1974 NCAA Division II football season

The 1974 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level, began in September and concluded with the Division II Championship on December 14 at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento, California.

1974 NCAA Division II football season
Regular season	September – November 1974
Playoffs	November – December 1974
National Championship	Hughes Stadium Sacramento, CA
Champion	Central Michigan

Central Michigan defeated Delaware 54–15 in the Camellia Bowl to win their only Division II national title. CMU moved up to Division I in 1975.

Conference standings

1974 Big Sky Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 5 Boise State $^ 6 – 0 – 0 10 – 2 – 0 Montana State 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Idaho 2 – 2 – 1 2 – 8 – 1 Montana 2 – 3 – 1 3 – 6 – 1 Northern Arizona 2 – 3 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Idaho State 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Weber State 1 – 5 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AP small college poll	1974 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T UC Riverside $ 4 – 0 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 Cal Poly 2 – 1 – 1 5 – 4 – 1 Cal Poly Pomona 1 – 1 – 2 5 – 3 – 2 Cal State Northridge 1 – 3 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 Cal State Los Angeles 0 – 3 – 1 5 – 4 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1974 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Norfolk State $ 8 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Virginia Union 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Livingstone 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 Johnson C. Smith 4 – 2 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Hampton 3 – 4 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Elizabeth City State 3 – 5 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Winston-Salem State 3 – 5 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Virginia State 2 – 4 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Shaw 2 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Fayetteville State 2 – 6 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Saint Paul's (VA) 0 – 6 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1974 Eastern Football Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Central Connecticut State $ 3 – 0 – 0 4 – 5 – 1 Glassboro State 2 – 1 – 0 6 – 3 – 1 Montclair State 1 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 1 Southern Connecticut State 0 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1974 Far Western Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T UC Davis $ 5 – 0 – 0 9 – 1 – 0 San Francisco State 2 – 3 – 0 5 – 6 – 0 Humboldt State 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Chico State 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Cal State Hayward 2 – 3 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Sacramento State 2 – 3 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1974 Gulf South Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 7 Jacksonville State $ 7 – 1 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 Delta State 7 – 2 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 No. 8 Livingston 5 – 3 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 Southeastern Louisiana 5 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Troy State 4 – 4 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 North Alabama 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Nicholls State 4 – 5 – 0 5 – 6 – 0 Northwestern State 1 – 6 – 0 1 – 10 – 0 Tennessee–Martin 1 – 7 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 Mississippi College 0 – 7 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1974 Indiana Collegiate Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Butler $ 6 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Evansville ^ 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 DePauw 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Indiana Central 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Wabash 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Valparaiso 2 – 4 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Saint Joseph's (IN) 0 – 6 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant	1974 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 11 South Carolina State $ 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 4 – 0 Howard 4 – 1 – 1 8 – 2 – 1 North Carolina Central 4 – 1 – 1 7 – 2 – 2 Morgan State 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 North Carolina A&T 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0 Maryland Eastern Shore 1 – 5 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Delaware State 0 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from NAIA Division I poll	1974 Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T NW Missouri State $ 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Missouri–Rolla 4 – 1 – 1 6 – 4 – 1 SW Missouri State 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 SE Missouri State 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 NE Missouri State 2 – 4 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Central Missouri State 1 – 4 – 1 3 – 7 – 1 Lincoln (MO) * 0 – 6 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion Lincoln's overall record includes a forfeit from Arkansas–Pine Bluff.
1974 North Central Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T South Dakota + 5 – 2 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 North Dakota State + 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 North Dakota + 5 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 South Dakota State 4 – 3 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 Mankato State 3 – 3 – 1 5 – 4 – 1 Northern Iowa 3 – 3 – 1 5 – 4 – 1 Augustana (SD) 2 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Morningside 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 + – Conference co-champions	1974 Northern Intercollegiate Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Michigan Tech $ 6 – 0 – 0 9 – 0 – 0 St. Cloud State 5 – 1 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Winona State 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Moorhead State 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Southwest State (MN) 2 – 4 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Minnesota Morris 2 – 4 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Bemidji State 0 – 6 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1974 Ohio Valley Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Eastern Kentucky $ 6 