2007 NCAA Division III football season

2007 NCAA Division III football season
Regular season	August – November 2007
Playoffs	November – December 2007
National championship	Salem Football Stadium Salem, VA
Champion	Wisconsin–Whitewater (1)
Gagliardi Trophy	Justin Beaver (RB), Wisconsin–Whitewater
←  2006  · NCAA Division IIIfootball seasons ·  2008  →

The 2007 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 2007, and concluded with the NCAA Division III Football Championship, also known as the Stagg Bowl, in December 2007 at Salem Football Stadium in Salem, Virginia. The Wisconsin–Whitewater Warhawks won their first Division III championship by defeating the Mount Union Purple Raiders, 31−21. This was the third of seven straight championship games between Mount Union (3 wins) and Wisconsin–Whitewater (4 wins).

The Gagliardi Trophy, given to the most outstanding player in Division III football, was awarded to Justin Beaver, running back from Wisconsin–Whitewater. ^[1]

Conference standings

2007 American Southwest Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 3 Mary Hardin–Baylor $^   8 – 0     12 – 2   Mississippi College   6 – 2     8 – 2   Hardin–Simmons   6 – 2     6 – 4   East Texas Baptist   5 – 3     5 – 5   Louisiana College   4 – 4     5 – 5   Sul Ross   3 – 5     5 – 5   Texas Lutheran   2 – 6     2 – 8   McMurry   1 – 7     2 – 8   Howard Payne   1 – 7     1 – 9   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 Atlantic Central Football Conference standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 5 Wesley $^   4 – 0     11 – 2   No. 14 Salisbury ^   3 – 1     9 – 2   Brockport   2 – 2     5 – 5   Apprentice §   1 – 3     4 – 6   Frostburg State   0 – 4     2 – 7   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant § – Not an NCAA member Rankings from D3football.com	2007 Centennial Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 8 Muhlenberg $^   8 – 0     11 – 1   Dickinson   6 – 2     9 – 2   Ursinus   5 – 3     7 – 3   Gettysburg   5 – 3     6 – 5   Moravian   4 – 4     6 – 4   Franklin & Marshall   4 – 4     4 – 6   Johns Hopkins   3 – 5     4 – 6   McDaniel   1 – 7     1 – 9   Juniata   0 – 8     1 – 9   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com
2007 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 11 North Central (IL) +^   6 – 1     9 – 3   Illinois Wesleyan +   6 – 1     7 – 3   Wheaton (IL)   5 – 2     8 – 2   Carthage   4 – 3     7 – 3   Elmhurst   3 – 4     6 – 4   Augustana (IL)   3 – 4     5 – 5   Millikin   1 – 6     2 – 8   North Park   0 – 7     1 – 9   + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 Empire 8 Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 7 St. John Fisher +^   5 – 1     11 – 2   Hartwick +^   5 – 1     8 – 3   Alfred   4 – 2     8 – 3   No. 21 Ithaca ^   4 – 2     8 – 3   Springfield   2 – 4     4 – 6   Utica   1 – 5     3 – 7   Norwich   0 – 6     2 – 8   + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 18 Franklin (IN) $^   7 – 0     9 – 2   Mount St. Joseph ^   6 – 1     9 – 2   Rose-Hulman   4 – 3     7 – 3   Defiance   4 – 3     5 – 5   Anderson (IN)   3 – 4     4 – 6   Hanover   2 – 5     2 – 8   Manchester   1 – 6     3 – 7   Bluffton   1 – 6     1 – 9   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com
2007 Illini–Badger Football Conference standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Concordia (WI) +^   6 – 1     7 – 4   Lakeland +   6 – 1     6 – 4   Aurora   4 – 3     5 – 5   Benedictine (IL)   4 – 3     5 – 5   Greenville   4 – 3     5 – 5   Concordia (IL)   2 – 5     3 – 7   Eureka   2 – 5     2 – 8   MacMurray   0 – 7     0 – 10   + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant	2007 Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 6 Central (IA) $^   8 – 0     12 – 1   No. 20 Wartburg   7 – 1     8 – 2   Coe   5 – 3     7 – 3   Dubuque   5 – 3     7 – 3   Luther   4 – 4     5 – 5   Buena Vista   3 – 5     5 – 5   Simpson   3 – 5     4 – 6   Loras   1 – 7     2 – 8   Cornell (IA)   0 – 8     2 – 8   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 Liberty League football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   RPI +^   6 – 1     8 – 2   Hobart +^   6 – 1     8 – 3   Rochester (NY)   5 – 2     6 – 5   Union (NY)   5 – 2     5 – 5   St. Lawrence   3 – 4     4 – 5   WPI   1 – 6     4 – 6   Susquehanna   1 – 6     2 – 8   Merchant Marine   1 – 6     1 – 9   + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant
