Valley Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 18 Jacksonville State $^  7 –1  8 –4   Eastern Kentucky  6 –2  7 –5   Samford  5 –3  7 –4   Tennessee State  5 –3  7 –5   Southeast Missouri State  5 –3  5 –7   Murray State  3 –5  4 –8   Eastern Illinois  3 –5  4 –8   Tennessee Tech  1 –7  2 –9   Tennessee–Martin  1 –7  2 –10   $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll |
| 2003 Patriot League football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 2 Colgate $^  7 –0  15 –1   No. 23 Lehigh  6 –1  8 –3   Fordham  4 –3  9 –3   Bucknell  4 –3  6 –6   Towson  3 –4  6 –6   Lafayette  2 –5  5 –6   Georgetown  1 –6  4 –8   Holy Cross  1 –6  1 –11   $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll | 2003 Pioneer Football League standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  North Division Valparaiso xy$  3 –1  8 –4   San Diego x  3 –1  8 –2   Dayton  2 –2  9 –2   Drake  1 –3  6 –6   Butler  1 –3  2 –9   South Division Morehead State xy  3 –0  8 –3   Jacksonville  1 –2  4 –6   Austin Peay  1 –2  4 –7   Davidson  1 –2  3 –8   Championship: Valparaiso 54, Morehead State 42 $ – Conference championx – Division champion/co-championsy – Championship game participant | 2003 Southern Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 3 Wofford $^  8 –0  12 –2   Appalachian State  6 –2  7 –4   No. 24 Georgia Southern  5 –3  7 –4   Furman  4 –4  6 –5   The Citadel  4 –4  6 –6   Western Carolina  3 –5  4 –7   Chattanooga  3 –5  3 –9   East Tennessee State  2 –6  5 –7   Elon  1 –7  2 –10   $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network I-AA Poll |
| 2003 Southland Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 8 McNeese State $^  5 –0  10 –2   Stephen F. Austin  4 –1  7 –4   Northwestern State  2 –3  7 –5   Texas State  2 –3  5 –7   Sam Houston State  2 –3  3 –8   Nicholls State†  0 –5  0 –11   $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant† – Nicholls State forfeited 5 wins, including 3 conference victories.Rankings from The Sports Network poll | 2003 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  East Division Alabama State xy  5 –2  8 –5   Alcorn State x  5 –2  7 –5   Alabama A&M  4 –3  8 –4   Jackson State  2 –5  2 –10   Mississippi Valley State  1 –6  2 –9   West Division No. 13 Southern xy$  6 –1  12 –1   No. 17 Grambling State x  6 –1  9 –3   Texas Southern  3 –4  5 –6   Arkansas–Pine Bluff  3 –4  4 –7   Prairie View A&M  0 –7  1 –10   Championship: Southern 20, Alabama State 9 $ – Conference championx – Division champion/co-championsRankings from The Sports Network Poll | 2003 NCAA Division I-AA independents football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 4 Florida Atlantic ^   –  11 –3   Cal Poly   –  7 –4   Southeastern Louisiana   –  5 –7   Southern Utah   –  4 –7   Saint Mary's   –  1 –11   FIU   –  0 –10   Savannah State   –  0 –12   ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRecord adjusted for 2 vacated wins by FIURankings from The Sports Network poll |

## Conference champions

* Conference Champions
* Atlantic 10 Conference – Delaware and UMass
* Big Sky Conference – Montana, Montana State, and Northern Arizona
* Big South Conference – Gardner-Webb
* Gateway Football Conference – Northern Iowa and Southern Illinois
* Ivy League – Penn
* Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference – Duquesne
* Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – North Carolina A&T
* Northeast Conference – Albany (NY) and Monmouth
* Ohio Valley Conference – Jacksonville State
* Patriot League – Colgate
* Pioneer Football League – Valparaiso
* Southern Conference – Wofford
* Southland Conference – McNeese State
* Southwestern Athletic Conference – Southern

## Postseason
### NCAA Division I-AA playoff bracket

The top four teams in the tournament were seeded; seeded teams were assured of hosting games in the first two rounds.
| First Round November 29 Campus sites | First Round November 29 Campus sites | First Round November 29 Campus sites | Quarterfinals December 6 Campus sites | Quarterfinals December 6 Campus sites | Quarterfinals December 6 Campus sites | Semifinals December 13 Campus sites | Semifinals December 13 Campus sites | Semifinals December 13 Campus sites | | National Championship Game December 19 Finley Stadium Chattanooga, TN | National Championship Game December 19 Finley Stadium Chattanooga, TN | National Championship Game December 19 Finley Stadium Chattanooga, TN |
| 1 | McNeese State* | 3 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Northern Arizona | 35 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Northern Arizona | 35 | Northern Arizona* | Northern Arizona* | 25 | | | | | | | |
| | | | Florida Atlantic | Florida Atlantic | 48 | | | | | | | |
| Bethune–Cookman* | Bethune–Cookman* | 24 | Florida Atlantic | Florida Atlantic | 48 | | | | | | | |
| Florida Atlantic | Florida Atlantic | 32 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Florida Atlantic | Florida Atlantic | 32 | | | | | Florida Atlantic* | 24 | | | | |
| | | | | | | 4 | Colgate | 36 | | | | |
| 4 | Colgate* | 19 | | | | | | | 4 | Colgate | 36 | | | | |
| | UMass | 7 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | UMass | 7 | 4 | Colgate* | 28 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | Western Illinois | 27 | | | | | | | |
| Montana* | Montana* | 40 | | Western Illinois | 27 | | | | | | | |
| Western Illinois | Western Illinois | 43** | | | | | | | | | | |
| Western Illinois | Western Illinois | 43** | | | | | | | | 4 | Colgate | 0 |
| | | | | | | | | | | 2 | Delaware | 40 |
| 3 | Wofford* | 31 | | | | | | | | | | | 2 | Delaware | 40 |
| | North Carolina A&T | 0 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | North Carolina A&T | 0 | 3 | Wofford* | 34 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | Western Kentucky | 17 | | | | | | | |
| Western Kentucky* | Western Kentucky* | 45 | | Western Kentucky | 17 | | | | | | | |
| Jacksonville State | Jacksonville State | 7 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Jacksonville State | Jacksonville State | 7 | | | | 3 | Wofford | 9 | | | | |
| | | | | | | 2 | Delaware* | 24 | | | | |
| 2 | Delaware* | 48 | | | | | | | 2 | Delaware* | 24 | | | | |
| | Southern Illinois | 7 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Southern Illinois | 7 | 2 | Delaware* | 37 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | Northern Iowa | 7 | | | | | | | |
| Northern Iowa* | Northern Iowa* | 35 | | Northern Iowa | 7 | | | | | | | |
| Montana State | Montana State | 14 | | | | | | | | | | |
* By team name denotes host institution
* By score denotes overtime period(s)