1959 NAIA football season

1959 NAIA football season
Regular season	August–December 1959
Postseason	December 5–19, 1959
National Championship	Stewart Field St. Petersburg, FL
Champion	Texas A&I
← 1958 NAIA football season 1960 →

The 1959 NAIA football season was the fourth season of college football sponsored by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. The season was played from August to December 1959, culminating in the fourth annual NAIA Football National Championship , played this year again at Stewart Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. During its four years in St. Petersburg, the game was called the Holiday Bowl.

Texas A&I defeated Lenoir Rhyne in the championship game, 20–7, to win their first NAIA national title. ^[1]

Conference standings

1959 Badger-Gopher Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Lakeland + 3 – 1 – 0 3 – 2 – 1 Northland + 3 – 1 – 0 3 – 5 – 0 Northwestern (WI) 2 – 2 – 0 5 – 2 – 0 Bethel (MN) 1 – 3 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 Milton 1 – 3 – 0  ? –  ? –  ? + – Conference co-champions	1959 Central Intercollegiate Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T St. Benedict's $ 5 – 0 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Pittsburg State 4 – 1 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Washburn 2 – 3 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Emporia State 2 – 3 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Fort Hays State 1 – 4 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Omaha 1 – 4 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 College Conference of Illinois football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Wheaton (IL) $ 6 – 0 – 1 6 – 1 – 2 Illinois Wesleyan 5 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Carroll (WI) 4 – 2 – 1 5 – 2 – 1 Augustana (IL) 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 3 – 0 North Central (IL) 3 – 2 – 2 4 – 3 – 2 Lake Forest 2 – 5 – 0 3 – 5 – 0 Millikin 2 – 5 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Elmhurst 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 7 – 1 $ – Conference champion
1959 Evergreen Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 19 Whitworth $ 4 – 1 – 0 9 – 1 – 0 Puget Sound 3 – 1 – 1 6 – 1 – 1 Central Washington 3 – 2 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Western Washington 2 – 3 – 0 3 – 5 – 0 Eastern Washington 1 – 3 – 1 2 – 6 – 1 Pacific Lutheran 1 – 3 – 1 1 – 6 – 1 $ – Conference champion Rankings from NAIA poll	1959 Frontier Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Arizona State–Flagstaff $ 3 – 0 – 0 6 – 2 – 1 Panhandle A&M 2 – 1 – 0 4 – 5 – 1 New Mexico Western 0 – 2 – 1 3 – 3 – 1 New Mexico Highlands 0 – 2 – 1 2 – 5 – 2 $ – Conference champion	1959 Gulf States Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 7 Louisiana Tech $ 5 – 0 – 0 9 – 1 – 0 McNeese State 2 – 3 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Northwestern State 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 1 Southwestern Louisiana 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Southeastern Louisiana 1 – 4 – 0 3 – 2 – 0 Northeast Louisiana State 1 – 4 – 0 2 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from NAIA poll
1959 Indiana Collegiate Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Butler $ 6 – 0 – 0 9 – 0 – 0 Evansville 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Indiana State 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 3 – 0 Saint Joseph's (IN) 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 4 – 0 Valparaiso 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 DePauw 1 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 1 Ball State 1 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 2 Western Illinois $ 6 – 0 – 0 9 – 0 – 0 No. 17 Northern Illinois State 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Central Michigan 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Southern Illinois 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Eastern Illinois 1 – 4 – 1 3 – 5 – 1 Eastern Michigan 1 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 Illinois State Normal 0 – 5 – 1 3 – 5 – 1 $ – Conference champion Rankings from NAIA poll	1959 Iowa Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Wartburg $ 8 – 0 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Buena Vista 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Luther 6 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Iowa Wesleyan 5 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Dubuque 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Parsons 3 – 5 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Central (IA) 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Upper Iowa 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Simpson 0 – 8 – 0 0 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1959 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T College of Emporia $ 7 – 0 – 0 9 – 1 – 0 Ottawa 6 – 1 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Baker 5 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Kansas Wesleyan 3 – 3 – 1 3 – 5 – 1 McPherson 3 – 4 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Bethany (KS) 2 – 4 – 1 4 – 4 – 1 Friends 1 – 6 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Bethel (KS) 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 Lone Star Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 5 Texas A&I +^ 6 – 1 – 0 12 – 1 – 0 No. 4 East Texas State + 6 – 1 – 0 9 – 1 – 0 Lamar Tech 4 – 3 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 Stephen F. Austin 4 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 1 Sam Houston State 3 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Howard Payne 3 – 4 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Southwest Texas State 2 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Sul Ross 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 + – Conference co-champions ^ – NAIA playoff participant Rankings from NAIA poll	1959 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 3 Hillsdale $^ 6 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Hope 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Alma 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Albion 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 4 – 0 Olivet 1 – 5 – 0 3 – 5 – 0 Adrian 1 – 5 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Kalamazoo 1 – 5 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NAIA playoff participant Rankings from NAIA poll