2007 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Hope +   6 – 1     6 – 4   Olivet +^   6 – 1     6 – 5   Alma   5 – 2     5 – 5   Adrian   4 – 3     7 – 3   Tri-State   4 – 3     6 – 4   Albion   2 – 5     2 – 8   Wisconsin Lutheran   1 – 6     1 – 9   Kalamazoo   0 – 7     1 – 8   + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant	2007 Middle Atlantic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Widener $^   7 – 0     8 – 3   Albright   5 – 2     7 – 4   Delaware Valley   5 – 2     5 – 5   Wilkes   4 – 3     4 – 6   Lebanon Valley   3 – 4     4 – 6   Lycoming   3 – 4     3 – 7   King's   1 – 6     1 – 9   FDU Florham   0 – 7     2 – 8   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 Midwest Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   St. Norbert $^   9 – 0     10 – 1   Monmouth (IL)   7 – 2     7 – 3   Ripon   7 – 2     7 – 3   Carroll (WI)   5 – 4     5 – 5   Lake Forest   5 – 4     5 – 5   Illinois College   4 – 5     4 – 6   Lawrence   4 – 5     4 – 6   Knox   2 – 7     3 – 7   Beloit   1 – 8     1 – 9   Grinnell   1 – 8     1 – 9   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant
2007 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 4 Bethel (MN) $^   8 – 0     12 – 2   No. 9 Saint John's (MN) ^   7 – 1     10 – 2   St. Olaf   6 – 2     8 – 2   Concordia–Moorhead   5 – 3     7 – 3   Augsburg   3 – 5     5 – 5   Gustavus Adolphus   3 – 5     5 – 5   St. Thomas (MN)   2 – 6     2 – 8   Carleton   1 – 7     3 – 7   Hamline   1 – 7     3 – 7   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 New England Football Conference standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Bogan Division Coast Guard xy   7 – 0     8 – 2   Bridgewater State   5 – 2     6 – 4   Maine Maritime   4 – 3     5 – 4   Westfield State   4 – 3     5 – 4   Worcester State   3 – 4     4 – 6   Fitchburg State   3 – 4     3 – 6   Massachusetts Maritime   1 – 6     3 – 7   Framingham State   1 – 6     2 – 7   Boyd Division No. 23 Curry xy$^   7 – 0     12 – 1   Plymouth State   6 – 1     9 – 1   Nichols   4 – 3     5 – 4   UMass Dartmouth   4 – 3     5 – 5   Endicott   3 – 4     3 – 6   MIT   2 – 5     2 – 7   Western New England   1 – 6     3 – 7   Salve Regina   1 – 6     2 – 7   Championship: Curry 10, Coast Guard 7 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 New England Small College Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Middlebury $   7 – 1     7 – 1   Trinity (CT)   6 – 2     6 – 2   Williams   6 – 2     6 – 2   Tufts   5 – 3     5 – 3   Amherst   4 – 4     4 – 4   Wesleyan   4 – 4     4 – 4   Bowdoin   3 – 5     3 – 5   Colby   2 – 6     2 – 6   Hamilton   2 – 6     2 – 6   Bates   1 – 7     1 – 7   $ – Conference champion
2007 New Jersey Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 15 TCNJ +^   6 – 1     9 – 3   Cortland +   6 – 1     8 – 3   Montclair State   5 – 2     9 – 2   Kean   3 – 4     5 – 5   William Paterson   3 – 4     5 – 5   Rowan   2 – 5     4 – 6   Western Connecticut   2 – 5     4 – 6   Buffalo State   1 – 6     2 – 8   + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 North Coast Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 10 Wabash $^   7 – 0     11 – 2   Wittenberg   6 – 1     8 – 2   Oberlin   5 – 2     5 – 5   Ohio Wesleyan   4 – 3     4 – 6   Wooster   4 – 3     4 – 6   Allegheny   3 – 4     5 – 5   Denison   3 – 4     4 – 6   Earlham   2 – 5     3 – 7   Kenyon   1 – 6     2 – 8   Hiram   0 – 7     0 – 10   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 Northwest Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 24 Whitworth $   6 – 0     8 – 2   Pacific Lutheran   4 – 2     7 – 2   Linfield   4 – 2     6 – 3   Willamette   3 – 3     4 – 6   Puget Sound   2 – 4     4 – 5   Menlo   2 – 4     2 – 8   Lewis & Clark   0 – 6     0 – 9   $ – Conference champion Rankings from D3football.com
