alabamagrizzly
Well-known member
Feeling inspired to determine the best school in the history of the FCS(1-AA for the old schoolers like me), I went into a very in depth look at each team and the conference's history since the 1-AA first formed back in 1978. That's 38 years of football for a lot of schools and not so much for others. I've included all time records for every school to ever play while at the FCS level, even if they only played one year. I've broken them down into each conference they played in. I've also accumulated all time rankings for several categories and in the end I've tried to determine the best FCS team ever and ended up naming a Top 25 of all time. Hopefully it's not too much of an information overload and its orderly enough for most to understand. There's a lot of info. Hope y'all enjoy and maybe a healthy debate can be started.
Disclaimer
Once again, I'm sorry about the length of this. I started with just a couple small comparisons and it grew into a monster. If you want to go straight to the top 25, it's allllllllllllll the way at the bottom. If you continue on, don't say I didn't warn you.
First I'm starting with the all time rankings in several key categories. National titles, title game appearances, post season appearances and records, along with wins and winning percentage. These were the basis for determining most of my top 25 ranking.
Natty's
1st Georgia Southern 6
2nd North Dakota State 5
3rd Youngstown State 4
4th Appalachian State 3
t5th Montana 2
t5th Marshall 2
t5th Eastern Kentucky 2
8th 14 tied with 1
Top 10 in Title Game Appearances
1st Georgia Southern 8
2nd Montana 7
t3rd Youngstown State 6
t3rd Marshall 6
5th North Dakota State 5
t6th Delaware 4
t6th Eastern Kentucky 4
t8th Appalachian State 3
t8th Furman 3
t8th Massachusetts 3
Top 25 Playoff appearances(appearances, win-loss and winning %)
1st Montana 24, 34-22 61%
2nd Eastern Kentucky 21, 16-19 46%
3rd Appalachian State 20, 24-17 59%
4th Georgia Southern 19, 44-13 77%
5th Northern Iowa 18, 22-18 55%
t6th Furman 16, 18-15 55%
t6th McNeese State 16, 11-16 41%
t6th Eastern Illinois 16, 4-16 20%
9th Delaware 15, 22-14 61%
10th New Hampshire 14, 11-14 44%
t11th James Madison 12, 9-11 45%
t11th Jackson State 12, 0-12 0%
t13th Youngstown State 11, 25-7 78%
t13th Eastern Washington 11, 14-10 58%
t13th Villanova 11, 11-10 52%
t13th Idaho 11, 6-11 35%
t17th Richmond 10, 13-9 59%
t17th William & Mary 10, 7-10 41%
t17th Western Illinois 10, 7-10 41%
t20th Sam Houston State 9, 16-9 64%
t20th Massachusetts 9, 10-7 59%
t20th Lehigh 9, 6-9 40%
t23rd Marshall 8, 23-6 79%
t23rd Western Kentucky 8, 8-7 53%
t23rd Southern Illinois 8, 8-7 53%
t23rd Montana State 8, 6-7 46%
t23rd Colgate 8, 6-10 38%
t29th North Dakota State 6 22-1 96%
Top 25 Most wins all time
1st Montana 327
2nd Eastern Kentucky 311
3rd Northern Iowa 306
t4th Appalachian State 286
t4th Furman 286
6th Delaware 285
7th Georgia Southern 282
8th Grambling State 277
t9th New Hampshire 270
t9th Lehigh 270
11th Jackson State 265
12th Youngstown State 260
13th South Carolina State 250
14th Southern 249
15th Florida A&M 245
16th McNeese State 240
17th James Madison 239
18th William & Mary 234
19th Harvard 233
20th Eastern Illinois 232
21st Massachusetts 225
t22nd Bethune-Cookman 220
t22nd Villanova 220
24th Penn 219
t25th Eastern Washington 218
t25th Northern Arizona 218
t25th Colgate 218
30th Montana State 212
Top 25 winning % all time
1st North Dakota State 124-33 79%
2nd Dayton 193-56 78%
3rd Old Dominion 46-14 77%
4th Troy 84-26-1 76%
5th Georgia Southern 282-105-1 73%
6th Nevada 123-46-1 72%
t7th Montana 327-148-1 69%
t7th Eastern Kentucky 311-139-2 69%
t7th Northern Iowa 306-136-2 69%
t7th Duquesne 161-73 69%
11th Coastal Carolina 104-52 67%
t12th Appalachian State 286-149-4 65%
t12th Delaware 285-150-1 65%
t14th Grambling State 277-152-4 64%
t14th San Diego 158-87 64%
t14th Boise State 134-76 64%
t14th Louisiana-Monroe 90-48-2 64%
t14th UCF 44-25 64%
t14th UAB 21-12 64%
t20th Furman 286-163-5 63%
t20th Lehigh 270-158-4 63%
t20th Idaho 134-79 63%
t23rd New Hampshire 270-162-5 62%
t23rd Youngstown State 260-159-2 62%
t23rd South Carolina State 250-155-1 62%
t23rd McNeese State 240-142-6 62%
t23rd Harvard 233-138-5 62%
t23rd Central Arkansas 66-40 62%
t36th Eastern Washington 218-152-2 59%
For some extra fun, I included the best "10 year run" of all the schools. I also broke down the winningest schools by each decade(I included '78 and '79 in with the 80's).
Top 25 Ten year run
1st Montana '00-'09 119-23 84% 1 natty
2nd Harvard '06-'15 83-17 83%
3rd Dayton '93-'02 87-19 82%
4th North Dakota State '06-'15 108-25 81%
5th Duquesne '95-'04 87-22 80%
6th Georgia Southern '84-'93 106-28 79% 4 nattys
7th Youngstown State '90-'99 103-29 78% 4 nattys
8th Eastern Kentucky '79-'88 99-26-2 78% 2 nattys
9th Furman '80-'89 95-25-4 77% 1 natty
10th Marshall '87-'96 106-33 76% 2 nattys
11th Appalachian State '01-'10 101-32 76% 3 nattys
12th Lehigh '95-'04 87-31 74%
13th Grambling State '00-'09 86-30 74%
14th Hampton '97-'06 86-31 74%
15th McNeese State '94-'03 93-34 73%
16th Nevada '82-'91 91-33 73%
17th Idaho '85-'94 90-33 73%
18th Middle Tennessee State '83-'92 88-33 73%
19th San Diego '05-'14 83-30 73%
20th Penn '01-'10 72-27 73%
21st Northern Iowa '89-'98 89-34 72%
22nd Southern '93-'02 85-33 72%
t23rd South Carolina State '02-'11 83-33 72%
t23rd Colgate '99-'08 83-33 72%
25th Jackson State '78-'87 81-30-3 71%
37th Eastern Washington '05-'14 86-42 67% 1 natty
40th Montana State '05-'14 80-41 66%
*denotes team played four or less seasons in the time frame and I didn't give them a ranking but included their percentage.
