# 1981 NAIA Division II football season

The 1981 NAIA Division II football season, as part of the 1981 college football season in the United States and the 26th season of college football sponsored by the NAIA, was the 21st season of play of the NAIA's lower division for football.
The season was played from August to November 1981 and culminated in the 1981 NAIA Division II Football National Championship, played at Louis Calder Stadium in Sherman, Texas.
Austin and Concordia–Moorhead tied in the championship game, 24–24, and were declared co-national champions. It was Austin's first NAIA national title and Concordia's third.

## Conference changes

* This is the final season that the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference is officially recognized as an NAIA football conferences. The MIAC, and it nine members from Minnesota, became an NCAA Division III conference for the 1982 season, where the league continues to sponsor football.

## Conference standings

1981 Frontier Conference football standings :
| 1981 Frontier Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Carroll (MT) $ 5 –1 –06 –3 –0 Montana Tech 4 –1 –15 –3 –2 Rocky Mountain 2 –4 –02 –6 –0 Western Montana 0 –5 –10 –7 –1 $ – Conference champion | 1981 Heart of America Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 3 William Jewell $^ 8 –0 –011 –1 –0 No. 17 Missouri Valley 7 –1 –08 –2 –0 No. 18 Baker 6 –2 –08 –2 –0 Graceland 5 –3 –07 –3 –0 Ottawa 4 –4 –05 –4 –1 MidAmerica Nazarene 3 –5 –04 –6 –0 Central Methodist 2 –6 –03 –7 –0 Tarkio 1 –7 –01 –9 –0 Culver–Stockton 0 –8 –00 –10 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll | 1981 Hoosier–Buckeye Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 8 Anderson (IN) $^ 8 –0 –08 –2 –0 No. 10 Findlay 7 –1 –08 –1 –0 Wilmington (OH) 5 –3 –06 –3 –0 Hanover 5 –3 –05 –3 –1 Defiance 4 –4 –04 –5 –0 Earlham 3 –5 –04 –5 –0 Taylor 3 –5 –04 –5 –0 Manchester (IN) 1 –7 –01 –8 –0 Bluffton 0 –8 –00 –9 –0 + – Conference co-champions^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll |
| 1981 Illini–Badger Football Conference standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Northeastern Illinois + 3 –1 –15 –5 –1 Milton + 3 –1 –14 –5 –1 Concordia (WI) + 2 –1 –15 –2 –2 Eureka 2 –2 –13 –5 –1 Concordia (IL) 2 –2 –03 –6 –0 Lakeland 0 –5 –01 –7 –1 + – Conference co-champions | 1981 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 13 Bethany (KS) $ 8 –0 –09 –1 –0 Southwestern (KS) 5 –2 –15 –2 –2 Friends 5 –3 –05 –4 –0 Sterling 5 –3 –05 –4 –0 St. Mary of the Plains 4 –4 –04 –6 –0 Tabor 3 –5 –03 –6 –0 Kansas Wesleyan 2 –5 –12 –7 –1 McPherson 2 –6 –02 –7 –0 Bethel (KS) 1 –7 –01 –8 –0 $ – Conference championRankings from NAIA Division II poll | 1981 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 1 Concordia–Moorhead $^ 8 –0 –011 –0 –2 No. 15 Saint John's (MN) 6 –2 –07 –2 –0 No. 19 St. Thomas (MN) 6 –2 –07 –2 –0 Gustavus Adolphus 5 –3 –06 –4 –0 Augsburg 3 –5 –04 –6 –0 Macalester 2 –6 –04 –6 –0 St. Olaf 2 –6 –04 –7 –0 Bethel (MN) 2 –6 –03 –7 –0 Hamline 2 –6 –03 –7 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll |
| 1981 Nebraska Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 12 Concordia (NE) + 4 –1 –09 –1 –0 Hastings + 4 –1 –06 –3 –0 Midland + 4 –1 –05 –4 –0 Doane 2 –3 –02 –7 –0 Nebraska Wesleyan 1 –4 –02 –7 –0 Dana 0 –5 –01 –8 –0 + – Conference co-championsRankings from NAIA Division II poll | 1981 North Dakota College Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 6 Dickinson State $^ 6 –0 –09 –1 –0 No. 16 Jamestown 5 –1 –08 –1 –0 Valley City State 4 –2 –05 –4 –0 North Dakota Science 3 –3 –05 –3 –0 Minot State 2 –4 –03 –4 –1 Mayville State 1 –5 –01 –8 –0 Bismarck JC 0 –6 –01 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll | 1981 Northwest Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 5 Pacific Lutheran $^ 5 –0 –09 –1 –0 No. 14 Linfield 4 –1 –07 –2 –0 Lewis & Clark 2 –3 –04 –5 –0 Whitworth 2 –3 –04 –5 –0 Willamette 2 –3 –04 –5 –0 Pacific (OR) 0 –5 –00 –9 –0 $ – Conference champion^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantpoll=NAIA Division II pollRankings from AP Poll |
| 1981 South Dakota Intercollegiate Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T South Dakota Tech + 5 –1 –07 –2 –0 Sioux Falls + 5 –1 –06 –3 –1 South Dakota–Springfield 4 –2 –06 –4 –0 Huron 3 –3 –06 –4 –0 Dakota State 2 –4 –03 –7 –0 Black Hills State 1 –4 –11 –7 –1 Dakota Wesleyan 0 –5 –10 –9 –1 + – Conference co-champions | 1981 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T Whittier $ 5 –0 –06 –4 –0 Claremont-Mudd 4 –1 –04 –5 –0 Redlands 3 –2 –05 –5 –0 Occidental 1 –4 –03 –7 –0 La Verne 1 –4 –02 –7 –0 Pomona-Pitzer 1 –4 –01 –8 –0 $ – Conference champion | 1981 Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 2 Austin +^ 9 –1 –011 –1 –1 No. 9 Sul Ross + 9 –1 –09 –1 –0 Tarleton State 6 –4 –06 –4 –0 McMurry 3 –7 –03 –7 –0 Trinity (TX) 2 –8 –02 –8 –0 Lubbock Christian 1 –9 –01 –9 –0 + – Conference co-champions^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll |
| 1981 NAIA Division II independents football records vteConfOverall TeamW L TW L T No. 4 Westminster (PA) ^   –  10 –1 –0 No. 7 Oklahoma Panhandle State ^   –  9 –1 –0 No. 11 Cal Lutheran   –  8 –2 –0 No. 20 Peru State   –  7 –2 –0 Northwestern (IA)   –  6 –2 –1 Azusa Pacific   –  7 –3 –0 Loras   –  6 –3 –1 Geneva   –  5 –3 –1 Waynesburg   –  5 –3 –1 Westmar   –  5 –4 –0 Chadron State   –  5 –5 –0 Benedictine (KS)   –  4 –6 –0 Texas Lutheran   –  4 –6 –0 Simon Fraser   –  3 –7 –0 Iowa Wesleyan   –  2 –7 –0 ^ – NAIA Division II playoff participantRankings from NAIA Division II poll |