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Murray State 5 – 2 – 0 9 – 2 – 0 Western Kentucky 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Tennessee Tech 4 – 3 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 East Tennessee State 3 – 3 – 1 4 – 6 – 1 Middle Tennessee 2 – 5 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 Austin Peay 1 – 5 – 1 3 – 7 – 1 Morehead State 1 – 6 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1974 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T East Division West Chester xy 5 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 No. 6 Millersville 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 East Stroudsburg 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Kutztown 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Cheyney 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Mansfield 0 – 4 – 1 1 – 7 – 1 Bloomsburg 0 – 5 – 1 1 – 7 – 1 West Division No. 13 Slippery Rock xy$^ 5 – 0 – 1 9 – 1 – 1 Clarion 4 – 1 – 1 6 – 2 – 1 Indiana (PA) 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Shippensburg 3 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Edinboro 2 – 2 – 2 5 – 2 – 2 California (PA) 1 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 Lock Haven 0 – 6 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Championship: Slippery Rock 20, West Chester 7 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from AP small college poll for Slippery Rock and NAIA Division I poll for Millersville	1974 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Division I Tuskegee x 5 – 0 – 0 10 – 1 – 0 Bethune–Cookman 4 – 1 – 0 8 – 3 – 1 Florida A&M 3 – 2 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 Alabama State 2 – 3 – 0 2 – 8 – 0 Alabama A&M 1 – 4 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Albany State 1 – 4 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Morris Brown 1 – 4 – 0 2 – 8 – 0 Division II Clark (GA) x 5 – 0 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Fisk 4 – 1 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Fort Valley State 3 – 2 – 0 5 – 3 – 0 Savannah State 3 – 2 – 0 3 – 6 – 1 Knoxville 2 – 3 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 Miles 2 – 3 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Morehouse 1 – 4 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Lane 0 – 5 – 0 0 – 8 – 0 x – Division champion/co-champions	1974 Southland Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 2 Louisiana Tech $^ 5 – 0 – 0 11 – 1 – 0 Lamar 4 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Arkansas State 3 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 McNeese State 2 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 1 UT Arlington 1 – 4 – 0 1 – 10 – 0 SW Louisiana 0 – 5 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AP small college poll
1974 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 7 Grambling State + 5 – 1 – 0 11 – 1 – 0 No. 14 Alcorn State +^ 5 – 1 – 0 9 – 2 – 0 No. 10 Jackson State 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 No. 12 Southern 3 – 3 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 Texas Southern 3 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Mississippi Valley State 1 – 5 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Prairie View A&M 0 – 6 – 0 0 – 10 – 0 + – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AP small college poll for Grambling State and Alconrn State and NAIA Division I poll for Jackson State and Southern	1974 Virginia College Athletic Association football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Virginia Union 2 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Randolph–Macon 4 – 0 – 1 6 – 2 – 1 Hampden–Sydney 4 – 1 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Virginia State 2 – 1 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Madison 3 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Hampton 1 – 2 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Bridgewater 1 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Washington and Lee 0 – 2 – 1 1 – 8 – 1 Emory & Henry 0 – 3 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 Saint Paul's (VA) 0 – 3 – 0 1 – 8 – 0	1974 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Northern Division Fairmont State xy$ 4 – 0 – 0 7 – 4 – 0 No. 15 Salem 3 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 West Liberty State 2 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Shepherd 1 – 2 – 0 2 – 9 – 0 West Virginia Wesleyan 0 – 4 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Southern Division Concord xy 3 – 1 – 0 6 – 5 – 0 Bluefield State 3 – 1 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Glenville State 3 – 1 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 West Virginia Tech 1 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 West Virginia State 0 – 4 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Championship: Fairmont State 30, Concord 6 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Conference standings based on power ratings Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1974 Yankee Conference football standings Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T UMass + 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 6 – 0 Maine + 4 – 2 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 New Hampshire 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Rhode Island 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Boston University 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 1 Connecticut 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Vermont 1 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 + – Conference co-champions	1974 NCAA Division II independents football records Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 1 Central Michigan ^   –   12 – 1 – 0 No. 6 UNLV ^   –   12 – 1 – 0 No. 4 Delaware ^   –   12 – 2 – 0 No. 8 Western Carolina ^   –   9 – 2 – 0 No. 9 Tennessee State   –   8 – 2 – 0 No. 12 Youngstown State ^   –   8 – 2 – 0 Santa Clara   –   7 – 3 – 0 Wayne State (MI)   –   7 – 3 – 0 Kentucky State   –   6 – 4 – 0 Northeastern   –   6 – 4 – 0 Central State (OH)   –   6 – 5 – 0 Akron   –   5 – 5 – 0 Indiana State   –   5 – 5 – 0 Nevada   –   5 – 6 – 0 Portland State   –   5 – 6 – 0 American International   –   4 – 5 – 0 Eastern Michigan   –   4 – 6 – 1 Milwaukee   –   4 – 6 – 0 Northeast Louisiana   –   4 – 6 – 0 Eastern Illinois   –   3 – 6 – 1 Arkansas–Pine Bluff   –   3 – 5 – 0 Chattanooga   –   4 – 7 – 0 Nebraska–Omaha   –   3 – 7 – 0 Bucknell   –   2 – 8 – 0 Northern Michigan   –   0 – 10 – 0 ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AP small college poll