Best record in '78-'89 top 10
1st Georgia Southern 70-14 83% 6 seasons
2nd Eastern Kentucky 116-31-2 78%
3rd Holy Cross 69-18-2 78% 8 seasons
4th Furman 108-34-4 74%
5th Jackson State 97-35-5 73%
6th Grambling State 94-37-4 70%
*Liberty 7-3 70% 1 season
7th Nevada 98-43-1 69%
8th Villanova 31-14-1 67% 5 seasons
9th Delaware 77-40 66% 10 seasons
10th Boise State 89-48 65%
? Montana 64-67-1 48%
Best record in '90-'99 top 10
*Nevada 25-3 89% 2 seasons
1st Dayton 58-14 81% 7 seasons
2nd Marshall 79-21 79% 7 seasons
3rd Duquesne 49-15 77% 6 seasons
4th Youngstown State 103-30-2 76%
5th Troy 67-20-1 76% 7 seasons
6th Montana 93-32 74%
7th Georgia Southern 93-36 72%
8th Northern Iowa 89-34 72%
9th Eastern Kentucky 85-35 71%
10th Delaware 88-36-1 70%
Best record in '00-'09 top 10
1st Montana 119-23 84%
2nd Dayton 87-23 79%
3rd Harvard 76-23 77%
4th Appalachian State 101-33 75%
5th Grambling State 86-30 74%
*Troy 17-6 74% 2 seasons
6th Northern Iowa 89-36 71%
7th Penn 70-29 71%
8th McNeese State 83-35 70%
9th Colgate 82-35 70%
10th San Diego 74-33 69%
Best record in '10-pres top 10
1st North Dakota State 80-11 88%
2nd Harvard 52-8 87%
t3rd Bethune-Cookman 55-16 77%
t3rd Old Dominion 46-14 77% 5 seas
t5th Eastern Washington 59-21 74%
t5th Jacksonville State 56-20 74%
7th Sam Houston State 62-23 73%
t8th San Diego 48-19 72%
t8th Dayton 48-19 72%
10th Jacksonville 47-19 71%
t13th Montana State 50-24 68%
t16th Montana 50-26 66%
Conference and schools
Team/years in con/con record and %/(overall record and %)
*denotes team played in more then one conference.
This is the bulk of my research. Following is a break down of every conference to play D1-AA and every team to play in the conference. Included is the team's years in the con and records while in the conference along with their overall record. Con champs are also included along with the best five and ten year runs while in the conference. The teams and conferences playoff history's are also included in each conference breakdown. The conference's are mostly in order of success. Some conferences that just changed names(Colonial to Patriot) are kept together. Other conferences that blended into bigger cons are in close proximity to each other (Gulf/Southland). All the Independent schools are at the bottom with their playoff records.
Big Sky Conference '78-pres
*Nevada '79-'91 112-45-1 71% (123-46-1 72%)
Montana '78-pres 327-148-1 69%
Boise State '78-'95 134-76 64%
Idaho '78-'95 134-79 63%
*Eastern Washington '87-pres 197-142-1 58% (218-152-2 59%)
*Cal Poly '12-pres 26-21 55% (134-112 54%)
Northern Arizona '78-pres 218-206 51%
*Cal State Northridge '96-'00 28-28 50% (37-49 43%)
Montana State '78-pres 212-220 49%
*Southern Utah '12-pres 23-25 48% (99-156-1 39%)
Weber State '78-pres 194-230 46%
*Portland State '96-pres 104-121 46% (123-135 48%)
*North Dakota '12-pres 20-25 44% (43-45 49%)
*Sacramento State '96-pres 80-145 36% (93-162-1 36%)
Idaho State '78-pres 146-269-2 35%
*UC Davis '12-pres 13-32 29% (57-76 43%)
*Northern Colorado '06-pres 24-88 21% (30-104 22%)
Con champs(out right champs only unless head to head match ups couldn't break the tie)
Montana 13
Montana State 6
Idaho 5
Eastern Washington 5
Nevada 4
Boise State 2
Idaho State 2
Northern Arizona 1
Weber State 1
Southern Utah 1
Top 5 five year run in con
Montana '05-'09 59-10 86%
Eastern Washington '10-'14 53-16 77%
Boise State '78-'82 45-14 76%
Nevada '82-'86 47-16 75%
Idaho '85-'89 46-15 75%
Top 5 ten year run in con
Montana '00-'09 119-23 84%
Nevada '82-'91 91-33 73%
Idaho '85-'94 90-33 73%
Eastern Washington '05-'14 86-42 67%
Montana State '05-'14 80-41 66%
Playoff record for con:81 appearances 82-75 52% 6 nattys
(In order by winning %)
Idaho State 2 appearances 3-1 75% 1 natty
Boise State 5 appearances 8-4 67% 1 natty
Montana 24 appearances 34-22 61% 2 nattys
Nevada 6 appearances 9-6 60%
Eastern Washington 10 appearances 13-9 59% 1 natty
Montana State 8 appearances 6-7 46% 1 natty
Idaho 11 appearances 6-11 35%
Weber State 4 appearances 2-4 33%
Northern Arizona 5 appearances 1-5 17%
Portland State 2 appearances 0-2 0%
Southern Utah 2 appearances 0-2 0%
Cal Poly 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Sacramento State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Cal State Northridge 0 appearances 0-0 0%
North Dakota 0 appearances 0-0 0%
UC Davis 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Northern Colorado 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons in the playoffs
SWAC 3-0 100%
Pioneer 1-0 100%
Northeast 1-0 100%
MEAC 1-0 100%
Ohio Valley 7-3 70%
Southland 25-17 60%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 9-8 53%
Southern 10-10 50%
Big South 1-1 50%
Great West 1-1 50%
MVC/Gateway 13-16 45%
Independent 2-10 17%
Patriot 0-1 0%
vs Big Sky 8
Great West Conference '04-'11
*North Dakota State '04-'07 35-9 80% (124-33 79%)
*Cal Poly '04-'11 56-33 63% (134-112 54%)
*South Dakota State '04-'07 25-18 58% (85-57 60%)
*North Dakota '08-'11 23-20 53% (43-45 49%)
*UC Davis '04-'11 44-44 50% (57-76 43%)
*South Dakota '08-'11 21-22 49% (34-55 38%)
*Southern Utah '04-'11 31-56 36% (99-156-1 39%)
*Northern Colorado '04-'05 6-16 27% (30-104 22%)
Con champs
Cal Poly 3
UC Davis 2
North Dakota State 1
South Dakota State 1
Southern Utah 1
5 year run
Cal Poly '04-'08 40-17 70%
UC Davis '04-'08 28-27 51%
Southern Utah '07-'11 21-34 38%
Playoff record for con:2 appearances 1-2 0 nattys
Cal Poly 2 appearances 1-2 33%
North Dakota State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
South Dakota State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
North Dakota 0 appearances 0-0 0%
UC Davis 0 appearances 0-0 0%
South Dakota 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Southern Utah 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Northern Colorado 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Big Sky 1-1 50%
Southland 0-1 0%
American West Conference '93-'95
*Cal Poly '94-'95 12-10 55% (134-112 54%)
*Sacramento State '93-'95 13-17-1 42% (93-162-1 36%)
*Cal State Northridge '93-'96 9-21 30% (37-49 43%)
*Southern Utah '93-'95 9-23-1 27% (99-156-1 39%)
Con champs
Cal Poly 1
Southern Utah 1
Sacramento State 1