2007 Ohio Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 2 Mount Union $^   9 – 0     14 – 1   No. 13 Capital ^   7 – 2     8 – 3   Ohio Northern   6 – 3     7 – 3   Baldwin–Wallace   5 – 4     6 – 4   John Carroll   5 – 4     6 – 4   Otterbein   5 – 4     5 – 5   Heidelberg   3 – 6     4 – 6   Marietta   3 – 6     3 – 7   Wilmington (OH)   2 – 7     2 – 8   Muskingum   0 – 9     0 – 10   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 Old Dominion Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Randolph–Macon +   5 – 1     8 – 2   Hampden–Sydney +^   5 – 1     8 – 3   Washington and Lee   4 – 2     6 – 3   Bridgewater   3 – 3     7 – 3   Guilford   2 – 4     6 – 4   Catholic University   1 – 5     5 – 5   Emory & Henry   1 – 5     4 – 6   $ – Conference champion + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant	2007 Presidents' Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 17 Washington & Jefferson $^   6 – 0     10 – 1   Waynesburg   5 – 1     8 – 3   Grove City   3 – 3     4 – 6   Westminster (PA)   2 – 4     5 – 5   Bethany (WV)   2 – 4     4 – 6   Thomas More   2 – 4     4 – 6   Thiel   1 – 5     3 – 7   Geneva #   –     8 – 3   St. Vincent #   –     0 – 10   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant # – Provisional NCAA Divisional III member; games not counted in standings Rankings from D3football.com
2007 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 25 Redlands +^   5 – 1     8 – 2   Cal Lutheran +   5 – 1     5 – 4   Occidental   4 – 2     7 – 2   Whittier   3 – 3     4 – 5   Claremont–Mudd–Scripps   2 – 4     3 – 6   Pomona–Pitzer   1 – 5     2 – 7   La Verne   1 – 5     1 – 8   + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 16 Trinity (TX) +^   6 – 1     9 – 2   Millsaps +   6 – 1     8 – 2   DePauw   5 – 2     8 – 2   Centre   4 – 3     6 – 4   Rhodes   4 – 3     6 – 4   Austin   2 – 5     4 – 6   Colorado College   1 – 6     4 – 6   Sewanee   0 – 7     1 – 8   Birmingham–Southern #   –     1 – 7   + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant # – Provisional Division III member; games not counted in standings Rankings from D3football.com	2007 University Athletic Association football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 22 Case Western Reserve $^   3 – 0     11 – 1   Carnegie Mellon   2 – 1     7 – 4   Washington University   1 – 2     7 – 3   Chicago   0 – 3     4 – 5   $ – Conference champion ^ – Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com
2007 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   North Northwestern (MN) xy$#   7 – 0     7 – 2   Martin Luther   5 – 2     6 – 3   Crown #   4 – 3     5 – 3   Minnesota–Morris #   4 – 3     4 – 4   Trinity Bible §   1 – 6     1 – 8   South Rockford xy   5 – 2     6 – 3   Westminster (MO)   4 – 3     4 – 5   Blackburn   3 – 4     3 – 6   Maranatha Baptist   1 – 6     2 – 7   Principia   1 – 6     1 – 8   Championship: Northwestern (MN) 28, Rockford 27 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant # – Provisional NCAA Division III member § – Not an NCAA member	2007 USA South Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 19 North Carolina Wesleyan $^   7 – 0     9 – 3   Christopher Newport   6 – 1     7 – 3   Maryville (TN)   4 – 3     7 – 3   Ferrum   4 – 3     5 – 5   Methodist   4 – 3     4 – 6   Shenandoah   2 – 5     2 – 8   Greensboro   1 – 6     2 – 8   Averett   0 – 7     0 – 10   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com	2007 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 1 Wisconsin–Whitewater $^   7 – 0     14 – 1   No. 12 Wisconsin–Eau Claire ^   5 – 2     9 – 3   Wisconsin–Oshkosh   4 – 3     7 – 3   Wisconsin–Stevens Point   3 – 4     6 – 4   Wisconsin–La Crosse   3 – 4     5 – 4   Wisconsin–Stout   3 – 4     4 – 6   Wisconsin–River Falls   2 – 5     3 – 7   Wisconsin–Platteville   1 – 6     2 – 8   $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from D3football.com
2007 NCAA Division III independents football records v t e Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Chapman   –     6 – 3   Husson   –     6 – 3   Huntingdon   –     5 – 5   Macalester   –     4 – 5   Morrisville State #   –     3 – 7   Mount Ida   –     3 – 7   Gallaudet   –     2 – 6   Becker   –     2 – 7   SUNY Maritime   –     2 – 8   LaGrange   –     0 – 10   # – Provisional Division III member