## Conference champions

| Conference | Champion | Record |
| Frontier | Carroll (MT) | 5–1 |
| Heart of America | William Jewell | 8–0 |
| Hoosier-Buckeye | Anderson (IN) | 8–0 |
| Kansas | Bethany | 8–0 |
| Minnesota | Concordia–Moorhead | 8–0 |
| Nebraska | Concordia–Nebraska Hastings Midland Lutheran | 4–1 |
| North Dakota | Dickinson State | 6–0 |
| Northwest | Pacific Lutheran | 5–0 |
| South Dakota | Sioux Falls South Dakota Tech | 5–1 |
| Texas | Austin Sul Ross | 9–1 |

## Postseason

| Quarterfinals Campus sites | Quarterfinals Campus sites | Semifinals Campus sites | Semifinals Campus sites | Championship Sherman, TX | Championship Sherman, TX |
| Austin | 27 | | | | |
| Oklahoma Panhandle State* | 16 | | | | |
| Oklahoma Panhandle State* | 16 | Austin* | 33 | | |
| | | William Jewell | 28 | | |
| Pacific Lutheran | 14 | William Jewell | 28 | | |
| William Jewell* | 19 | | | | |
| William Jewell* | 19 | | | Austin* | 24 |
| | | | | Concordia–Moorhead | 24 |
| Dickinson State | 9 | | | | | Concordia–Moorhead | 24 |
| Concordia–Moorhead* | 13 | | | | |
| Concordia–Moorhead* | 13 | Concordia–Moorhead | 23 | | |
| | | Westminster (PA)* | 17 | | |
| Anderson (IN) | 6 | Westminster (PA)* | 17 | | |
| Westminster (PA)* | 21 | | | | |