1959 Mid-Ohio League football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Bluffton $ 5 – 0 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Findlay 3 – 1 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 Ashland 3 – 1 – 1 4 – 3 – 2 Ohio Northern 2 – 3 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Defiance 1 – 4 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Wilmington (OH) 0 – 5 – 0 1 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 Midwest Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Coe $ 8 – 0 – 0 8 – 0 – 0 Cornell (IA) 7 – 1 – 0 7 – 1 – 0 St. Olaf 6 – 2 – 0 6 – 2 – 0 Beloit 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 4 – 0 Lawrence 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 4 – 0 Ripon 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 4 – 0 Carleton 3 – 5 – 0 3 – 5 – 0 Knox 2 – 6 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Grinnell 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 Monmouth (IL) 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Gustavus Adolphus $ 7 – 0 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Concordia (MN) 6 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Minnesota–Duluth 4 – 2 – 1 5 – 2 – 1 Saint John's (MN) 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 3 – 0 St. Thomas (MN) 3 – 3 – 1 4 – 3 – 1 Augsburg 2 – 5 – 0 3 – 5 – 0 Macalester 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Hamline 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1959 Missouri College Athletic Union football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 15 William Jewell $ 3 – 0 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Missouri Valley 2 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Culver–Stockton 1 – 2 – 1 6 – 3 – 1 Tarkio 1 – 2 – 1 3 – 5 – 1 Central (MO) 0 – 2 – 0 0 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from NAIA poll	1959 Montana Collegiate Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Eastern Montana + 4 – 1 – 0 5 – 2 – 0 Rocky Mountain + 4 – 1 – 0 4 – 2 – 0 Carroll (MT) 3 – 2 – 0 4 – 4 – 0 Western Montana 3 – 2 – 0 5 – 2 – 1 Northern Montana 1 – 4 – 0 1 – 6 – 0 Montana Mines 0 – 5 – 0  ? –  ? –  ? + – Conference co-champions	1959 Nebraska College Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Kearney State $ 7 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Peru State 6 – 1 – 0 7 – 1 – 0 Chadron State 5 – 2 – 0 6 – 2 – 0 Doane 5 – 3 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 Nebraska Wesleyan 4 – 3 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 Wayne State (NE) 4 – 3 – 1 4 – 4 – 1 Hastings 2 – 2 – 3 3 – 2 – 3 Concordia (NE) 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Dana 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 8 – 0 Midland 0 – 8 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1959 North Dakota Intercollegiate Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Mayville State $ 5 – 0 – 1 6 – 0 – 1 Dickinson State 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 2 – 0 Minot State 2 – 2 – 2 3 – 2 – 2 Valley City State 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 3 – 0 Wahpeton Science 2 – 2 – 2 2 – 2 – 2 Jamestown 1 – 4 – 1 2 – 5 – 1 Ellendale 1 – 5 – 0 2 – 5 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 North State Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. Lenoir Rhyne $^ 6 – 0 – 0 10 – 1 – 0 Appalachian State 5 – 1 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Western Carolina 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 1 East Carolina 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 6 – 0 Catawba 2 – 4 – 0 2 – 7 – 1 Guilford 1 – 5 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Elon 0 – 6 – 0 1 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NAIA playoff participant Rankings from NAIA poll	1959 Northern State College Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Bemidji State + 4 – 1 – 0 6 – 1 – 1 Michigan Tech + 4 – 1 – 0 6 – 2 – 0 Mankato State + 4 – 1 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Winona State 2 – 3 – 0 2 – 5 – 0 St. Cloud State 1 – 4 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Moorhead State 0 – 5 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 + – Conference co-champions
1959 Northwest Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Willamette $ 3 – 1 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 Lewis & Clark 3 – 2 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 College of Idaho 2 – 2 – 1 6 – 3 – 1 Whitman 2 – 3 – 0 5 – 3 – 0 Pacific (OR) 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Linfield 1 – 2 – 2 4 – 3 – 2 $ – Conference champion	1959 Oklahoma Collegiate Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Langston $ 6 – 0 – 0 7 – 1 – 0 No. 11 Central State (OK) 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 East Central 4 – 2 – 0 8 – 4 – 0 SW Oklahoma State 3 – 3 – 0 3 – 6 – 1 Northeastern State 2 – 4 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 NW Oklahoma State 1 – 5 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 SE Oklahoma State 0 – 6 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 Oregon Collegiate Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Oregon Tech $ 4 – 0 – 0 6 – 2 – 0 Southern Oregon 3 – 1 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Eastern Oregon 2 – 2 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Portland State 1 – 3 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Oregon