No playoff appearances
Gateway Football Conference '85-'08
Missouri Valley Football Conference '78-'85, '09-pres
*North Dakota State '08-pres 89-24 79% (124-33 79%)
*Northern Iowa '85-pres 282-117-1 71% (306-136-2 69%)
*Western Kentucky '01-'06 50-24 68% (186-156-2 54%)
*South Dakota State '08-pres 60-39 61% (85-57 60%)
*Youngstown State '97-pres 136-89 60% (260-159-2 62%)
*Eastern Illinois '85-'95 69-56-1 55% (232-175-3 56%)
*Western Illinois '85-pres 192-165-1 54% (208-191-2 52%)
Illinois State '81-pres 195-196 50%
Southern Illinois '78-pres 213-223 49%
*Missouri State '85-pres 175-199-2 47% (195-218-5 47%)
*Drake '78-'85 38-50 43% (193-135-1 59%)
Indiana State '78-pres 164-262 38%
*South Dakota '12-pres 13-33 28% (34-55 38%)
West Texas State '82-'85 12-29-2 28%
Con champs
Northern Iowa 14
North Dakota State 6
Western Illinois 5
Southern Illinois 3
Illinois State 3
Youngstown State 1
Eastern Illinois 1
Missouri State 1
Top 5 five year run
North Dakota State '11-'15 70-5 93%
Southern Illinois '03-'07 50-14 78%
Northern Iowa '89-'93 47-15 76%
Western Illinois '96-'00 47-15 76%
Youngstown State '97-'01 48-16 75%
Top 5 ten year run
Northern Iowa '89-'98 89-34 72%
Southern Illinois '03-'12 85-37 70%
Western Illinois '94-'03 84-36 70%
Illinois State '05-'14 72-47 61%
Missouri State '88-'97 63-48-1 56%
Playoff record for con:
Missouri Valley 25 appearances 42-19 69% 6 nattys
Gateway 44 appearances 47-42 53% 2 nattys
North Dakota State 6 appearances 22-1 96% 5 nattys
Youngstown State 4 appearances 9-3 75% 1 natty
Western Kentucky 4 appearances 5-3 63% 1 natty
Illinois State 6 appearances 8-6 57%
Northern Iowa 18 appearances 22-18 55%
Southern Illinois 8 appearances 8-7 53% 1 natty
Western Illinois 10 appearances 7-10 41%
Eastern Illinois 3 appearances 2-3 40%
Indiana State 3 appearances 2-3 40%
South Dakota State 5 appearances 3-5 38%
Missouri State 2 appearances 1-2 33%
South Dakota 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Drake 0 appearances 0-0 0%
West Texas State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
MEAC 4-0 100%
Big South 3-0 100%
Northeast 1-0 100%
Pioneer 1-0 100%
SWAC 1-0 100%
Mid-Continent 1-0 100%
Ohio Valley 16-3 84%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 15-10 60%
Southland 8-6 57%
Big Sky 16-13 55%
Patriot 2-3 40%
Southern 8-14 36%
Independent 1-3 25%
vs MVC/Gateway 9
Mid-Continent Athletic Association '81-'84
*Eastern Illinois '81-'84 32-14-1 68% (232-175-3 56%)
*Northern Iowa '81-'84 24-19-1 55% (306-136-2 69%)
*(SW)Missouri St '81-'84 20-19-3 48% (195-218-5 47%)
*Western Illinois '81-'84 16-26-1 37% (208-191-2 52%)
Con champs
Eastern Illinois 4
Northern Iowa 2
Western Illinois 1
Playoff record for con:2 appearance 1-2 33% 0 nattys
Eastern Illinois 2 appearances 1-2 33%
vs other cons
SWAC 1-0 100 %
Independent 0-1 0%
MVC/Gateway 0-1 0%
Colonial Athletic Association '07-pres
Atlantic-10 Conference '97-'06
Yankee Conference '78-'96
*Old Dominion '11-'12 21-5 81% (46-14 77%)
*Delaware '86-pres 236-129-1 64% (285-150-1 65%)
New Hampshire '78-pres 270-162-5 62%
*James Madison '93-pres 168-106 61% (239-177-2 57%)
*Villanova '88-pres 202-138-1 59% (220-143-1 60%)
*William & Mary '93-pres 158-110 59% (234-159-2 59%)
Massachusetts '78-'11 225-161-2 58%
Connecticut '78-'99 123-116-2 51%
*Richmond '86-pres 177-175-1 50% (196-200-1 49%)
Maine '78-pres 206-222-2 48%
Boston '78-'97 108-115-1 48%
*Towson '04-pres 64-76 46% (147-171 46%)
*Hofstra '01-'09 47-56 46% (117-86-2 57%)
*Stony Brook '13-pres 15-18 45% (95-89 52%)
*Northeastern '93-'09 76-115 40% (108-177-1 38%)
Rhode Island '78-pres 142-284-1 33%
*Albany '13-pres 11-24 31% (107-82 57%)
*Georgia State '12 1-10 9% (4-18 18%)
*Elon '14-pres 1-11 8% (76-105 42%)
Con champs
Massachusetts 8
Delaware 7
Richmond 5
New Hampshire 4
Boston 4
Villanova 3
James Madison 3
Rhode Island 3
Maine 3
Towson 1
Old Dominion 1
Hofstra 1
Northeastern 1
Connecticut 1
William & Mary 1
Top 5 five year run
James Madison '04-'08 49-15 77%
Delaware '91-'95 48-14-1 76%
Richmond '05-'09 50-17 75%
Massachusetts '03-'07 46-16 74%
New Hampshire '04-'08 47-17 73%
Top 5 ten year run
Delaware '91-'00 94-28-1 76%
New Hampshire '05-'14 93-37 72%
Massachusetts '98-'07 85-40 68%
James Madison '04-'13 82-40 67%
Villanova '01-'10 82-41 67%
Playoff record for con:
Colonial 37 appearances 45-35 56% 2 nattys
Atlantic-10 27 appearances 34-24 59% 3 natty
Yankee 26 appearances 10-26 28% 0 nattys
Delaware 13 appearances 20-12 63% 1 natty
Richmond 9 appearances 12-8 60% 1 natty
Towson 2 appearances 3-2 60%
Massachusetts 8 appearances 10-7 59% 1 natty
Villanova 11 appearances 11-10 52% 1 natty
Old Dominion 2 appearances 2-2 50%
Connecticut 1 appearance 1-1 50%
James Madison 10 appearances 8-9 47% 1 natty
William & Mary 7 appearances 6-7 46%
New Hampshire 14 appearances 11-14 44%
Rhode Island 3 appearances 2-3 40%
Maine 7 appearances 3-7 30%
Boston 5 appearances 2-5 29%
Hofstra 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Northeastern 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Stoney Brook 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Georgia State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Elon 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
MEAC 8-0 100%
SWAC 1-0 100%
Northeast 1-0 100%
Ohio Valley 15-3 83%
Patriot 16-6 73%
Southland 8-7 53%
Big South 3-3 50%
Big Sky 8-9 47%
MVC/Gateway 11-16 41%
Southern 17-28 38%
Independent 3-7 30%
vs CAA/A-10/Yankee 9
Southern Conference '78-pres
*Georgia Southern '93-'13 186-80-1 70% (282-105-1 73%)
Appalachian State '78-'13 286-149-4 65%
Furman '78-pres 286-163-5 63%
*Wofford '97-pres 130-90 59% (140-102 58%)
Marshall '78-'96 138-97-3 58%
*Samford '08-pres 49-41 54% (160-140 53%)
*Mercer '14-pres 11-12 48% (21-14 60%)
The Citadel '78-pres 195-229-3 46%
Chattanooga '78-pres 177-227-3 43%
*Elon '03-'13 53-72 42% (76-105 42%)
*East Tennessee State '79-'03 115-163-1 41% (121-179-1 40%)
Western Carolina '78-pres 165-263-3 38%
*VMI '78-'02, '14-pres 73-219-5 25% (102-313-5 24%)
*Davidson '83-'86 5-35 13% (106-203-1 34%)
Con champs
Appalachian State 11
Furman 10
Georgia Southern 9
Chattanooga 6
Wofford 3
Marshall 3
Samford 1
The Citadel 1
