# 1980 NCAA Division I-AA football season

The 1980 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. The third season of I-AA football began in August 1980 and four teams were selected for the postseason, with the national semifinals played on December 13. The 1980 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game was the Camellia Bowl played on December 20 at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento, California.
In a game with multiple lead changes, the Boise State Broncos won their first (and only) I-AA championship, defeating the defending national champion Eastern Kentucky Colonels, 31−29. With less than a minute to play, the Broncos drove eighty yards for the winning touchdown, a 14-yard pass from quarterback Joe Aliotti to tight end Duane Dlouhy with twelve seconds remaining.

## Conference changes and new programs

| School | 1979 Conference | 1980 Conference |
| Akron | Mid-Continent (D-II) | Ohio Valley (I-AA) |
| Bethune–Cookman | SIAC (D-II) | MEAC (I-AA) |
| Delaware | D-II Independent | I-AA Independent |
| Florida A&M | I-AA Independent | MEAC (I-AA) |
| James Madison | D-III Independent | I-AA Independent |
| Maryland Eastern Shore | MEAC | Dropped Program |
| Nicholls State | D-II Independent | I-AA Independent |
| Southeastern Louisiana | D-II Independent | I-AA Independent |

## Conference standings

1980 Big Sky Conference football standings :
| 1980 Big Sky Conference football standings vteConf.Overall TeamW L TW L T No. 7 Boise State $^ 6 –1 –010 –3 –0 Idaho 4 –3 –06 –5 –0 Nevada 4 –3 –06 –4 –1 Idaho State* 4 –4 –06 –5 –0 Weber State* 4 –4 –04 –7 –0 Montana State 3 –4 –04 –6 –0 Northern Arizona 3 –4 –05 –6 –0 Montana 1 –6 –03 –7 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant * – Idaho State and Weber State met twice in league play with each game counting as a half game. Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA AP Poll | 1980 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings vteConf.Overall TeamW L TW L T No. T–3 South Carolina State $ 5 –0 –010 –1 –0 North Carolina A&T 3 –2 –09 –3 –0 Howard 2 –2 –16 –2 –2 Bethune–Cookman 2 –2 –15 –4 –1 Florida A&M 2 –3 –05 –6 –0 Delaware State 0 –5 –02 –9 –0 $ – Conference championRankings from Associated Press poll | 1980 Ohio Valley Conference football standings vteConf.Overall TeamW L TW L T No. 5 Western Kentucky $ 6 –1 –09 –1 –0 No. T–10 Murray State 5 –2 –09 –2 –0 No. T–3 Eastern Kentucky ^ 5 –2 –010 –3 –0 Austin Peay 5 –2 –07 –4 –0 Akron 2 –4 –13 –7 –1 Morehead State 2 –5 –04 –7 –0 Middle Tennessee 2 –5 –02 –8 –0 Tennessee Tech 1 –6 –04 –7 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from Associated Press poll |
| 1980 Southern Conference football standings vteConf.Overall TeamW L TW L T Furman $ 7 –0 –09 –1 –1 Chattanooga 5 –2 –08 –3 –0 Appalachian State 4 –2 –16 –4 –1 The Citadel 3 –2 –07 –4 –0 Western Carolina 2 –4 –13 –7 –1 VMI 1 –4 –13 –7 –1 East Tennessee State 1 –4 –02 –9 –0 Marshall 0 –5 –12 –8 –1 Davidson 0 –2 –05 –5 –0 $ – Conference championThis conference was a hybrid of I-A and I-AA programs. Davidson was classified as I-AA. The rest of the teams were I-A. | 1980 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings vteConf.Overall TeamW L TW L T No. 2 Grambling State +^ 5 –1 –010 –2 –0 Jackson State + 5 –1 –08 –3 –0 Alcorn State 3 –3 –06 –4 –0 Mississippi Valley State 3 –3 –05 –5 –0 Southern 3 –3 –04 –6 –1 Texas Southern 2 –4 –02 –9 –0 Prairie View A&M 0 –6 –02 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from Associated Press poll | 1980 Yankee Conference football standings vteConf.Overall TeamW L TW L T No. 9 Boston University $ 5 –0 –09 –2 –0 No. T–10 UMass 4 –1 –07 –3 –0 No. T–10 Connecticut 3 –2 –07 –3 –0 New Hampshire 2 –3 –06 –4 –0 Maine 1 –4 –04 –7 –0 Rhode Island 0 –5 –02 –9 –0 $ – Conference championRankings from Associated Press poll | 1980 NCAA Division I-AA independents football standings vteConf.Overall TeamW L TW L T No. 1 Lehigh ^   –  9 –1 –2 No. 6 Delaware   –  9 –2 –0 Southeastern Louisiana   –  8 –2 –0 No. 8 Northwestern State   –  8 –3 –0 Portland State   –  8 –3 –0 Bucknell   –  6 –4 –0 James Madison   –  4 –6 –0 Lafayette   –  3 –7 –0 Nicholls State   –  2 –9 –0 Northeastern   –  2 –9 –0 ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participantRankings from Associated Press poll |

## Conference champions

* Conference champions
* Big Sky Conference – Boise State
* Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – South Carolina State
* Ohio Valley Conference – Western Kentucky
* Southwestern Athletic Conference – Grambling State and Jackson State
* Yankee Conference – Boston University

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

The bracket consisted of three regional selections (West, East, and South) plus Eastern Kentucky as an at-large selection.
| Semifinals December 13 Campus sites | Semifinals December 13 Campus sites | Semifinals December 13 Campus sites | National Championship Game December 20 Camellia Bowl Hughes Stadium—Sacramento, CA | National Championship Game December 20 Camellia Bowl Hughes Stadium—Sacramento, CA | National Championship Game December 20 Camellia Bowl Hughes Stadium—Sacramento, CA |
| AtLg | Eastern Kentucky | 23 | | | |
| East | Lehigh* | 20 | | | |
| East | Lehigh* | 20 | AtLg | Eastern Kentucky | 29 |
| | | | West | Boise State | 31 |
| South | Grambling State | 9 | West | Boise State | 31 |
| West | Boise State* | 14 | | | |
* Denotes host institution