College 0 – 4 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1959 Pennsylvania State Teachers College Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 10/10 West Chester $ 5 – 1 – 0 7 – 1 – 0 California (PA) 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 2 – 0 Shippensburg 5 – 2 – 0 6 – 2 – 0 Clarion 4 – 1 – 1 6 – 1 – 1 East Stroudsburg 3 – 2 – 0 5 – 2 – 2 Lock Haven 5 – 2 – 0 6 – 2 – 0 Millersville 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Slippery Rock 2 – 3 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Edinboro 2 – 3 – 1 3 – 4 – 1 Bloomsburg 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 2 – 1 Indiana (PA) 1 – 3 – 1 3 – 4 – 1 Mansfield 1 – 4 – 2 2 – 4 – 2 Kutztown 1 – 2 – 1 3 – 4 – 1 Cheyney 0 – 6 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion Conference standings were based on the Saylor system of ratings. Rankings from NAIA poll and UPI small college poll	1959 Rocky Mountain Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Idaho State $ 3 – 0 – 0 6 – 2 – 0 Adams State 3 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Colorado State–Greeley 3 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Colorado College 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 4 – 0 Colorado Mines 1 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Western State (CO) 1 – 4 – 0 3 – 5 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 South Dakota Intercollegiate Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 14 Huron + 7 – 1 – 0 9 – 1 – 0 Southern State + 7 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 General Beadle 5 – 2 – 1 5 – 2 – 1 Northern State 5 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Dakota Wesleyan 3 – 4 – 1 3 – 5 – 1 South Dakota Tech 3 – 4 – 0 3 – 4 – 0 Sioux Falls 2 – 5 – 0 2 – 5 – 0 Black Hills 1 – 6 – 0 1 – 6 – 0 Yankton 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 8 – 0 + – Conference co-champions Rankings from NAIA poll
1959 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 18 Whittier $ 5 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Redlands 4 – 1 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Pomona 3 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Occidental 2 – 3 – 0 3 – 5 – 0 Caltech 1 – 4 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 Claremont-Mudd 0 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 1 $ – Conference champion Rankings from NAIA poll	1959 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Southern $ 7 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 No. 16 Prairie View A&M 6 – 1 – 0 9 – 2 – 0 Texas Southern 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Jackson State 4 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Arkansas AM&N 2 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Grambling 2 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Texas College 2 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Wiley 0 – 7 – 0 2 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from NAIA poll	1959 West Penn Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Westminster (PA) $ 5 – 0 – 0 6 – 2 – 0 Carnegie Tech 3 – 1 – 0 7 – 1 – 0 Geneva 2 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Saint Vincent 1 – 3 – 0 3 – 4 – 0 Grove City 0 – 2 – 1 3 – 5 – 1 Waynesburg 0 – 3 – 1 1 – 6 – 2 $ – Conference champion
1959 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Eastern Division West Liberty State x 4 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Shepherd 3 – 2 – 0 4 – 4 – 0 West Virginia State 2 – 2 – 0 2 – 5 – 1 Davis & Elkins 1 – 6 – 0 1 – 6 – 0 Salem 0 – 8 – 0 0 – 8 – 0 Bluefield State * 0 – 1 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Western Division No. 12 Fairmont State x$ 8 – 0 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 West Virginia Tech 4 – 1 – 0 7 – 1 – 0 Potomac State 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 West Virginia Wesleyan 5 – 2 – 0 6 – 2 – 0 Glenville State 4 – 3 – 0 4 – 3 – 0 Concord 2 – 6 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Bethany (WV) * 0 – 1 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions * – Did not qualify for conference standings Salem forfeited seven conference wins, over Concord, Davis & Elkins, Glenville State, Potomac State, West Liberty State, West Virginia State, and West Virginia Wesleyan. Conference standings based on power ratings Rankings from NAIA poll	1959 Wisconsin State College Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Whitewater State $ 6 – 0 – 0 7 – 1 – 1 La Crosse State 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Superior State 3 – 1 – 2 4 – 3 – 2 Stevens Point State 3 – 3 – 1 4 – 3 – 1 Milwaukee 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 4 – 0 Oshkosh State 2 – 3 – 2 3 – 3 – 2 Eau Claire State 2 – 4 – 1 2 – 5 – 1 River Falls State 2 – 4 – 1 2 – 6 – 1 Platteville State 2 – 4 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Stout State 0 – 5 – 1 2 – 5 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1959 NAIA independents football records v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Austin   –   8 – 2 – 0 No. 9 McMurry   –   8 – 2 – 0 No. 8 Southern Connecticut State ^   –   8 – 2 – 0 Georgetown (KY)   –   5 – 2 – 0 Oklahoma Panhandle State   –   4 – 5 – 1 Eastern New Mexico   –   4 – 6 – 0 La Verne   –   3 – 6 – 0 Carson–Newman   –   1 – 7 – 1 Earlham   –   1 – 7 – 0 ^ – NAIA playoff participant Rankings from NAIA poll

Postseason

	Semifinals December 5, 1959					Championship December 19, 1959 Holiday Bowl [2]
	Hillsdale		0
	Texas A&I *		20
						Texas A&I		20
						Lenoir Rhyne		7
	Southern Connecticut State		20
	Lenoir Rhyne *		47

See also

• 1959 NCAA University Division football season
• 1959 NCAA College Division football season

References

1. "NAIA Championship History" (PDF). NAIA. pp. 4–11. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 15, 2015. Retrieved November 13, 2015.
2. "1959 NAIA Football Playoffs". JonFMorse.com. Retrieved November 13, 2015.