By Alan Grosbach, Associate Director of Athletics Communications and Media

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – (Championship Schedule) The first round of the 2017 NAIA Football Championship Series kicks off action Saturday afternoon at eight campus sites. The winners advance to the quarterfinals, which are played out on Saturday, November 25. Quarterfinal pairings will be released on www.NAIA.org Saturday after the conclusion of all first round games.

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 announced Sunday. At-large bids were given to the next highest ranked teams that did not claim an automatic spot.

The 62nd annual NAIA Football National Championship is scheduled for Saturday, December 16 at 6 p.m. EST in Daytona Beach, Fla. The City of Daytona Beach hosts the event at Municipal Stadium for the fourth-straight season. For fan and visitor information, click here.

2017 NAIA Football Championship Series – First Round Notes
• Defending national champion Saint Francis (Ind.) headlines the teams that will be in action on Saturday. The Cougars are looking to become the first team to repeat as national champion since former member Sioux Falls (S.D.) accomplished the feat in 2008 and 2009.
• The Cougars, who square off against Benedictine (Kan.) on Saturday, boast a 14-2 all-time record in the FCS first round and have won 13-straight first round games.
• Saint Francis (10-0) is one of five unbeaten teams in this year’s field – Langston (Okla.) (10-0), Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) (10-0), Morningside (Iowa) (11-0), Reinhardt (Ga.) (9-0) and Southern Oregon (10-0).
• Concordia (Mich.) is the only newcomer to this year’s field. The Cardinals (9-1) received an at-large berth after finishing runner-up to Saint Francis in the Mid-States Football Association Mideast League.
• Georgetown (Ky.) owns the most appearances among the qualifiers with 2017 acting as its 21st trip to the playoffs. The Tigers have a tough game on Saturday, as they travel to defending national runner-up Baker (Kan.).
• Concordia, Southeastern (Fla.) and Sterling (Kan.) are searching for their first-ever FCS victory this weekend. The Fire are making their second all-time appearance, while Sterling is in its third playoff.
• Six of the 16 qualifiers have previously won a national title – Georgetown (1991, 2000, 2001), Grand View (Iowa) (2013), Northwestern (Iowa) (1973, 1983), Saint Francis (2016), Saint Xavier (Ill.) (2011) and Southern Oregon (2014).
• Morningside is making its 14th all-time and 14th-consecutive appearance in the FCS, which is the longest active appearance streak in NAIA football. The team has reached the quarterfinals in 11 of the last 13 seasons, including a national runner-up finish in 2012.
• Running back Bubba Jenkins of Morningside is one of the key players to watch in this year’s FCS. The senior leads the NAIA in rushing per game, averaging 159.2 yards per contest. Jenkins has eclipsed the 200-yard rushing mark four times this season, including a season-best 238 yards against Hastings (Neb.) on October 21.
• A second individual on the offensive side of the ball is quarterback Nick Ferrer of Saint Francis. The Westfield, Ind., native ranks fifth in passing yards per game (324) and eighth in total offense per game (315.3). In 10 games, Ferrer has thrown for 3,240 yards and 30 touchdowns. He boasts 127 career touchdown passes, which ranks second on the NAIA’s all-time list.
• Since the NAIA returned to one division in 1997, FCS first round hosts own a 127-33 all-time record. Last year, the first round host teams posted a 7-1 mark. The most successful season for the road teams came in 1998 and 2004 when the visitor claimed a 4-4 record.

For more information on the 2017 NAIA Football Championship Series, click here.