# 1992 NCAA Division I-AA football season

The 1992 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 on September 5, 1992, and concluded with the 1992 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 19, 1992, in Huntington, West Virginia. The Marshall Thundering Herd defeated the Youngstown State Penguins by a score of 31–28. It was the second consecutive year that Marshall and Youngstown State faced off in the I-AA title game.

## Notable changes

Prior to the season, the Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference, otherwise a women's sports league but sponsoring football as its only men's sport since the 1985 collapse of the football side of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC), merged into the MVC. The football league became the standalone Gateway Football Conference, forerunner of the present-day Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC).

### Conference changes

| School | 1991 Conference | 1992 Conference |
| Arkansas State | I-AA Independent | I-A Independent |
| Nevada | Big Sky (I-AA) | Big West (I-A) |
| Tennessee–Martin | D-II Independent | Ohio Valley |

## Conference standings

1992 Big Sky Conference football standings :
| 1992 Big Sky Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 5 Idaho $^ 6 –1 –09 –3 –0 No. 14 Eastern Washington ^ 6 –1 –07 –4 –0 Montana 4 –3 –06 –5 –0 Weber State 4 –3 –06 –5 –0 Boise State 3 –4 –05 –6 –0 Montana State 2 –5 –04 –7 –0 Northern Arizona 2 –5 –04 –7 –0 Idaho State 1 –6 –03 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll | 1992 Gateway Football Conference standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 3 Northern Iowa $^ 5 –1 –012 –2 –0 No. 20 Western Illinois 4 –2 –07 –4 –0 Southwest Missouri State 4 –2 –06 –5 –0 Eastern Illinois 2 –4 –05 –6 –0 Illinois State 2 –4 –05 –6 –0 Indiana State 2 –4 –04 –7 –0 Southern Illinois 2 –4 –04 –7 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll | 1992 Ivy League football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Dartmouth + 6 –1 –08 –2 –0 Princeton + 6 –1 –08 –2 –0 Penn 5 –2 –07 –3 –0 Cornell 4 –3 –07 –3 –0 Harvard 3 –4 –03 –7 –0 Yale 2 –5 –04 –6 –0 Columbia 2 –5 –03 –7 –0 Brown 0 –7 –00 –10 –0 + – Conference co-champions |
| 1992 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 17 North Carolina A&T $^ 5 –1 –09 –3 –0 No. 15 Florida A&M 4 –2 –07 –4 –0 South Carolina State 4 –2 –07 –4 –0 Howard 3 –3 –07 –4 –0 Delaware State 3 –3 –06 –5 –0 Bethune–Cookman 2 –4 –04 –7 –0 Morgan State 0 –6 –02 –9 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll | 1992 Ohio Valley Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 4 Middle Tennessee $^ 8 –0 –010 –3 –0 No. 12 Eastern Kentucky ^ 7 –1 –09 –3 –0 Tennessee Tech 6 –2 –07 –4 –0 Tennessee State 5 –3 –05 –6 –0 Morehead State 3 –5 –03 –8 –0 Austin Peay 2 –6 –03 –8 –0 Tennessee–Martin 2 –6 –03 –8 –0 Southeast Missouri State 2 –6 –02 –9 –0 Murray State 1 –7 –02 –9 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll | 1992 Patriot League football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Lafayette $ 5 –0 –08 –3 –0 Holy Cross 4 –1 –06 –5 –0 Colgate 2 –3 –04 –7 –0 Lehigh 2 –3 –03 –8 –0 Bucknell 1 –4 –04 –7 –0 Fordham 1 –4 –01 –9 –0 $ – Conference champion |
| 1992 Southern Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 1 The Citadel $^ 6 –1 –011 –2 –0 No. 6 Marshall ^ 5 –2 –012 –3 –0 No. 16 Appalachian State ^ 5 –2 –07 –5 –0 Western Carolina 5 –2 –07 –4 –0 Furman 4 –3 –06 –5 –0 East Tennessee State 2 –5 –05 –6 –0 VMI 1 –6 –03 –8 –0 Chattanooga 0 –7 –02 –9 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll | 1992 Southland Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 1 Northeast Louisiana $^ 7 –0 –010 –3 –0 No. 11 McNeese State ^ 6 –1 –09 –4 –0 Northwestern State 4 –3 –07 –4 –0 Sam Houston State 3 –2 –26 –3 –2 North Texas 3 –4 –04 –7 –0 Southwest Texas State 2 –4 –15 –5 –1 Stephen F. Austin 1 –6 –03 –8 –0 Nicholls State 0 –6 –11 –9 –1 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll | 1992 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 18 Alcorn State $^ 7 –0 –07 –4 –0 Grambling State 6 –1 –010 –2 –0 Jackson State 4 –3 –07 –4 –0 Alabama State 3 –4 –05 –6 –0 Southern 3 –4 –05 –6 –0 Texas Southern 3 –4 –05 –6 –0 Mississippi Valley State 2 –5 –04 –5 –0 Prairie View A&M 0 –7 –00 –11 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll |
| 1992 Yankee Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 8 Delaware $^ 7 –1 –011 –3 –0 No. 10 Villanova ^ 6 –2 –09 –3 –0 UMass 5 –3 –07 –3 –0 Richmond 5 –3 –07 –4 –0 Maine 4 –4 –06 –5 –0 Connecticut 4 –4 –06 –5 –0 New Hampshire 3 –5 –05 –5 –1 Boston University 2 –6 –03 –8 –0 Rhode Island 0 –8 –01 –10 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll | 1992 NCAA Division I-AA independents football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 13 William & Mary   –  9 –2 –0 No. 7 Youngstown State ^   –  9 –2 –1 No. 9 Samford ^   –  9 –3 –0 Georgia Southern   –  7 –4 –0 No. 19 Liberty   –  7 –4 –0 UCF   –  6 –4 –0 Northeastern   –  5 –5 –1 Towson State   –  5 –5 –0 Hofstra   –  4 –6 –0 Western Kentucky   –  4 –6 –0 James Madison   –  4 –7 –0 ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll |

## Conference champions

This is a listing of conference champions.
| Conference | Champion |
| Atlantic 10 Conference | Delaware |
| Big Sky Conference | Idaho and Eastern Washington |
| Ivy League | Dartmouth and Princeton |
| Gateway Football Conference | Northern Iowa |
| Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference | North Carolina A&T |
| Ohio Valley Conference | Middle Tennessee |
| Patriot League | Lafayette |
| Southern Conference | The Citadel |
| Southland Conference | Northeast Louisiana |
| Southwestern Athletic Conference | Alcorn State |

## Postseason

Only the top four teams in the field were seeded, and thus assured of home games in their first-round games. The site of the title game, Marshall University Stadium, had been predetermined months before the playoffs began.

### NCAA Division I-AA playoff bracket

| First Round November 28 Campus sites | First Round November 28 Campus sites | First Round November 28 Campus sites | Quarterfinals December 5 Campus sites | Quarterfinals December 5 Campus sites | Quarterfinals December 5 Campus sites | Semifinals December 12 Campus sites | Semifinals December 12 Campus sites | Semifinals December 12 Campus sites | | National Championship Game December 19 Marshall University Stadium Huntington, West Virginia | National Championship Game December 19 Marshall University Stadium Huntington, West Virginia | National Championship Game December 19 Marshall University Stadium Huntington, West Virginia |
| | Alcorn State | 27 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 1 | Northeast Louisiana* | 78 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 1 | Northeast Louisiana* | 78 | 1 | Northeast Louisiana* | 18 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | Delaware | 41 | | | | | | | |
| Samford | Samford | 21 | | Delaware | 41 | | | | | | | |
| Delaware* | Delaware* | 56 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Delaware* | Delaware* | 56 | | | | Delaware | Delaware | 7 | | | | |
| | | | | | | Marshall* | Marshall* | 28 | | | | |
| | Appalachian State | 10 | | | | | | | Marshall* | Marshall* | 28 | | | | |
| 4 | Middle Tennessee* | 35 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Middle Tennessee* | 35 | 4 | Middle Tennessee | 21 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | Marshall* | 35 | | | | | | | |
| Eastern Kentucky | Eastern Kentucky | 0 | | Marshall* | 35 | | | | | | | |
| Marshall* | Marshall* | 44 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Marshall* | Marshall* | 44 | | | | | | | | Marshall | Marshall | 31 |
| | | | | | | | | | | Youngstown State | Youngstown State | 28 |
| | North Carolina A&T | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | Youngstown State | Youngstown State | 28 |
| 2 | The Citadel* | 44 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 2 | The Citadel* | 44 | 2 | The Citadel* | 17 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | Youngstown State | 42 | | | | | | | |
| Villanova | Villanova | 20 | | Youngstown State | 42 | | | | | | | |
| Youngstown State* | Youngstown State* | 23 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Youngstown State* | Youngstown State* | 23 | | | | | Youngstown State | 19 | | | | |
| | | | | | | 3 | Northern Iowa* | 7 | | | | |
| | Eastern Washington | 14 | | | | | | | 3 | Northern Iowa* | 7 | | | | |
| 3 | Northern Iowa* | 17 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 3 | Northern Iowa* | 17 | 3 | Northern Iowa* | 29 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | McNeese State | 7 | | | | | | | |
| McNeese State | McNeese State | 23 | | McNeese State | 7 | | | | | | | |
| Idaho* | Idaho* | 20 | | | | | | | | | | |
* Next to team name denotes host institution
Source:

## Final poll standings

NCAA :
| Ranking | Team |
| 1 | The Citadel |
| 1 | Northeast Louisiana |
| 3 | Northern Iowa |
| 4 | Middle Tennessee |
| 5 | Idaho |
| 6 | Marshall |
| 7 | Youngstown State |
| 8 | Delaware |
| 9 | Samford |
| 10 | Villanova |
| 11 | McNeese State |
| 12 | Eastern Kentucky |
| 13 | William & Mary |
| 14 | Eastern Washington |
| 15 | Florida A&M |
| 16 | Appalachian State |
| 17 | North Carolina |
| 18 | Alcorn State |
| 19 | Liberty |
| 20 | Western Illinois |