1993 NCAA Division I-AA football season

1993 NCAA Division I-AA season
Regular season
Number of teams	118
Duration	August–November
Payton Award	Doug Nussmeier (QB, Idaho)
Playoff
Duration	November 27–December 18
Championship date	December 18, 1993
Championship site	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, West Virginia
Champion	Youngstown State
NCAA Division I-AA football seasons
«1992 1994»

The 1993 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, began in August 1993, and concluded with the 1993 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 18, 1993, at Marshall University Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia. The Youngstown State Penguins won their second I-AA championship, defeating the Marshall Thundering Herd by a score of 17−5. It was the third consecutive year that Marshall and Youngstown State faced off in the I-AA title game.

Conference changes and new programs

• A 1991 NCAA rule change required athletic programs to maintain all of their sports at the same division level by the 1993 season. In order to comply, 28 Division I programs with football teams at the Division II and Division III levels were forced to upgrade their programs to the Division I level, and all of them (at least initially) chose Division I-AA as their new football home.
• The rule change led directly to the establishment of the Pioneer Football League, a non-scholarship football conference at the Division I-AA level with six founding members, all of which had played in Division II or III: Butler, Dayton, Drake, Evansville, San Diego, and Valparaiso.
• It also led to the creation of the American West Conference, initially a football-only conference at the Division I-AA level with five founding members, all formerly in Division II: UC Davis, Cal Poly, Cal State Northridge, Sacramento State, and Southern Utah.
• The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, an existing Division I conference, also began sponsoring football in order to accommodate these new I-AA football programs.

School	1992 Conference	1993 Conference
Buffalo	D-III Independent	I-AA Independent
Butler	MIFC (D-II)	Pioneer (I-AA)
California–Davis	Northern California (D-II)	American West+
Cal Poly	Western (D-II)	American West (I-AA)
Cal State Northridge	Western (D-II)	American West (I-AA)
Canisius	D-III Independent	MAAC (I-AA)
Central Connecticut State	D-II Independent	I-AA Independent
Charleston Southern	D-III Independent	I-AA Independent
Davidson	D-III Independent	I-AA Independent
Dayton	D-III Independent	Pioneer (I-AA)
Drake	D-III Independent	Pioneer (I-AA)
Duquesne	D-III Independent	I-AA Independent
Evansville	D-III Independent	Pioneer (I-AA)
Georgetown	D-III Independent	MAAC (I-AA)
Georgia Southern	I-AA Independent	Southern
Iona	Liberty (D-III)	MAAC (I-AA)
James Madison	I-AA Independent	Yankee
Marist)	Liberty (D-III)	I-AA Independent
Monmouth	New Program	I-AA Independent
Northeastern	I-AA Independent	Yankee
Sacramento State	Western (D-II)	American West (I-AA)
St. Francis (PA)	D-III Independent	I-AA Independent
St. John's (NY)	Liberty (D-III)	MAAC (I-AA)
St. Mary's (CA)	D-II Independent	I-AA Independent
St. Peter's	D-III Independent	MAAC (I-AA)
San Diego	D-III Independent	Pioneer (I-AA)
Siena	D-III Independent	MAAC (I-AA)
Southern Utah	Western (D-II)	American West (I-AA)
Troy State	D-II Independent	I-AA Independent
UAB	D-III Independent	I-AA Independent
Valparaiso	MIFC (D-II)	Pioneer (I-AA)
Wagner	Liberty (D-III)	I-AA Independent
William & Mary	I-AA Independent	Yankee

+ The UC Davis Aggies, although a member of the new American West Conference, were listed in Division II polls, and participated in the Division II postseason.

