# 1996 NCAA Division I-AA football season

The 1996 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 1996, and concluded with the 1996 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 21, 1996, at Marshall University Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia. The Marshall Thundering Herd won their second I-AA championship, defeating the defending national champion Montana Grizzlies by a score of 49–29.

## Conference changes and new programs

* The American West Conference disbanded following the 1995 season and its four remaining members either became independents (Cal Poly, Sacramento State, and Southern Utah) or joined the Big Sky (Cal State Northridge).
* Prior to the season, the Northeast Conference, a preexisting Division I conference, announced it would add football for its five members that sponsored the sport.
| School | 1995 Conference | 1996 Conference |
| Boise State | Big Sky | Big West (I-A) |
| Cal State Northridge | American West | Big Sky |
| Cal Poly | American West | I-AA Independent |
| Central Connecticut State | I-AA Independent | Northeast |
| Central Florida | I-AA Independent | I-A Independent |
| Eastern Illinois | Gateway | Ohio Valley |
| Fairfield | New Program | MAAC |
| Idaho | Big Sky | Big West (I-A) |
| Jacksonville State | D-II Independent | I-AA Independent |
| Monmouth | I-AA Independent | Northeast |
| Morehead State | Ohio Valley | I-AA Independent |
| Portland State | D-II Independent | Big Sky (I-AA) |
| Robert Morris | I-AA Independent | Northeast |
| Sacramento State | American West | Big Sky |
| St. Francis (PA) | I-AA Independent | Northeast |
| Southern Utah | American West | I-AA Independent |
| Troy State | I-AA Independent | Southland |
| UAB | I-AA Independent | I-A Independent |
| Wagner | I-AA Independent | Northeast |

## Conference standings

1996 Big Sky Conference football standings :
| 1996 Big Sky Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 2 Montana $^  7 –0  14 –1   No. 6 Northern Arizona ^  6 –1  9 –3   Cal State Northridge  4 –3  7 –4   Weber State  4 –3  7 –4   Eastern Washington  3 –4  6 –5   Montana State  3 –4  6 –5   Idaho State  1 –6  4 –7   Sacramento State  0 –7  1 –10   Portland State  0 –0  3 –8   $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantPortland State games did not count in conference standingsRankings from The Sports Network poll | 1996 Gateway Football Conference standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 3 Northern Iowa $^  5 –0  12 –2   No. 10 Western Illinois ^  3 –2  9 –3   No. 21 Southwest Missouri State  3 –2  7 –4   Indiana State  3 –2  6 –5   Southern Illinois  1 –4  5 –6   Illinois State  0 –5  3 –8   $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll | 1996 Ivy League football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 17 Dartmouth $  7 –0  10 –0   Columbia  5 –2  8 –2   Brown  4 –3  5 –5   Cornell  4 –3  4 –6   Penn  3 –4  5 –5   Harvard  2 –5  4 –6   Princeton  2 –5  3 –7   Yale  1 –6  2 –8   $ – Conference championRankings from The Sports Network poll |
| 1996 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  Duquesne $  8 –0  10 –1   Georgetown  7 –1  7 –3   Marist  6 –2  7 –3   St. John's  5 –3  6 –4   Canisius  4 –4  5 –4   Saint Peter's  2 –6  2 –7   Siena  2 –6  2 –7   Fairfield  1 –7  1 –8   Iona  1 –7  1 –9   $ – Conference champion | 1996 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 12 Florida A&M $^  7 –0  9 –3   No. 20 Howard  6 –1  10 –2   North Carolina A&T  4 –3  8 –3   South Carolina State  4 –3  4 –6   Hampton  3 –4  5 –6   Morgan State  2 –5  4 –7   Delaware State  2 –5  3 –8   Bethune–Cookman  0 –7  2 –9   $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll | 1996 Northeast Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  Robert Morris +  3 –1  9 –2   Monmouth +  3 –1  7 –3   Central Connecticut State  2 –2  3 –7   Wagner  2 –2  5 –5   Saint Francis (PA)  0 –4  3 –7   + – Conference co-champions |
| 1996 Ohio Valley Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 4 Murray State $^  8 –0  11 –2   No. 16 Eastern Illinois ^  6 –2  8 –4   Eastern Kentucky  6 –2  6 –5   Middle Tennessee  4 –4  6 –5   Tennessee Tech  4 –4  5 –6   Tennessee State  3 –5  4 –7   Southeast Missouri State  3 –5  3 –8   Austin Peay  1 –7  1 –10   Tennessee–Martin  1 –7  1 –10   $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll | 1996 Patriot League football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  Bucknell $  4 –1  6 –5   Colgate  3 –2  6 –5   Lehigh  3 –2  5 –6   Lafayette  2 –2  5 –5   Fordham  1 –3  2 –8   Holy Cross  1 –4  2 –9   $ – Conference champion | 1996 Pioneer Football League standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 24 Dayton $  5 –0  11 –0   Drake  4 –1  8 –3   Evansville  2 –3  5 –5   Butler  2 –3  3 –7   San Diego  1 –4  4 –6   Valparaiso  1 –4  4 –6   $ – Conference championRankings from The Sports Network poll |
| 1996 Southern Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 1 Marshall $^  8 –0  15 –0   No. T–8 East Tennessee State ^  7 –1  10 –3   No. 13 Furman ^  6 –2  9 –4   No. 25 Appalachian State  5 –3  7 –4   The Citadel  3 –5  4 –7   Georgia Southern  2 –6  4 –7   VMI  2 –6  3 –8   Chattanooga  2 –6  3 –8   Western Carolina  1 –7  4 –7   $ – Conference championRankings from The Sports Network poll | 1996 Southland Football League standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. 5 Troy State $^  5 –1  12 –2   No. 19 Nicholls State ^  4 –2  8 –4   No. 22 Stephen F. Austin  3 –3  7 –4   Northwestern State  3 –3  6 –5   Sam Houston State  3 –3  4 –7   Southwest Texas State  2 –4  5 –6   McNeese State  1 –5  3 –8   $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll | 1996 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  No. T–8 Jackson State $^  6 –1  10 –2   Southern  5 –2  7 –5   Mississippi Valley State  5 –2  7 –4   Texas Southern  5 –2  7 –4   Alcorn State  3 –4  4 –7   Grambling State  2 –5  3 –8   Alabama State  2 –5  3 –8   Prairie View A&M  0 –7  0 –11   $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network Poll |
| 1996 Yankee Conference football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  New England Division No. 18 New Hampshire x  6 –2  8 –3   Maine  5 –3  7 –4   UMass  4 –4  6 –5   Connecticut  3 –5  4 –6   Rhode Island  2 –6  4 –6   Boston University  0 –8  1 –10   Mid-Atlantic Division No. 7 William & Mary x$^  7 –1  10 –3   No. 14 Villanova ^  6 –2  8 –4   No. 11 Delaware ^  6 –2  8 –4   No. 23 James Madison  5 –3  7 –4   Northeastern  3 –5  6 –5   Richmond  1 –7  2 –9   $ – Conference championx – Division champion/co-champions^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll | 1996 NCAA Division I-AA independents football standings vteConfOverall Team W L W L  Buffalo   –  8 –3   No. 15 Youngstown State   –  8 –3   Saint Mary's   –  7 –3   Western Kentucky   –  7 –4   Davidson   –  6 –4   Towson   –  6 –4   Samford   –  6 –5   Wofford   –  6 –5   Cal Poly   –  5 –6   Hofstra   –  5 –6   Liberty   –  5 –6   Southern Utah   –  4 –7   Charleston Southern   –  2 –8   Morehead State   –  2 –8   Jacksonville State   –  1 –9   ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from The Sports Network poll |

