2021 NAIA Football Championship Series First Round Pairings Announced
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – [Qualifier Reveal | FCS Schedule] The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) announced the 16 team field and the matchups for the first round of the NAIA Football Championship Series on Sunday. The 16-team FCS will kick-off on Saturday, November 20th at eight campus host sites across the country, with the higher seed hosting each contest.
The full field features 12 automatic qualifiers and four at-large berths. In order to qualify for an automatic bid, teams must win their conference regular-season title. At-large berths were determined by the NAIA Football National Selection Committee. Teams earning an at-large berth must be ranked in the Top 20 of the final NAIA Coaches' Top 25 poll, which can be accessed here.
The 66th Annual NAIA Football National Championship will culminate on December 18th at Durham County Memorial Stadium in Durham, N.C. For more information on the 2021 NAIA Football National Championship, click here.
Qualifier Highlights
- Indiana Wesleyan and Central Methodist (Mo.) are reaching the field for the first time in program history
- Three teams - Lindsey Wilson (Ky.), Morningside (Iowa), and Grand View (Iowa) - enter the FCS undefeated
- Six of the 16 qualifying teams have earned at least one red-banner, totaling nine total
- Southwestern (Kan.) is in the field for the first time since 1999
- Montana-Western joins the title chase after a gap of 19 years (2002)
- There are six teams with one loss on the year, and also seven with two losses
- The Mid-States Conference leads the way with five representatives; Mid-South Conference follows just behind with three participants
2021 NAIA Football Championship Series - First Round Schedule
Saturday, November 20 | Campus Sites
| Seed | School (Home) | Record | Seed | School (Road) | Record | ||
|
12 PM CST (SUN.) |
No. 1 | Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | 10-0 | vs | No. 16 | Montana Western | 8-3 |
| 12 PM CST | No. 2 | Morningside (Iowa) | 10-0 | vs | No. 15 | Ottawa (Ariz.) | 8-1 |
| 12 PM CST | No. 3 | Grand View (Iowa) | 11-0 | vs | No. 14 | Dickinson State (N.D.) | 8-2 |
| 12 PM CST | No. 4 | Northwestern (Iowa) | 10-1 | vs | No. 13 | Central Methodist (Mo.) | 9-2 |
| 12 PM CST | No. 5 | Indiana Wesleyan | 9-1 | vs | No. 10 | Kansas Wesleyan | 10-1 |
| 11 AM CST | No. 6 | Reinhardt (Ga.) | 9-2 | vs | No. 12 | Keiser (Fla.) | 7-2 |
| 12 PM CST | No. 7 | Marian (Ind.) | 8-2 | vs | No. 9 | Southwestern (Kan.) | 9-1 |
| 12 PM CST | No. 8 | Concordia (Mich.) | 8-1 | vs. | No. 11 | Saint Xavier (Ill.) | 8-2 |
2021 NAIA Football Championship Qualifiers (Alphabetical Listing)
| School | Qualification Method |
2021 Record |
Appearances | Most Recent | Championship Record | Titles |
| Central Methodist (Mo.) | Heart of America South Division Champion | 9-2 | 1st | - | - | 0 |
| Concordia (Mich.) | At-Large | 8-1 | 5th | 2020 | 2-4 | 0 |
| Dickinson State (N.D.) | North Star Athletic Association Champion | 8-2 | 22nd | 2020 | 7-21 | 0 |
| Grand View (Iowa) | Heart of America North Division Champion | 11-0 | 10th | 2020 | 9-8 | 1 |
| Indiana Wesleyan | Mid-States Mideast Conference Champion | 9-1 | 1st | - | - | 0 |
| Kansas Wesleyan | At-Large | 10-1 | 6th | 2019 | 3-5 | 0 |
| Keiser (Fla.) | Mid-South Conference Sun Division Champion | 8-2 | 3rd | 2020 | 2-2 | 0 |
| Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | Mid-South Conference Bluegrass Champion | 10-0 | 7th | 2020 | 10-5 | 1 |
| Marian (Ind.) | At-Large | 8-2 | 10th | 2020 | 18-7 | 2 |
| Montana Western | Frontier Conference Champion | 9-2 | 4th | 2002 | 1-3 | 0 |
| Morningside (Iowa) | Great Plains Athletic Conference Champion | 10-0 | 18th | 2020 | 29-15 | 2 |
| Northwestern (Iowa) | At-Large | 10-1 | 23rd | 2020 | 24-20 | 2 |
| Ottawa (Ariz.) | Sooner Athletic Conference Champion | 8-1 | 2nd | 2019 | 0-1 | 0 |
| Reinhardt (Ga.) | Mid-South Conference Appalachian Champion | 9-2 | 7th | 2020 | 6-5 | 0 |
| Saint Xavier (Ill.) | Mid-States Midwest Conference Champion | 8-2 | 14th | 2019 | 18-12 | 1 |
| Southwestern (Kan.) | KCAC Regular Season Champion | 9-1 | 5th | 1999 | 2-4 | 0 |
