1972 NAIA Division I football season

The 1972 NAIA Division I football season, as part of the 1972 college football season in the United States, was the 17th season of college football sponsored by the NAIA and the third season of the league's two-division structure.

1972 NAIA Division I football season
Regular season	August–November 1972
Postseason	November 25–December 9, 1972
National Championship	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX
Champions	East Texas State

The season was played from August to November 1972 and culminated in the 1972 NAIA Champion Bowl, played on December 9, 1972 in Commerce, Texas.[1]

East Texas State (now Texas A&M–Commerce) defeated Carson–Newman in the Division I Championship Bowl, 21–18, to win their first NAIA national title.[2]

Conference standings

1972 Evergreen Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Central Washington $ 6 – 0 – 0     9 – 1 – 0 Oregon College 5 – 1 – 0     6 – 4 – 0 Southern Oregon 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Eastern Washington 2 – 4 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 Eastern Oregon 2 – 4 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Western Washington 2 – 4 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 Oregon Tech 1 – 5 – 0     1 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1972 Great Plains Athletic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Emporia State $ 5 – 1 – 0     7 – 4 – 0 Nebraska–Omaha 4 – 2 – 0     8 – 2 – 0 Northern Colorado 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Southern Colorado 3 – 3 – 0     5 – 5 – 0 Pittsburg State 3 – 3 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 Washburn 1 – 5 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 Fort Hays State 1 – 5 – 0     1 – 8 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1972 Lone Star Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T East Texas State $^ 7 – 1 – 0     10 – 2 – 0 Angelo State 6 – 2 – 0     8 – 2 – 0 Southwest Texas State 6 – 2 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Howard Payne 4 – 4 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Texas A&I 4 – 4 – 0     6 – 5 – 0 Sam Houston State 4 – 4 – 0     5 – 6 – 0 Sul Ross 3 – 5 – 0     5 – 6 – 0 Stephen F. Austin 2 – 6 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 Tarleton State 0 – 8 – 0     1 – 9 – 0 McMurry * 0 – 0 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Abilene Christian * 0 – 0 – 0     3 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant * – did not complete for conference title
1972 Nebraska College Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Kearney State $ 3 – 0 – 0     8 – 2 – 0 Chadron State 2 – 1 – 0     8 – 2 – 0 Wayne State (NE) 1 – 2 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 Peru State 0 – 3 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1972 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Adams State $ 5 – 1 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Western State 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Southern Utah 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Colorado Mines 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Western New Mexico 3 – 3 – 0     3 – 5 – 0 Westminster (UT) 1 – 5 – 0     3 – 5 – 0 Fort Lewis 1 – 5 – 0     2 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion

Postseason

	Semifinals November 25, 1972					1972 Champion Bowl December 9, 1972 Commerce, TX
	Livingston		7
	Carson–Newman*		7†
						Carson–Newman		18
						East Texas State*		21
	Central State (OK)		0
	East Texas State*		54

• † The game ended in a tie, but Carson–Newman advanced based on having more total penetrations within the 20 yard line.

References

1. "NAIA Championship History" (PDF). NAIA. pp. 4–11. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 15, 2015. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
2. "1972 Division I NAIA Football Playoffs". JonFMorse.com. Retrieved November 27, 2015.