KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) announced the final field and the pairings for the first round of the NAIA Football Championship Series (FCS) on Sunday. The 16-team event will kick-off on Saturday, Nov. 23 at eight campus host sites across the country.
Northwestern College is playoff bound for the third straight year as they earned a spot in the 2019 NAIA Football Championship Series as announced by the national office earlier this evening.
Ranked eighth in the final coaches’ poll, Northwestern received the first of the four at-large bids into the Championship Series field and will host No.9 Saint Xavier (Ill.) in a first round matchup on Saturday, Nov. 23. Kickoff time will be noon (CST).
This will be the Red Raiders third straight and 21st overall appearance in the Football Championship Series and the second consecutive year they will host. They are 21-18 all-time in the postseason and are 14-6 in first round match-ups (note: the 1987 season was the first the NAIA went to a 16-team format for the championship; from 1978 – 1986, the NAIA had an 8-team championship field, prior to that, it was four-team championship; therefore, the 14-6 record in the first round accounts for the FIRST game played in the postseason by the Red Raiders, whether it be the round of 16, 8 for 4.)
This year’s field includes 12 automatic qualifiers – one from each conference – and four at-large selections. Automatic berths were given to teams that won their conference regular-season title and were ranked within the top 20 of the final regular-season NAIA Football Coaches’ Top 25 Poll. At-large bids were given to the next highest ranked teams that did not claim an automatic spot.
2019 NAIA Football Championship Series – First Round Schedule
Saturday, November 23 | Campus Sites
Game 1 – Dickinson State (N.D.) (8-2) at Morningside (Iowa) (10-0)
Game 2 – Reinhardt (Ga.) (9-2) at Marian (Ind.) (9-0)
Game 3 – Baker (Kan.) (8-2) at Kansas Wesleyan (11-0)
Game 4 – Concordia (Mich.) (8-2) at Grand View (Iowa) (11-0)
Game 5 – Ottawa (Ariz.) (9-1) at College of Idaho (10-0)
Game 6 –St. Francis (Ind.) (7-2) at Lindsey Wilson (10-0)
Game 7 – Cumberlands (Ky.) (9-1) at Keiser (Fla.) (9-0)
Game 8 – Saint Xavier (Ill.) (8-2) at Northwestern (Iowa) (9-1)
Northwestern College is playoff bound for the third straight year as they earned a spot in the 2019 NAIA Football Championship Series as announced by the national office earlier this evening.
Ranked eighth in the final coaches’ poll, Northwestern received the first of the four at-large bids into the Championship Series field and will host No.9 Saint Xavier (Ill.) in a first round matchup on Saturday, Nov. 23. Kickoff time will be noon (CST).
This will be the Red Raiders third straight and 21st overall appearance in the Football Championship Series and the second consecutive year they will host. They are 21-18 all-time in the postseason and are 14-6 in first round match-ups (note: the 1987 season was the first the NAIA went to a 16-team format for the championship; from 1978 – 1986, the NAIA had an 8-team championship field, prior to that, it was four-team championship; therefore, the 14-6 record in the first round accounts for the FIRST game played in the postseason by the Red Raiders, whether it be the round of 16, 8 for 4.)
This year’s field includes 12 automatic qualifiers – one from each conference – and four at-large selections. Automatic berths were given to teams that won their conference regular-season title and were ranked within the top 20 of the final regular-season NAIA Football Coaches’ Top 25 Poll. At-large bids were given to the next highest ranked teams that did not claim an automatic spot.