Top 5 five year run
Georgia Southern '98-'02 63-10 86%
Marshall '92-'96 62-12 84%
Appalachian State '05-'09 61-12 84%
Furman '85-'89 51-13-2 77%
Wofford '02-'06 42-17 71%
Top 5 ten year run
Georgia Southern '95-'04 102-31 77%
Furman '80-'89 95-25-4 77%
Marshall '87-'96 106-33 76%
Appalachian State '01-'10 101-32 76%
Wofford '02-'11 81-39 68%
Playoff record for con:74 appearances 102-66 61% 8 nattys
Marshall 8 appearances 23-6 79% 2 nattys
Western Carolina 1 appearance 3-1 75%
Georgia Southern 13 appearances 24-11 69% 2 nattys
Appalachian State 20 appearances 24-17 59% 3 nattys
Furman 16 appearances 18-15 55% 1 natty
Wofford 6 appearances 5-6 45%
Chattanooga 3 appearances 2-3 40%
The Citadel 4 appearances 2-4 33%
East Tennessee State 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Elon 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Samford 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Mercer 0 appearances 0-0 0%
VMI 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Davidson 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Patriot 3-0 100%
SWAC 1-0 100%
MEAC 8-2 80%
Big South 2-1 67%
MVC/Gateway 14-8 64%
Ohio Valley 9-5 64%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 28-17 62%
Big Sky 10-10 50%
Southland 6-6 50%
Independent 3-7 30%
vs Southern 6
Southland Conference '82-pres
*Troy '96-'00 46-16 74% (84-26-1 76%)
Louisiana-Monroe '82-'93 90-48-2 64%
McNeese State '82-pres 240-142-6 62%
Central Arkansas '07-pres 66-40 62%
*Arkansas State '82-'86 39-21-3 62% (61-54-5 51%)
*Louisiana Tech '82-'86 38-22-1 62% (45-37-1 54%)
*Sam Houston State '87-pres 186-153 55% (201-159 56%)
*Stephen F Austin '87-pres 171-159-5 51% (192-170-6 52%)
*Northwestern State '87-pres 168-162-2 51% (213-212-3 50%)
North Texas '83-'94 64-68-3 47%
*Texas State '87-'11 127-155-1 45% (141-174-1 45%)
*Southeastern Louisiana '05-pres 54-72 43% (96-117-1 45%)
Texas Arlington '82-'85 19-24-1 43%
*Abilene Christian '14-pres 9-14 39% (15-19 44%)
*Lamar '82-'86, '11-pres 44-74 37% (60-101 37%)
*Jacksonville State '97-'02 24-41 37% (131-88 60%)
*Incarnate Word '14-pres 8-14 36% (14-19 42%)
*Nichols State '91-pres 88-175-1 33% (151-233-3 39%)
*Houston Baptist '14-pres 4-18 18% (7-22 24%)
Con champs
McNeese State 10
Stephen F Austin 3
Northwestern State 3
Louisiana-Monroe 3
Troy 3
Arkansas State 2
Louisiana Tech 2
North Texas 2
Southeastern Louisiana 2
Sam Houston State 1
Central Arkansas 1
Texas State 1
Nichols State 1
Top 5 five year run
Sam Houston State '11-'15 56-18 76%
McNeese State '93-'97 49-17 74%
Troy '96-'00 46-16 74%
Stephen F Austin '93-'97 40-16-2 69%
Central Arkansas '08-'12 40-20 67%
Top 5 ten year run
McNeese State '94-'03 93-34 73%
Sam Houston State '06-'15 84-44 66%
Louisiana-Monroe '84-'93 74-42-2 63%
Northwestern State '95-'04 70-49 59%
Stephen F Austin '88-'97 68-47-4 57%
Playoff record for con:62 appearances 58-61 49% 1 natty
Sam Houston State 8 appearances 16-8 67%
Louisiana Tech 2 appearances 4-2 67%
Louisiana-Monroe 4 appearances 5-3 63% 1 natty
Arkansas State 3 appearances 5-3 63%
Stephen F Austin 7 appearances 7-7 50%
Texas State 2 appearances 2-2 50%
Troy 4 appearances 3-4 43%
McNeese State 16 appearances 11-16 41%
Northwestern State 6 appearances 3-6 33%
Southeastern Louisiana 2 appearances 1-2 33%
Central Arkansas 2 appearances 1-2 33%
North Texas 4 appearances 0-4 0%
Nichols State 2 appearances 0-2 0%
Texas Arlington 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Abilene Christian 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Lamar 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Jacksonville State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Incarnate Word 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Houston Baptist 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
SWAC 7-0 100%
Patriot 1-0 100%
Big South 1-0 100%
Great West 1-0 100%
Ohio Valley 6-3 67%
Southern 6-6 50%
MEAC 2-2 50%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 7-8 47%
MVC/Gateway 6-8 43%
Big Sky 17-25 40%
Independent 0-3 0%
vs Southland 6
Gulf-South Conference '84-'86
*Sam Houston State '85-'86 17-6 74% (201-159 56%)
*Stephen F Austin '84-'86 21-11-1 64% (192-170-6 52%)
*Nichols State '84-'86 22-13 63% (151-233-3 39%)
*Northwestern State '84-'86 15-17-1 45% (213-212-3 50%)
*Texas State '84-'86 14-19 42% (141-174-1 45%)
*Southeastern Louisiana '84-'85 4-17-1 18% (96-117-1 45%)
Con champs
Sam Houston State 2
Northwestern State 1
Playoff record for con:2 appearances 1-2 33% 0 nattys
Nichols State 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Sam Houston State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
vs other cons
Southern 1-0 100%
Southland 0-1 0%
Independent 0-1 0%
Ohio Valley Conference '78-pres
Eastern Kentucky '78-pres 311-139-2 69%
*Jacksonville State '03-pres 107-47 69% (131-88 60%)
*Western Kentucky '78-'81, '99-'00 45-20 69% (186-156-2 54%)
Middle Tennessee State '78-'98 141-96-2 59%
*Eastern Illinois '96-pres 131-105-1 55% (232-175-3 56%)
Akron '80-'86 41-35-1 53%
Murray State '78-pres 209-213-4 49%
*Youngstown State '81-'87 39-39 50% (260-159-2 62%)
*Tennessee State '88-pres 144-160-2 47% (202-179-6 52%)
*Samford '03-'07 24-31 44% (160-140 53%)
Tennessee Tech '78-pres 162-253 39%
Tenn-Martin '92-pres 102-168 38%
*East Tennessee State '78 4-7 36% (121-179-1 40%)
SE Missouri St '91-pres 98-184 35%
*Austin Peay '78-'96, '07-pres 95-212 31% (125-295 30%)
*Morehead State '78-'95 57-138-2 29% (164-241-2 40%)
Con champs
Eastern Kentucky 13
Eastern Illinois 6
Murray State 5
Jacksonville State 5
Middle Tennessee State 3
Western Kentucky 3
Tennessee State 2
SE Missouri State 1
Tennessee Tech 1
Top 5 five year run
Eastern Kentucky '78-'82 54-9 86%
Middle Tennessee State '81-'85 44-14 76%
Murray State '95-'99 43-15 74%
Jacksonville State '10-'14 47-17 73%
Eastern Illinois '05-'09 38-23 62%
Top 5 ten year run
Eastern Kentucky '79-'88 99-26-2 78%
Middle Tennessee State '83-'92 88-33 73%
Jacksonville State '05-'14 84-36 70%
Eastern Illinois '00-'09 72-47 66%
Murray State '79-'88 70-38-3 63%
Playoff record for con:59 appearances 31-57 35% 2 nattys
Western Kentucky 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Eastern Kentucky 21 appearances 16-19 46% 2 nattys