Conference champions

Conference champions

American Southwest Conference – Mary Hardin–Baylor Atlantic Central Football Conference – Wesley Centennial Conference – Muhlenberg College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin – Illinois Wesleyan and North Central (IL) Empire 8 Conference – Hartwick and St. John Fisher Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference – Franklin Illini-Badger Football Conference‡ – Concordia (WI) and Lakeland Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Central (IA) Liberty League – Hobart and RPI Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Hope and Olivet Middle Atlantic Conference – Widener Midwest Conference – St. Norbert Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Bethel (MN) New England Football Conference – Coast Guard (Bogan Division), Curry (Boyd Division) Championship Game: Curry 10, Coast Guard 7 New England Small College Athletic Conference – Middlebury New Jersey Athletic Conference – SUNY Cortland and TCNJ North Coast Athletic Conference – Wabash Northwest Conference – Whitworth Ohio Athletic Conference – Mount Union Old Dominion Athletic Conference – Hampden–Sydney Presidents' Athletic Conference – Washington & Jefferson Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Cal Lutheran and Redlands Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference – Millsaps and Trinity (TX) University Athletic Association – Case Western Reserve Upper Midwest Athletic Conference – Northwestern–St. Paul USA South Athletic Conference – North Carolina Wesleyan Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Wisconsin–Whitewater

Postseason

The 2007 NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs were the 35th 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 Salem Football Stadium in Salem, Virginia for the 15th time. ^[2]

Qualification

Twenty-two conferences met the requirements for an automatic ("Pool A") bid to the playoffs. Besides the NESCAC, which does not participate in the playoffs, four conferences had no Pool A bid. The NWC was in the second year of the two-year waiting period, while the ACFC, UAA, and UMAC failed to meet the seven-member requirement. The PAC received a Pool A bid for the first time, having attained seven members and passed through the waiting period.

Schools not in Pool A conferences were eligible for Pool B. The number of Pool B bids was determined by calculating the ratio of Pool A conferences to schools in those conferences and applying that ratio to the number of Pool B schools. The 22 Pool A conferences contained 190 schools, an average of 8.6 teams per conference. Thirty schools were in Pool B, enough for three bids.

The remaining seven playoff spots were at-large ("Pool C") teams.

Playoff bracket

	First Round Campus Sites					Second Round Campus Sites					Quarterfinals Campus Sites					Semifinals Campus Sites					National Championship Game Salem Football Stadium Salem, Virginia
	Mount Union		42
	Ithaca		18			Mount Union		59
	TCNJ		17			TCNJ		7
	RPI		14								Mount Union		52
	Curry		42								St. John Fisher		10
	Hartwick		21			Curry		7
	St. John Fisher		24			St. John Fisher		38
	Hobart		7													Mount Union		62
	Central (IA)		38													Bethel (MN)		14
	Olivet		17			Central (IA)		37
	Saint John's (MN)		41			Saint John's (MN)		7
	Redlands		13								Central (IA)		13
	Wisconsin–Eau Claire		24								Bethel (MN)		27
	St. Norbert		20			Wisconsin–Eau Claire		12
	Bethel (MN)		28			Bethel (MN)		21
	Concordia Wisconsin		0																		Mount Union		21
	North Carolina Wesleyan		35*																		Wisconsin–Whitewater		31
	Washington & Jefferson		34			North Carolina Wesleyan		0
	Mary Hardin–Baylor		52			Mary Hardin–Baylor		64
	Trinity (TX)		23								Mary Hardin–Baylor		27
	Muhlenberg		31								Wesley		10
	Salisbury		21			Muhlenberg		21
	Wesley		45			Wesley		38
	Hampden–Sydney		17													Mary Hardin–Baylor		7
	Wisconsin–Whitewater		34													Wisconsin–Whitewater		16
	Capital		14			Wisconsin–Whitewater		59
	North Central (IL)		44			North Central (IL)		28
	Franklin		42								Wisconsin–Whitewater		47
	Wabash		31								Wabash		7
	Mount St. Joseph		21			Wabash		38
	Case Western		21			Case Western		23
	Widener		20

* Overtime

Bowl games

Date	Bowl	Location	Home team	Away team	Score
November 17	ECAC North Atlantic Bowl	Currier Field Plymouth, New Hampshire	Plymouth State	Bridgewater State	24–21
November 17	Victory Bowl	Reeves Field Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania	Malone (NAIA)	Geneva	45–17

See also

• 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season
• 2007 NCAA Division I FCS football season
• 2007 NCAA Division II football season

References

1. "All-Time Division III Football Championship Records" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. pp. 4–15. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
2. "2007 NCAA Division III National Football Championship Bracket" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. p. 15. Retrieved November 30, 2014.