Conference standings

1993 American West Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 7 UC Davis +^ 3 – 1 – 0 10 – 2 – 0 Southern Utah + 3 – 1 – 0 3 – 7 – 1 Sacramento State 2 – 2 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Cal Poly 1 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Cal State Northridge 1 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Although UC Davis was a conference member, they participated in NCAA Division II polls and postseason. Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee poll	1993 Big Sky Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 3 Montana $^ 7 – 0 – 0 10 – 2 – 0 No. 11 Idaho ^ 5 – 2 – 0 11 – 3 – 0 No. 20 Eastern Washington 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Montana State 4 – 3 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 Northern Arizona 3 – 4 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 Weber State 3 – 4 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 Boise State 1 – 6 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 Idaho State 0 – 7 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll	1993 Gateway Football Conference standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 13 Northern Iowa $^ 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 4 – 0 Southwest Missouri State 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 Western Illinois 4 – 2 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Illinois State 2 – 3 – 1 6 – 4 – 1 Eastern Illinois 2 – 3 – 1 3 – 7 – 1 Indiana State 2 – 4 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Southern Illinois 1 – 5 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll
1993 Ivy League football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 16 Penn $ 7 – 0 – 0 10 – 0 – 0 Dartmouth 6 – 1 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Princeton 5 – 2 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Brown 3 – 4 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Cornell 3 – 4 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Yale 2 – 5 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Harvard 1 – 6 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Columbia 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 8 – 0 + – Conference co-champions Rankings from The Sports Network poll	1993 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Iona $ 5 – 0 – 0 9 – 2 – 0 Canisius 4 – 1 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 St. John's 3 – 2 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 Georgetown 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Saint Peter's 1 – 4 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Siena 0 – 5 – 0 0 – 10 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1993 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 8 Howard $^ 6 – 0 – 0 11 – 1 – 0 South Carolina State 4 – 2 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 Delaware State 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 No. 21 North Carolina A&T 3 – 3 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 Florida A&M 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 6 – 0 Bethune–Cookman 1 – 5 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 Morgan State 0 – 6 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll
1993 Ohio Valley Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 17 Eastern Kentucky $^ 8 – 0 – 0 8 – 4 – 0 No. 22 Tennessee Tech 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 Tennessee–Martin 5 – 3 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 Middle Tennessee 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0 Murray State 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Tennessee State 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Morehead State 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 Southeast Missouri State 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 Austin Peay 0 – 8 – 0 1 – 10 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll	1993 Patriot League football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Lehigh $ 4 – 1 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 Lafayette 3 – 1 – 1 5 – 4 – 2 Bucknell 3 – 2 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Holy Cross 2 – 3 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 Colgate 1 – 3 – 1 3 – 7 – 1 Fordham 1 – 4 – 0 1 – 10 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1993 Pioneer Football League standings Conf Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Dayton $   5 – 0     9 – 1   Drake   3 – 2     8 – 2   Butler   3 – 2     4 – 6   Evansville   2 – 3     6 – 4   San Diego   1 – 4     6 – 4   Valparaiso   1 – 4     5 – 5   $ – Conference champion
1993 Southern Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 2 Georgia Southern $^ 7 – 1 – 0 10 – 3 – 0 No. 9 Marshall ^ 6 – 2 – 0 11 – 4 – 0 Western Carolina 5 – 3 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 Furman 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 1 The Citadel 4 – 4 – 0 7 – 5 – 0 Appalachian State 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 East Tennessee State 3 – 5 – 0 5 – 6 – 0 Chattanooga 2 – 6 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 VMI 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 10 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll	1993 Southland Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 5 McNeese State $^ 7 – 0 – 0 10 – 3 – 0 No. 4 NE Louisiana ^ 6 – 1 – 0 9 – 3 – 0 No. 14 Stephen F. Austin ^ 5 – 2 – 0 8 – 4 – 0 Northwestern State 3 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0 Sam Houston State 2 – 5 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 North Texas 2 – 5 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Nicholls State 2 – 5 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 SW Texas State 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll	1993 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 15 Southern $ 7 – 0 – 0 11 – 1 – 0 No. 23 Alcorn State 6 – 1 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 Grambling State 4 – 3 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 Jackson State 3 – 3 – 1 5 – 5 – 1 Alabama State 3 – 3 – 1 5 – 4 – 1 Mississippi Valley State 2 – 3 – 2 4 – 4 – 2 Texas Southern 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 Prairie View A&M 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 11 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from The Sports Network Poll
1993 Yankee Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T New England Division No. 6 Boston University x$^ 8 – 0 – 0 12 – 1 – 0 No. 25 UMass 6 – 2 – 0 9 – 2 – 0 Connecticut 5 – 3 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 New Hampshire 4 – 4 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 Rhode Island 2 – 6 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Maine 0 – 8 – 0 0 – 11 – 0 Mid-Atlantic Division No. 10 William & Mary x^ 7 – 1 – 0 9 – 3 – 0 No. 18 Delaware ^ 6 – 2 – 0 9 – 4 – 0 James Madison 4 – 4 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 Richmond 3 – 5 – 0 5 – 6 – 0 Northeastern 2 – 6 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 Villanova 1 – 7 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll	1993 NCAA Division I-AA independents football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 1 Troy State ^   –   11 – 0 – 1 Youngstown State ^   –   10 – 2 – 0 UAB   –   9 – 2 – 0 Wagner   –   9 – 2 – 0 No. 12 UCF ^   –   9 – 3 – 0 No. 24 Towson   –   8 – 2 – 0 No. 19 Western Kentucky   –   8 – 3 – 0 Hofstra   –   6 – 3 – 1 Saint Mary's   –   6 – 3 – 1 Davidson   –   6 – 4 – 0 Central Connecticut State   –   5 – 5 – 0 Liberty   –   5 – 5 – 0 Marist   –   5 – 5 – 0 Samford   –   5 – 6 – 0 Duquesne   –   4 – 6 – 0 Saint Francis   –   3 – 7 – 0 Charleston Southern   –   3 – 8 – 0 Monmouth   –   2 – 5 – 0 Buffalo   –   1 – 10 – 0 ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll

Conference champions

See also: List of NCAA Division I-AA/FCS football seasons

Conference champions

American West Conference – Southern Utah and UC Davis Big Sky Conference – Montana Gateway Football Conference – Northern Iowa Ivy League – Penn Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference – Iona Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – Howard Ohio Valley Conference – Eastern Kentucky Patriot League – Lehigh Pioneer Football League – Dayton Southern Conference – Georgia Southern Southland Conference – McNeese State Southwestern Athletic Conference – Southern Yankee Conference – Boston University

Postseason

NCAA Division I-AA playoff bracket

Only the top four teams in the field were seeded, with the NCAA placing others teams in the bracket to avoid early round matchups between teams from the same conference. This was the first season that the NCAA did not use an in-house poll process for I-AA ranking purposes; independent polling by The Sports Network wire service was used. The site of the title game, Marshall University Stadium, had been predetermined months earlier.

	First Round November 27 Campus sites				Quarterfinals December 4 Campus sites				Semifinals December 11 Campus sites				National Championship Game December 18 Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV
	Eastern Kentucky	12
	(1) Georgia Southern*	14
					(1) Georgia Southern	14
					Youngstown State*	34
	UCF	30
	Youngstown State*	56
									Youngstown State*	35
									Idaho	16
	Northern Iowa	21
	(4) Boston University*	27**
					(4) Boston University	14
					Idaho*	21
	Idaho	34'
	Northeast Louisiana*	31
													Youngstown State	17
													Marshall	5
	Delaware	49
	(2) Montana*	48
					Delaware	31
					Marshall*	34
	Howard	14
	Marshall*	28*
									Marshall*	24
									Troy State	21
	William & Mary	28
	(3) McNeese State*	34
					(3) McNeese State*	28
					Troy State	35
	Stephen F. Austin	20
	Troy State*	42

* Next to team name denotes host institution
* Next to score denotes overtime period
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