Middle Tennessee State 7 appearances 6-7 46%
Jacksonville State 6 appearances 5-6 45%
Tennessee State 3 appearances 1-3 25%
Murray State 5 appearances 1-5 17%
Eastern Illinois 11 appearances 1-11 8%
Tennessee Tech 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Akron 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Tenn-Martin 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Youngstown State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
SE Missouri St 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Austin Peay 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Morehead State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
East Tennessee State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Samford 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Big South 1-0 100%
Pioneer 1-0 100%
SWAC 1-0 100%
MEAC 1-1 50%
Independent 5-8 38%
Southern 5-9 36%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 3-6 33%
Big Sky 3-7 30%
Southland 3-6 33%
MVC/Gateway 3-16 16%
vs Ohio Valley 3
Big South Conference '02-pres
Coastal Carolina '03-'15 104-52 67%
*Stony Brook '08-'12 36-23 61% (95-89 52%)
*Liberty '02-pres 91-69 57% (164-138 54%)
Kennesaw State '15-pres 6-5 55%
*Monmouth '14-pres 11-11 50% (129-103 56%)
Charleston Southern '02-pres 78-82 49%
Gardner-Webb '02-pres 76-80 49%
*Elon '02 4-7 36% (76-105 42%)
Presbyterian '08-pres 23-66 26%
*VMI '03-'13 29-94 24% (102-313-5 24%)
Con champs
Liberty 5
Coastal Carolina 5
Stony Brook 4
Charleston Southern 2
Gardner-Webb 2
Top 5 five year run
Coastal Carolina '11-'15 48-17 74%
Liberty '07-'11 41-15 73%
Stony Brook '08-'12 36-23 61%
Gardner-Webb '02-'06 33-22 60%
Charleston Southern '05-'09 33-22 60%
Top 5 ten year run
Coastal Carolina '05-'14 79-43 67%
Liberty '06-'15 76-39 66%
Charleston Southern '06-'15 62-53 54%
Gardner-Webb '02-'11 57-53 52%
VMI '03-'12 27-84 24%
Playoff record for con:11 appearances 8-11 42% 0 nattys
Stony Brook 2 appearances 2-2 50%
Liberty 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Charleston Southern 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Coastal Carolina 6 appearances 4-6 40%
Elon 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Kennesaw State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Monmouth 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Gardner-Webb 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Presbyterian 0 appearances 0-0 0%
VMI 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
MEAC 2-0 100%
Northeast 1-0 100%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 3-3 50%
Big Sky 1-1 50%
Southern 1-2 33%
Southland 0-1 0%
Ohio Valley 0-1 0%
MVC/Gateway 0-3 0%
Ivy League '78-pres
Harvard '78-pres 233-138-5 62%
Penn '78-pres 219-153-3 58%
Yale '78-pres 203-168-4 54%
Brown '78-pres 192-180-4 51%
Princeton '78-pres 186-185-5 49%
Dartmouth '78-pres 171-198-7 45%
Cornell '78-pres 164-209-3 44%
Columbia '78-pres 81-311-5 20%
Con champs
Harvard 9
Penn 9
Dartmouth 6
Yale 3
Brown 3
Princeton 3
Cornell 1
Top 5 five year run
Harvard '11-'15 45-5 90%
Penn '00-'04 42-7 86%
Princeton '91-'95 39-10-1 78%
Brown '97-'01 36-13 73%
Dartmouth '93-'97 36-13-1 72%
Top 5 ten year run
Harvard '06-'15 83-17 83%
Penn '01-'10 72-27 73%
Dartmouth '88-'97 68-29-3 68%
Princeton '87-'96 64-34-2 64%
Brown '96-'05 63-36 64%
No playoff appearances
Patriot League '90-pres
Colonial League '86-'89
*Lehigh '86-pres 213-127-2 62% (270-158-4 63%)
*Colgate '86-pres 190-156-1 55% (218-172-2 56%)
*Holy Cross '86-pres 167-168-1 50% (196-182-3 51%)
*Towson '97-'03 36-40 47% (147-171 46%)
*Lafayette '86-pres 152-176-4 46% (197-213-6 47%)
*Bucknell '86-pres 146-180-1 45% (181-222-4 44%)
*Fordham '90-pres 121-171-1 41% (123-177-1 41%)
*Georgetown '01-pres 49-114 30% (102-142 42%)
*Davidson '87-'88 1-20 5% (106-203-1 34%)
Con champs
Lehigh 7
Colgate 7
Holy Cross 6
Lafayette 6
Fordham 3
Bucknell 1
Top 5 five year run
Holy Cross '87-'91 50-4-1 91%
Lehigh '98-'02 53-9 85%
Colgate '99-'03 48-13 79%
Bucknell '95-'99 36-19 65%
Lafayette '05-'09 36-21 63%
Top 5 ten year run
Lehigh '95-'04 87-31 74%
Colgate '99-'08 83-33 72%
Holy Cross '86-'95 74-35-1 67%
Bucknell '95-'04 61-47 56%
Lafayette '02-'11 62-52 54%
Playoff record for con:
Patriot 25 appearances 13-25 34% 0 nattys
Colonial 0 appearances 0-0 0% 0 nattys
Lehigh 7 appearances 5-7 42%
Colgate 8 appearances 5-8 38%
Fordham 5 appearances 3-5 38%
Lafayette 4 appearances 0-4 0%
Holy Cross 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Towson 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Bucknell 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Georgetown 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Davidson 0 appearance 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Big Sky 1-0 100%
Independent 1-0 100%
MVC/Gateway 3-2 60%
Northeast 1-1 50%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 6-16 27%
Southland 0-1 0%
Southern 0-3 0%
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference '80-pres
South Carolina State '80-pres 250-155-1 62%
Hampton '96-pres 137-91 60%
*Florida A&M '80-'83, '88-'03, '05-pres 205-150-1 59% (245-187-3 56%)
Bethune-Cookman '80-pres 220-172-2 56%
North Carolina A&T '80-pres 204-199-1 50%
North Carolina Central '11-pres 28-29 49%
Delaware State '80-pres 186-207 47%
Howard '80-pres 183-210-2 46%
Norfolk State '97-pres 80-131 38%
Morgan State '86-pres 100-230-1 30%
*Savannah State '11-pres 4-52 7% (19-134 12%)
Con champs
South Carolina State 8
Florida A&M 7
Bethune-Cookman 6
North Carolina A&T 6
Delaware State 4
Hampton 4
Howard 2
Norfolk State 1
Morgan State 1
Top 5 five year run
Bethune Cookman '10-'14 46-14 77%
Florida A&M '95-'99 48-15 76%
Hampton '02-'06 45-14 76%
Delaware State '83-'87 40-12-1 75%
South Carolina State '05-'09 43-15 74%
Top 5 ten year run
Hampton '97-'06 86-31 74%
South Carolina State '02-'11 83-33 72%
Delaware State '83-'92 74-31-1 70%
Florida A&M '94-'03 83-38 69%
North Carolina A&T '90-'99 79-35 69%
Playoff record for con:30 appearances 6-30 17% 0 nattys
Florida A&M 6 appearances 3-6 33%
South Carolina State 6 appearances 2-6 25%
North Carolina A&T 4 appearances 1-4 20%