Conference summaries

See also: List of NCAA Division II football seasons

Conference	Champion(s)
Big Sky Conference	Boise State
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association	Norfolk State
Far Western Football Conference	UC Davis
Gulf South Conference	Jacksonville State
Indiana Collegiate Conference	Butler
Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association	Northwest Missouri State
North Central Conference	North Dakota State, North Dakota, and South Dakota
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (Division II)	Tuskegee
Yankee Conference	Maine and Massachusetts

Postseason

1974 NCAA Division II Football Championship
Teams	8
Finals Site	Hughes Stadium Sacramento, California
Champion	Central Michigan (1st title, 1st title game)
Runner-up	Delaware (1st title game)
Semifinalists	Louisiana Tech UNLV
Winning coach	Roy Kramer 1st championship

The 1974 NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs were the second single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of NCAA Division II college football.

The four quarterfinal games were played on campus and all four host teams advanced. The semifinals were the Pioneer Bowl in Wichita Falls, Texas, and the Grantland Rice Bowl in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The championship game was the Camellia Bowl, held at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento, California for the second consecutive year. The Central Michigan Chippewas defeated the Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens 54–14 to win their first national title. After opening with a home loss to Division I Kent State, CMU won twelve straight to finish as D-II champions.

Playoff bracket

	First round Campus sites November 30					Semifinals Pioneer Bowl Grantland Rice Bowl December 7					Championship Camellia Bowl Hughes Stadium Sacramento, CA December 14
	Central Michigan *		20
	Boise State		6
						Central Michigan		35
						Louisiana Tech		14
	Louisiana Tech *		10
	Western Carolina		7
											Central Michigan		54
											Delaware		14
	UNLV *		35
	Alcorn State		22
						UNLV		11
						Delaware		49
	Delaware *		35
	Youngstown State		14

* Denotes host institution

Rankings

Main article: 1974 small college football rankings

In 1974, United Press International (UPI) and the Associated Press (AP) ranked teams in their College Division or "small college" polls – which had started in 1958 and 1960, respectively – for the final time. UPI published their final poll at the end of the regular season, while the AP waited until postseason games had been completed. UPI's number one selection was the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, who during the regular season were 10–0 while outscoring opponents 294–103. The Bulldogs later lost in the playoffs to the Central Michigan Chippewas, winners of the tournament. AP's number one selection was the Chippewas, who were 9–1 during the regular season and finished with an overall record of 12–1 while outscoring opponents 450–127.

United Press International (coaches) final poll
Published on November 27

Rank	School	Record	No. 1 votes	Total points
1	Louisiana Tech	10–0	27	322
2	UNLV	11–0	5	254
3	Boise State	10–1	1	188
4	Delaware	10–1		168
5	Texas A&I	11–0		132
6	Grambling State	10–1		124
7	Central Michigan	9–1		101
8	Youngstown State	8–1		40
9	Tennessee State	8–2		38
10	Western Carolina	9–1		34
11	Stephen F. Austin	9–2		34
12	Slippery Rock	9–0–1		19
13	Alcorn State	9–1		17
14	Elon	10–1		10
15	South Dakota	8–3		9

Associated Press (writers) final poll
Published on December 24

Rank	School	Record	No. 1 votes	Total points
1	Central Michigan	12–1D2	32	658
2	Louisiana Tech	10–1E1D2		477
3	Texas A&I	13–0N1	2	461
4	Delaware	12–2D2		460
5	Boise State	10–2D2		401
6	UNLV	12–1D2		381
7	Grambling State	11–1P		322
8	Western Carolina	9–1E2D2		241
9	Tennessee State	8–2		180
10	Texas Lutheran	11–0N2		171
11	Henderson State	11–2N1		135
12	Youngstown State	8–2D2		118
13	Slippery Rock	9–1–1D3		90
14	Alcorn State	9–2D2		87
15	Elon	10–2N1		85

^D2 Record includes NCAA Division II playoff games
^D3 Record includes NCAA Division III playoff games ^E1 Louisiana Tech final record actually 11–1 ^E2 Western Carolina final record actually 9–2
^N1 Record includes NAIA Division I playoff games
^N2 Record includes NAIA Division II playoff games
^P Record includes Pelican Bowl win

See also

• 1974 NCAA Division I football season
• 1974 NCAA Division III football season
• 1974 NAIA Division I football season
• 1974 NAIA Division II football season