## Conference champions

* Conference Champions
* Big Sky Conference – Montana
* Gateway Football Conference – Northern Iowa
* Ivy League – Dartmouth
* Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference – Duquesne
* Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – Florida A&M
* Northeast Conference – Monmouth and Robert Morris
* Ohio Valley Conference – Murray State
* Patriot League – Bucknell
* Pioneer Football League – Dayton
* Southern Conference – Marshall
* Southland Football League – Troy State
* Southwestern Athletic Conference – Jackson State
* Yankee Conference – William & Mary

## Postseason

The location of the title game, Marshall University Stadium, was determined before the playoffs started.

### NCAA Division I-AA playoff bracket

| First Round November 30 Campus sites | First Round November 30 Campus sites | First Round November 30 Campus sites | Quarterfinals December 7 Campus sites | Quarterfinals December 7 Campus sites | Quarterfinals December 7 Campus sites | Semifinals December 14 Campus sites | Semifinals December 14 Campus sites | Semifinals December 14 Campus sites | | National Championship Game December 21 Marshall University Stadium Huntington, West Virginia | National Championship Game December 21 Marshall University Stadium Huntington, West Virginia | National Championship Game December 21 Marshall University Stadium Huntington, West Virginia |
| 16 | Nicholls State | 3 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 1 | Montana* | 48 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 1 | Montana* | 48 | 1 | Montana* | 44 | | | | | | | |
| | | | 6 | East Tennessee State | 14 | | | | | | | |
| 11 | Villanova | 29 | 6 | East Tennessee State | 14 | | | | | | | |
| 6 | East Tennessee State* | 35 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 6 | East Tennessee State* | 35 | | | | 1 | Montana* | 70 | | | | |
| | | | | | | 4 | Troy State | 7 | | | | |
| 13 | Florida A&M | 25 | | | | | | | 4 | Troy State | 7 | | | | |
| 4 | Troy State* | 29 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Troy State* | 29 | 4 | Troy State* | 31 | | | | | | | |
| | | | 5 | Murray State | 3 | | | | | | | |
| 12 | Western Illinois | 6 | 5 | Murray State | 3 | | | | | | | |
| 5 | Murray State* | 34 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 5 | Murray State* | 34 | | | | | | | | 1 | Montana | 29 |
| | | | | | | | | | | 2 | Marshall | 49 |
| 15 | Delaware | 14 | | | | | | | | | | | 2 | Marshall | 49 |
| 2 | Marshall* | 59 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 2 | Marshall* | 59 | 2 | Marshall* | 54 | | | | | | | |
| | | | 10 | Furman | 0 | | | | | | | |
| 10 | Furman | 42 | 10 | Furman | 0 | | | | | | | |
| 7 | Northern Arizona* | 31 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 7 | Northern Arizona* | 31 | | | | 2 | Marshall* | 31 | | | | |
| | | | | | | 3 | Northern Iowa | 14 | | | | |
| 14 | Eastern Illinois | 14 | | | | | | | 3 | Northern Iowa | 14 | | | | |
| 3 | Northern Iowa* | 21 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 3 | Northern Iowa* | 21 | 3 | Northern Iowa* | 38 | | | | | | | |
| | | | 8 | William & Mary | 35 | | | | | | | |
| 9 | Jackson State | 6 | 8 | William & Mary | 35 | | | | | | | |
| 8 | William & Mary* | 45 | | | | | | | | | | |
* Denotes host institution
Source: