# 1988 NCAA Division III football season

The 1988 NCAA Division III football season, part of the college football season organized by the NCAA at the Division III level in the United States, began in August 1988, and concluded with the NCAA Division III Football Championship, also known as the Stagg Bowl, in December 1988 at Garrett-Harrison Stadium in Phenix City, Alabama. The Ithaca Bombers won their third Division III championship by defeating the Central (IA) Dutch, 39−24.

## Conference standings

1988 Atlantic Collegiate Football Conference standings :
| 1988 Atlantic Collegiate Football Conference standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Gallaudet $ 4 –0 –06 –3 –0 St. John Fisher 3 –1 –05 –4 –0 Siena 2 –2 –03 –6 –0 Brooklyn 1 –3 –01 –6 –0 Maritime 0 –4 –00 –6 –0 $ – Conference champion | 1988 Centennial Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Dickinson + 6 –1 –010 –1 –0 Franklin & Marshall + 6 –1 –07 –3 –0 Muhlenberg 5 –2 –07 –3 –0 Gettysburg 4 –3 –04 –6 –0 Ursinus 3 –4 –03 –7 –0 Swarthmore 2 –5 –02 –8 –0 Johns Hopkins 1 –6 –01 –9 –0 Western Maryland 1 –6 –01 –9 –0 + – Conference co-champions | 1988 College Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Rose–Hulman $ 4 –0 –08 –2 –0 Rhodes ^ 3 –1 –08 –2 –0 Centre 2 –2 –06 –3 –0 Sewanee 1 –3 –03 –6 –0 Earlham 0 –4 –01 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant |
| 1988 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Augustana (IL) +^ 7 –1 –010 –2 –0 Carroll (WI) + 7 –1 –07 –2 –0 Millikin 6 –2 –07 –2 –0 Wheaton (IL) 6 –2 –07 –2 –0 North Central (IL) 3 –5 –04 –5 –0 Carthage 3 –5 –03 –6 –0 Illinois Wesleyan 2 –6 –02 –7 –0 Elmhurst 1 –7 –01 –8 –0 North Park 1 –7 –01 –8 –0 + – Conference co-champions^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant | 1988 Independent College Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Ithaca $^ 3 –0 –013 –1 –0 RPI 2 –0 –07 –2 –0 St. Lawrence 2 –2 –04 –5 –0 Alfred 1 –2 –06 –2 –1 Hobart 0 –4 –00 –9 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant | 1988 Iowa Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Simpson (IA) $^ 8 –0 –09 –2 –0 Central (IA) ^ 7 –1 –011 –2 –0 Buena Vista 5 –3 –07 –3 –0 Loras 4 –4 –05 –5 –0 Luther 4 –4 –04 –6 –0 Upper Iowa 3 –5 –04 –6 –0 Dubuque 3 –5 –03 –7 –0 Wartburg 2 –6 –03 –7 –0 William Penn 0 –8 –01 –9 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant |
| 1988 Liberty Football Conference standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Fordham + 5 –1 –09 –2 –0 C. W. Post + 5 –1 –05 –5 –0 Stony Brook 4 –2 –05 –4 –0 St. John's 3 –3 –05 –5 –0 Iona 2 –4 –03 –6 –0 Pace 1 –5 –03 –7 –0 Merchant Marine 1 –5 –02 –8 –0 + – Conference co-champions | 1988 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Adrian +^ 4 –1 –07 –3 –0 Alma + 4 –1 –06 –3 –0 Albion 3 –2 –06 –3 –0 Olivet 2 –2 –14 –4 –1 Hope 1 –4 –01 –7 –1 Kalamazoo 0 –4 –10 –8 –1 + – Conference co-champions^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant | 1988 Middle Atlantic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Moravian +^ 7 –1 –010 –2 –0 Widener +^ 7 –1 –09 –2 –0 Susquehanna 6 –2 –06 –4 –0 Lycoming 5 –3 –07 –3 –0 Juniata 5 –3 –06 –3 –1 Delaware Valley 3 –5 –05 –5 –0 Lebanon Valley 2 –6 –03 –6 –1 Wilkes 1 –7 –02 –8 –0 Albright 0 –8 –02 –8 –0 + – Conference co-champions^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant |
| 1988 Midwest Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T North Division St. Norbert xy$ 6 –0 –08 –2 –0 Beloit 4 –2 –06 –3 –0 Lawrence 3 –3 –06 –3 –0 Ripon 2 –4 –04 –5 –0 Lake Forest 0 –6 –01 –8 –0 South Division Monmouth (IL) xy 7 –0 –09 –1 –0 Knox 4 –3 –05 –4 –0 Cornell (IA) 3 –3 –03 –6 –0 Coe 3 –4 –03 –6 –0 Illinois College 2 –5 –04 –5 –0 Grinnell 1 –5 –02 –6 –0 Championship: St. Norbert 12, Monmouth (IL) 0 $ – Conference championx – Division champion/co-championsy – Championship game participant | 1988 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Hamline + 8 –1 –09 –1 –0 Concordia–Moorhead +^ 8 –1 –09 –2 –0 Saint John's (MN) 7 –2 –07 –2 –0 Carleton 6 –3 –07 –3 –0 Gustavus Adolphus 5 –4 –06 –4 –0 Macalester 3 –6 –04 –6 –0 St. Olaf 3 –6 –04 –6 –0 St. Thomas (MN) 3 –6 –03 –7 –0 Bethel (MN) 1 –8 –02 –8 –0 Augsburg 1 –8 –01 –9 –0 + – Conference co-champions^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant | 1988 New England Football Conference standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T North Division Plymouth State xy$ 6 –0 –010 –1 –0 Lowell 5 –1 –08 –1 –0 Nichols 4 –2 –06 –3 –0 Curry 3 –3 –05 –4 –0 UMass–Boston 2 –4 –03 –6 –0 Western New England 1 –5 –01 –8 –0 Maine Maritime 0 –6 –02 –7 –0 South Division Worcester State xy 5 –1 –07 –3 –0 Massachusetts Maritime 4 –2 –05 –4 –0 Westfield State 4 –2 –05 –4 –0 Bridgewater State 3 –3 –05 –4 –0 Southeastern Massachusetts 3 –3 –05 –4 –0 Framingham State 2 –4 –02 –7 –0 Fitchburg State 0 –6 –00 –9 –0 Championship: Plymouth State 62, Worcester State 0 $ – Conference championx – Division champion/co-championsy – Championship game participant |
| 1988 New Jersey Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Trenton State $ 5 –1 –08 –2 –0 Montclair State 5 –1 –08 –2 –0 Ramapo 4 –2 –06 –2 –0 Glassboro State 3 –3 –05 –5 –0 Kean 2 –4 –04 –6 –0 William Paterson 2 –4 –03 –7 –0 Jersey City State 0 –6 –02 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion | 1988 North Coast Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Allegheny $ 6 –0 –08 –2 –0 Case Western Reserve 4 –2 –07 –3 –0 Kenyon 4 –2 –06 –4 –0 Ohio Wesleyan 4 –2 –06 –4 –0 Denison 2 –4 –03 –6 –1 Wooster 1 –5 –01 –9 –0 Oberlin 0 –6 –01 –9 –0 $ – Conference champion | 1988 Ohio Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Baldwin–Wallace + 7 –1 –08 –2 –0 Wittenberg +^ 7 –1 –09 –3 –0 Mount Union 5 –2 –16 –3 –1 Heidelberg 5 –3 –06 –4 –0 Capital 4 –4 –06 –4 –0 Muskingum 2 –5 –14 –5 –1 Otterbein 2 –6 –03 –7 –0 Ohio Northern 2 –6 –03 –7 –0 Marietta 1 –7 –02 –8 –0 + – Conference co-champions^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant |
| 1988 Old Dominion Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Emory & Henry $ 4 –0 –08 –2 –0 Hampden–Sydney 2 –2 –06 –4 –0 Washington and Lee 1 –2 –15 –3 –1 Randolph–Macon 1 –2 –15 –4 –1 Bridgewater 1 –3 –01 –6 –1 $ – Conference champion | 1988 Presidents' Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Washington & Jefferson $ 6 –0 –07 –1 –1 John Carroll 4 –2 –07 –2 –0 Hiram 4 –2 –06 –3 –0 Carnegie Mellon 2 –3 –15 –4 –1 Grove City 2 –3 –14 –4 –1 Bethany (WV) 2 –4 –04 –5 –0 Thiel 0 –6 –00 –9 –0 $ – Conference champion | 1988 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Occidental $ 5 –0 –07 –2 –0 Redlands 4 –1 –05 –4 –0 Whittier 2 –2 –13 –6 –0 La Verne 2 –3 –03 –6 –0 Claremont-Mudd 1 –3 –12 –7 –0 Pomona-Pitzer 0 –5 –00 –8 –0 $ – Conference championEach team played one other conference member twice. A head-to-head sweep of the two games counted as one win for the winner and one loss for the loser in the conference standings. A split of the two games counted as a tie for each team. Redlands received a non-conference forfeit win from Menlo. |
| 1988 Wisconsin State University Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Wisconsin–Whitewater $^ 7 –1 –09 –3 –0 No. 14 Wisconsin–La Crosse * 6 –2 –011 –3 –0 No. 15 Wisconsin–River Falls 6 –2 –07 –3 –0 No. 25 Wisconsin–Stevens Point 5 –3 –07 –4 –0 Wisconsin–Platteville 4 –4 –06 –4 –0 Wisconsin–Oshkosh 4 –4 –05 –4 –1 Wisconsin–Eau Claire 3 –5 –05 –5 –0 Wisconsin–Stout 1 –7 –02 –8 –0 Wisconsin–Superior 0 –8 –00 –10 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant * – NAIA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division II poll | 1988 NCAA Division III independents football records vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Cortland ^   –  11 –1 –0 Ferrum ^   –  11 –1 –0 Dayton ^   –  9 –2 –0 Hofstra ^   –  9 –2 –0 Rochester (NY)   –  8 –2 –0 Wagner ^   –  8 –2 –0 Aurora   –  7 –2 –0 Menlo   –  7 –2 –0 Wabash   –  7 –2 –0 Fairleigh Dickinson–Florham   –  6 –2 –0 Georgetown   –  6 –2 –0 Drake   –  7 –3 –0 Canisius   –  6 –3 –0 Mercyhurst   –  6 –3 –0 Salisbury State   –  6 –3 –0 Millsaps   –  5 –3 –0 Catholic University   –  6 –4 –0 UC Santa Barbara   –  6 –4 –0 San Diego   –  5 –4 –0 Albany   –  5 –5 –0 Quincy   –  5 –5 –0 Union (NY)   –  4 –4 –0 Colorado College   –  4 –5 –0 DePauw   –  4 –5 –0 Brockport   –  4 –6 –0 Frostburg State   –  4 –6 –0 Maryville (TN)   –  4 –6 –0 Norwich   –  4 –6 –0 Marist   –  3 –6 –0 Western Connecticut State   –  3 –7 –0 Duquesne   –  2 –7 –0 Buffalo   –  2 –8 –0 Buffalo State   –  1 –7 –0 Saint Francis (PA)   –  1 –8 –0 Wesley   –  1 –8 –0 ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant |

## Conference champions

* Conference champions
* Centennial Conference – Dickinson and Franklin & Marshall
* College Athletic Conference – Rose–Hulman
* College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin – Augustana (IL) and Carroll (WI)
* Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Simpson
* Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Adrian and Alma
* Middle Atlantic Conference – Moravian and Widener
* Midwest Collegiate Athletic Conference – St. Norbert
* Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Concordia–Moorhead and Hamline
* New England Football Conference – Plymouth State
* New Jersey State Athletic Conference – Trenton State
* North Coast Athletic Conference – Allegheny
* Ohio Athletic Conference – Baldwin Wallace and Wittenberg
* Old Dominion Athletic Conference – Emory & Henry
* Presidents' Athletic Conference – Washington & Jefferson
* Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Occidental
* Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Austin
* Upper Midwest Athletic Conference – Concordia–Saint Paul
* Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Wisconsin–Whitewater

## Postseason

The 1988 NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs were the 16th annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division III college football. The championship Stagg Bowl game was held at Garrett-Harrison Stadium in Phenix City, Alabama for the 14th time and for the fourth consecutive year. Like the previous three tournaments, this year's bracket featured sixteen teams.

### Playoff bracket

| First Round Campus Sites | First Round Campus Sites | First Round Campus Sites | Quarterfinals Campus Sites | Quarterfinals Campus Sites | Quarterfinals Campus Sites | Semifinals Campus Sites | Semifinals Campus Sites | Semifinals Campus Sites | | National Championship Game Garrett-Harrison Stadium Phenix City, Alabama | National Championship Game Garrett-Harrison Stadium Phenix City, Alabama | National Championship Game Garrett-Harrison Stadium Phenix City, Alabama |
| Cortland | Cortland | 32 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Hofstra | Hofstra | 17 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Hofstra | Hofstra | 17 | SUNY Cortland | SUNY Cortland | 17 | | | | | | | |
| | | | Ithaca | Ithaca | 24 | | | | | | | |
| Ithaca | Ithaca | 34* | Ithaca | Ithaca | 24 | | | | | | | |
| Wagner | Wagner | 31 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Wagner | Wagner | 31 | | | | Ithaca | Ithaca | 62 | | | | |
| | | | | | | Ferrum | Ferrum | 28 | | | | |
| Ferrum | Ferrum | 34 | | | | | | | Ferrum | Ferrum | 28 | | | | |
| Rhodes | Rhodes | 10 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Rhodes | Rhodes | 10 | Ferrum | Ferrum | 49 | | | | | | | |
| | | | Moravian | Moravian | 28 | | | | | | | |
| Moravian | Moravian | 17 | Moravian | Moravian | 28 | | | | | | | |
| Widener | Widener | 7 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Widener | Widener | 7 | | | | | | | | Ithaca | Ithaca | 39 |
| | | | | | | | | | | Central (IA) | Central (IA) | 24 |
| Wittenberg | Wittenberg | 35* | | | | | | | | | | | Central (IA) | Central (IA) | 24 |
| Dayton | Dayton | 28 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Dayton | Dayton | 28 | Wittenberg | Wittenberg | 14 | | | | | | | |
| | | | Augustana (IL) | Augustana (IL) | 28 | | | | | | | |
| Augustana (IL) | Augustana (IL) | 25 | Augustana (IL) | Augustana (IL) | 28 | | | | | | | |
| Adrian | Adrian | 7 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Adrian | Adrian | 7 | | | | Augustana (IL) | Augustana (IL) | 17 | | | | |
| | | | | | | Central (IA) | Central (IA) | 23** | | | | |
| Central (IA) | Central (IA) | 7 | | | | | | | Central (IA) | Central (IA) | 23** | | | | |
| Concordia–Moorhead | Concordia–Moorhead | 0 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Concordia–Moorhead | Concordia–Moorhead | 0 | Central (IA) | Central (IA) | 16 | | | | | | | |
| | | | Wisconsin–Whitewater | Wisconsin–Whitewater | 13 | | | | | | | |
| Wisconsin–Whitewater | Wisconsin–Whitewater | 29 | Wisconsin–Whitewater | Wisconsin–Whitewater | 13 | | | | | | | |
| Simpson | Simpson | 27 | | | | | | | | | | |