Hampton 5 appearances 0-5 0%
Bethune-Cookman 5 appearances 0-5 0%
Delaware State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Howard 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Norfolk State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Morgan State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
North Carolina Central 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Savannah State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Southland 2-2 50%
Ohio Valley 1-1 50%
Independent 1-2 33%
Southern 2-8 20%
Big Sky 0-1 0%
Big South 0-2 0%
MVC/Gateway 0-4 0%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 0-8 0%
Southwestern Athletic Conference '78-pres
Grambling State '78-pres 277-152-4 64%
Jackson State '78-pres 265-161-6 61%
Southern '78-pres 249-180-3 58%
Alabama A&M '99-pres 109-88 55%
Alcon State '78-pres 212-191-2 52%
Alabama State '83-pres 192-177-4 51%
Arkansas Pine-Bluff '97-pres 99-112 47%
Mississippi Valley State '78-pres 141-255-4 35%
Texas Southern '78-pres 138-273-6 33%
Prairie View A&M '78-pres 102-291-1 26%
Con champs
Grambling State 12
Jackson State 10
Southern 4
Alcon State 4
Alabama State 3
Alabama A&M 1
Prairie View A&M 1
Arkansas Pine-Bluff 1
Top 5 five year run
Southern '95-'99 49-12 80%
Grambling State '99-'03 47-12 80%
Jackson State '78-'82 44-13-1 76%
Alabama A&M '03-'07 41-17 71%
Alabama State '87-'91 40-13-3 71%
Top 5 ten year run
Grambling State '00-'09 86-30 74%
Southern '93-'02 85-33 72%
Jackson State '78-'87 81-30-3 71%
Alcon State '84-'93 64-35-1 64%
Alabama A&M '02-'11 73-44 62%
Playoff record for con:19 appearances 0-19 0 nattys
Jackson State 12 appearances 0-12 0%
Grambling State 3 appearances 0-3 0%
Alcon State 3 appearances 0-3 0%
Mississippi Valley State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Southern 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Alabama A&M 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Alabama State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Arkansas Pine-Bluff 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Texas Southern 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Prairie View A&M 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
MVC/Gateway 0-1 0%
Mid-Continent 0-1 0%
Ohio Valley 0-1 0%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 0-1 0%
Southern 0-1 0%
Big Sky 0-3 0%
Independent 0-4 0%
Southland 0-7 0%
Northeast Conference '96-pres
*Albany '99-'12 96-58 62% (107-82 57%)
*Monmouth '96-'12 98-81 55% (129-103 56%)
*Duquesne '08-pres 48-41 54% (161-73 69%)
Bryant '09-pres 41-37 53%
Robert Morris '96-pres 107-104 51%
Sacred Heart '98-pres 98-98 50%
*Wagner '96-pres 106-110 49% (129-119 52%)
*Central Connecticut State '96-pres 100-114 47% (112-132 46%)
*Stony Brook '99-'06 38-43 47% (95-89 52%)
*St Johns '00-'01 6-15 29% (52-45 54%)
*St Francis Pa '96-pres 50-164 23% (55-188-1 23%)
Con champs
Robert Morris 5
Monmouth 4
Albany 4
Sacred Heart 3
Wagner 1
Central Connecticut State 1
Stony Brook 1
Duquesne 1
Top 5 five year run
Sacred Heart '00-'04 40-13 75%
Robert Morris '96-'00 39-13 75%
Monmouth '03-'07 40-15 73%
Albany '08-'12 39-18 68%
Central Connecticut State '06-'10 38-18 68%
Top 5 ten year run
Albany '03-'12 70-43 62%
Monmouth '00-'09 66-42 61%
Robert Morris '96-'05 62-40 61%
Central Connecticut State '02-'11 65-45 59%
Sacred Heart '00-'09 59-48 55%
Playoff record for con:5 appearances 1-5 17% 0 nattys
Wagner 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Albany 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Duquesne 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Robert Morris 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Sacred Heart 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Bryant 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Monmouth 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Central Connecticut State 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Stony Brook 0 appearance 0-0 0%
St Johns 0 appearance 0-0 0%
St Francis Pa 0 appearance 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Patriot 1-1 50%
Big Sky 0-1 0%
MVC/Gateway 0-1 0%
Big South 0-1 0%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 0-1 0%
Pioneer Football League '93-pres
*Mercer '13 10-2 83% (21-14 60%)
Dayton '93-pres 193-56 78%
San Diego '93-pres 158-87 64%
*Drake '93-pres 155-85-1 64% (193-135-1 59%)
*Jacksonville '01-pres 91-70 57% (101-89 53%)
*Morehead State '01-pres 74-86 46% (164-241-2 40%)
*Marist '09-pres 35-42 45% (120-121 50%)
Evansville '93-'97 22-28 44%
Butler '93-pres 105-142 43%
Valparaiso '93-pres 86-164 34%
*Davidson '01-pres 53-104 34% (106-203-1 34%)
*Austin Peay '01-'05 18-37 33% (125-295 30%)
Campbell '08-pres 27-63 30%
Stetson '13-pres 10-24 29%
Con champs
Dayton 10
Drake 5
San Diego 5
Butler 3
Jacksonville 2
Valparaiso 1
Marist 1
Top 5 five year run
Dayton '93-'97 46-6 88%
San Diego '04-'08 47-10 82%
Drake '93-'97 39-12-1 75%
Jacksonville '08-'12 40-17 70%
Morehead State '01-'05 37-21 64%
Top 5 ten year run
Dayton '93-'02 87-19 82%
San Diego '05-'14 83-30 73%
Drake '04-'13 82-39 68%
Jacksonville '06-'15 70-41 63%
Morehead State '01-'10 60-54 53%
Playoff record for con:3 appearances 0-3 0% 0 nattys
Butler 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Dayton 1 appearance 0-1 0%
San Diego 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Jacksonville 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Morehead State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Marist 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Evansville 0 appearances 0-0
Drake 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Mercer 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Valparaiso 0 appearances 0-0
Davidson 0 appearances 0-0
Austin Peay 0 appearances 0-0
Campbell 0 appearances 0-0
Stetson 0 appearances 0-0
vs other cons
Big Sky 0-1 0%
MVC/Gateway 0-1 0%
Ohio Valley 0-1 0%
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference '93-'07
*Duquesne '94-'07 113-32 78% (161-73 69%)
*Georgetown '93-'99 48-22 69% (102-142 42%)
*St John's '93-'98, '02 46-30 61% (52-45 54%)
Fairfield '96-'02 44-28 61%
*Marist '94-'07 76-67 53% (120-121 50%)
*Iona '93-'07 59-93 39% (62-120 34%)
La Salle '97-'07 35-75 32%
Canisius '93-'02 24-66 27%
Saint Peter's '93-'06 37-104 26%
Siena '93-'03 22-83 21%
Con champs
Duquesne 9
Georgetown 2
Marist 1
Fairfield 1
Iona 1
Top 5 five year run
Duquesne '98-'02 45-11 80%
Georgetown '95-'99 39-13 75%
Fairfield '97-'01 38-14 73%
St John's '93-'97 36-17 68%
Marist '94-'98 33-17 66%
Top 5 ten year run
Duquesne '95-'04 87-22 80%
Marist '94-'03 59-42 58%
Iona '98-'07 43-60 42%
La Salle '97-'06 35-65 35%
Saint Peter's '95-'04 31-71 30%
No playoff appearances
Independent
*Abilene Christian '13 6-5 55% (15-19 44%)
*Arkansas State '87-'91 22-33-2 39% (61-54-5 51%)
*Austin Peay '97-'00, 06 12-46 21% (125-295 30%)
*Bucknell '78-'85 35-42-3 44% (181-222-4 44%)
Buffalo '93-'98 22-44 33%
*Cal Poly '96-'03 40-48 45% (134-112 54%)
*Central Connecticut State '93-'95 12-18 40% (112-132 46%)
Charlotte '13-'14 10-12 45%
*Colgate '82-'85 28-16-1 62% (218-172-2 56%)
*Davidson '89, '93-'00 47-44-1 51% (106-203-1 34%)
*Delaware '80-'85 49-21 70% (285-150-1 65%)
*East Tennessee State '15-pres 2-9 18% (121-179-1 40%)
*Eastern Washington '84-'86 21-10-1 66% (218-152-2 59%)
*Elon '99-'01 18-15 55% (76-105 42%)
*Florida A&M '78-'79, '84-'87, '04 40-37-2 51% (245-187-3 56%)
Florida Atlantic '01-'04 26-21 55%
Florida International '02-'04 10-23 30%
*Fordham '89 2-6 25% (123-177-1 41%)
*Georgetown '00 5-6 45% (102-142 42%)
*Georgia Southern '84-'92 96-25 79% (282-105-1 73%)
*Georgia State '11 3-8 27% (4-18 18%)
*Hofstra '92-'00 70-30-2 69% (117-86-2 57%)
*Holy Cross '82-'85 29-14-2 64% (196-182-3 51%)
*Houston Baptist '13 3-4 43% (7-22 24%)
*Iona '08 3-8 27% (62-120 34%)
*Incarnate Word '13 6-5 55% (14-19 42%)
*Jacksonville '98-'00 10-19 34% (101-89 53%)
*James Madison '80-'92 71-71-2 49% (239-177-2 57%)
*Lafayette '78-'85 45-37-2 54% (197-213-6 47%)
*Lamar '87-'89, '10 16-27 37% (60-101 37%)
*Lehigh '78-'85 57-31-2 63% (270-158-4 63%)
*Liberty '89-'01 73-69 51% (164-138 54%)
*Louisiana Tech '87-'88 7-15 32% (45-37-1 54%)
*Marist '93, '08 9-12 43% (120-121 50%)
*Monmouth '94-'95, 13 20-11 65% (129-103 56%)
*Morehead State '96-'00 33-17 66% (164-241-2 40%)
*Nevada '78 11-1 92% (123-46-1 72%)
*Nicholls St '80-'83, '87-'90 41-45-2 47% (151-233-3 39%)
*Northeastern '84-'92 32-62-1 34% (108-177-1 38%)
*Northwestern St '78-'83 30-33 45% (213-212-3 50%)
*Old Dominion '09-'10, '13 25-9 74% (46-14 77%)
*Portland State '78-'80 19-14 58% (123-135 48%)
*Richmond '82-'85 19-25 43% (196-200-1 49%)
*St Francis Pa '93-'95 5-24-1 17% (55-188-1 23%)
*Samford '89-'02 87-68 56% (160-140 53%)
*Savannah State '02-'10 15-82 15% (19-134 12%)
South Alabama '11 6-4 60%
South Florida '97-'00 27-17 61%
*Southeastern Louisiana '80-'83, '03-'04 38-28 58% (96-117-1 45%)
*Southern Utah '96-'03 36-52 41% (99-156-1 39%)
*Stony Brook '07 6-5 55% (95-89 52%)
*Tennessee State '81-'87 58-19-4 72% (202-179-6 52%)
*Towson '87-'96 47-55 46% (147-171 46%)
*Troy '93-'95, '01 38-10-1 78% (84-26-1 76%)
UAB '93-'95 21-12 64%
UCF '90-'95 44-25 64%
UT-San Antonio '11 4-6 40%
*Villanova '85-'87 18-5 78% (220-143-1 60%)
*Wagner '93-'95 23-9 72% (129-119 52%)
*Western Kentucky '82-'98, '07-'08 91-112-2 44% (186-156-2 54%)
*William & Mary '82-'92 76-49-2 60% (234-159-2 59%)
*Wofford '95-'96 10-12 45% (140-102 58%)
*Youngstown State '88-'96 85-31-2 75% (260-159-2 62%)
Independents in the playoffs
Florida A&M 2-0 100% 1 natty
Georgia Southern 20-2 91% 4 nattys
Youngstown State 16-3 84% 3 nattys
Florida Atlantic 2-1 66%
Samford 2-2 50%
UCF 2-2 50%
Delaware 2-2 50%
Eastern Washington 1-1 50%
Arkansas State 1-1 50%
Richmond 1-1 50%
Western Kentucky 2-3 40%
Tennessee State 2-3 40%
Troy 2-3 40%
Hofstra 2-4 33%
James Madison 1-2 33%
Lehigh 1-2 33%
Colgate 1-2 33%
William & Mary 1-3 25%
Nevada 0-1 0%
Holy Cross 0-1 0%
Time for the meat. This is my top 25 of all time. Check em out and tell me what you think. There's a lot of numbers and rankings in there and it can get a bit cumbersome but I think most will have fun and get it. Enjoy.
Top 25 All Time
#25 Jackson State is the lone SWAC member in the top 25(Grambling State was close but only had three playoff appearances compared to Jackson State's 12). 38 years in the FCS with 0 natty's or appearances. Tied for 11th in playoff appearances with 12 but no wins in the post season. Winners of 10 SWAC titles, they are also 11th in all time wins with 265 averaging 6.97 wins a year. They were also the 5th winningest team from '78-'89 with a 73% winning percentage and had the 25th best 10 year run from '78-'87 going 81-30-3 winning 71% of their games.
#24 Sam Houston State joined the FCS in '85 entering the 1-AA/D2 Gulf South Con and then joined the Southland in '87. Winning 3 con titles between the two, they've won 201 games at 6.48 a season. They've earned 8 playoff appearances (tied for 20th) while winning 67% of those games and losing both their natty berths to NDSU on back to backs. They are also currently the 7th winningest team this decade winning 73% of their games since '10.
#23 Idaho spent 18 years in the Big Sky while in the FCS not appearing in any natty's. They won 5 Big Sky titles and made the playoffs 11 times winning only 35% of their games. All time they have 134 program wins averaging 7.44 wins a year which is the 9th best avg. They are also 20th with a 63% winning percentage all time. They also have the 17th best 10 year run from '85-'94 going 90-33 winning 73% of their games.
#22 Harvard from the Ivy has been in the FCS all 38 years. Obviously they have no post season history since the Ivy puts academics above post season accolades. They do have a tie for the conference lead with 9 Ivy titles and 233 wins good for 19th all time while averaging 6.13 a year. Remember the Ivy only plays 10 games a year. Teams like Montana and Georgia Southern avg almost 13 games a year. They are tied for 23rd with a 62% winning percentage all time. From '00-'09 they were the 3rd winningest team winning 77% of their games and carrying that success into the aughts, they are currently 2nd only to NDSU winning 87% of their games. They are also currently in the 2nd best 10 year run of all time from '06 to now going 83-17 winning 83% of their games.
#21 Lehigh started as an Independent but has played in the Patriot League since '86, totaling 38 years in the FCS. Not playing in any natty's yet, they have made 9 postseasons winning 40% of those games. While winning a conference leading 7 Patriot Titles, they have racked up 270 wins(t9th), good for a 7.11 average and the 23rd best winning percentage at 63%. They also have the 12th best 10 year run going 87-31 from '95-'04 winning 74% of their games.
#20 William & Mary has been an FCS member for 34 years and joined their current conference(CAA) in '93. They have yet to appear in or win any natty's but have made the playoffs 10 times winning 41% of their games. With 234 wins averaging 6.88 a year, they place 18th. They have also won 1 con title in the very balanced and powerful Colonial.
#19 Richmond has played 34 years but not great constantly. Joining the CAA in '86(then called the Yankee), they have only 196 wins at 5.76 a season. Their post season success is what has earned them a spot in the top 20. Earning 10 playoff bids, they have won 59% of their post season games, including their only natty appearance against the Griz in '08.
#18 Eastern Illinois has played at the FCS level for 35 years in three different conferences albeit the MCAA was swallowed up by the MVC/Gateway. Winning 11 con titles(6 OVC, 4 MCAA, and 1 Gateway), they have accumulated 232 wins(20th) at 6.63 a year. Now in the OVC (since '96), they have a total of 16 payoff appearances (tied for 6th all time) but have only won 20% of their games and have never played in a natty.
#17 Eastern Washington joined the FCS in '84 and the Big Sky in '87. At 25th all time with 218 wins, they average 6.81 a year. Winning 5 con titles, they have been invited to the post season 11 times winning 58% of their games including their only natty appearance. They are also currently tied as the 5th winningest team this decade winning 74% of their games.
#16 Villanova has been a member of the FCS since '85 and joined the CAA in '88. In that time they won 3 conference titles and 220 games (tied for 22nd) at 7.1 a year. They also have appeared in 11 postseasons (13th) while winning 52% of those games and also winning their only natty appearance, against Montana.
#15 James Madison joined the FCS in '80 but played Independent until '93. In their 36 years they won 239 games (17th) at 6.64 a year while winning 3 conference titles. They've been invited to 12 postseasons (tied for 11th) winning 45% of their playoff games and their only natty appearance against ...... the Griz.
#14 New Hampshire has been an FCS and CAA member all 38 years. While racking up 270 wins (tied for 9th) at 7.11 a year at a 62% rate (tied for 23rd), they have earned 4 conference titles and 14 playoff berths (10th) winning 44% of those games. They have yet to earn a trip to a natty though.
#13 Massachusetts was a member of the Colonial/Atlantic 10/Yankee conference since the FCS first formed 38 years ago until their move up to the FBS in '12. In that time they won more con titles then any other CAA team with 8. They won 225 games (21st) at 6.12 a year. They earned 9 trips to the playoffs (tied for 20th) winning 59% of those games. They are also 3rd in natty appearances with 3 while winning one of them.
#12 McNeese State joined the Southland and the FCS 34 years ago. Since then they've won a con leading 10 titles. They've won 240 games (16th) at 7.06 a year winning 62% of their contests (tied for 23rd). They've been invited to 16 post seasons (tied for 6th) and won 41% of those games. They've made it to one natty losing it. They were the 8th best team in the aughts winning 70% of their games and have the 15th best 10 year run from '94-'03 going 93-34 winning 73% of the time.
#11 Boise State spent 18 years in the Big Sky and FCS winning 2 con titles. With a 134 wins averaging 7.44 a year, they finished with a 64% win rate(tied for 14th). With 5 post season invites, they won 67% of the time including one of their two trips to the natty(they should have had a third in '79 going 10-1 but a recruiting violation made them ineligible for the post season). They were also the 10th best team from '78-'89 winning 65% of the time.
#10 Northern Iowa joined the FCS in '81 and the MVC in '85. While winning 16 con titles including a MVC best 15 titles, they have racked up 306 victories (3rd all time) at an impressive 8.74 a year (3rd) while winning 69% (tied for 7th) of their contests. With 18 post season appearances (5th), and 22 victories (tied for 6th) winning 55% of the time, they have only earned one natty appearance and no titles. They are the 8th best team of the 90's winning 72% of the time and the 6th best in the aughts going at a 71% clip. They also have the 21st best 10 year run from '89-'98 going 89-34 winning 72% of the time.
#9 Furman has been a member of the Southern Con all 38 years of the FCS existence. In that time, they've won 10 SoCon titles (2nd only to App St) and 286 games (tied for 4th), good for 7.53 wins a year at a 63% rate (tied for 20th). They've earned 16 playoff berths (tied for 6th) winning 55% of the time and 3 natty appearances (tied for 8th) winning one of those. From '78-'89, they were the 4th best team winning 74% of their games and own the 9th best 10 year run of all time going 95-25-4 from '80-'89 winning 77% of their games.
#8 Delaware joined the FCS as an independent in '80 and the Yankee(CAA) in '86 winning the 2nd most CAA/A-10/Yank conference titles with 7. In that time they also won 285 games (6th all time) at an impressive 7.92 a year while winning 65% of their games (tied for 12th). They've made it to 15 post seasons (9th) earning 22 victories (tied for 6th) while winning 61% of the time. Making it to 4 natty's (tied for 6th), they have been victorious in one. They were the 9th best team in the 80's winning 66% of the time and 10th in the 90's going at a 70% rate.
#7 Eastern Kentucky has been a member of the Ohio Valley and the FCS all 38 years. In that time they've owned the OVC winning 13 titles. Winning 311 games (2nd all time) at an awesome 8.18 a year, they've recorded victories 69% of the time (tied for 7th). With 21 post season invites (2nd all time), they've won 46% of the time and are 9th in post season victories. Earning 4 trips to the natty (tied for 6th), they've come out victorious twice (tied for 5th). From '78-'89 they were the 2nd best team winning 78% of the time and the 9th best in the 90's pulling out 71% of their games. They also own the 8th best 10 year run going 99-26-2 from '79-'88 with 78% winning percentage.
#6 Marshall was an original FCS member while in the SoCon from '78 to '96. In those 19 years they won 3 con titles and 138 games at 7.26 wins a year. With 8 playoff appearances (tied for 23rd) they won an amazing 79% of their playoff games (2nd only to NDSU) for a total of 23 wins (5th). Earning 6 trips to the natty (tied for 3rd), they won 2 of them (tied for 5th). In the 90's they were the 2nd winningest team winning 79% of their games tell they jumped to the FBS in '97. They also own the 10th best 10 year run from '87-'96 going 106-33 winning 76% of the time.
#5 Appalachian State was s member of the SoCon in '78 when the FCS formed and stayed there tell they jumped up to the FBS in '14. While there, they won a SoCon best 11 conference titles and 286 games (tied for 4th) at an amazing 7.94 wins a year, good for a 65% winning percentage (tied for 12th). With 20 post season appearances (3rd), they've won 24 games (4th) with a 59% winning percentage. With 3 natty appearances (tied for 8th), they became the first FCS team to three-peat winning all three of their title games (4th). They also were the 4th best team in the aughts winning 75% of their '00-'09 contests. Along with that they own the 11th best 10 year run going 101-32 from '01-'10 winning 76% of the time.
#4 Youngstown State joined the OVC and the FCS in '81 and stayed through the '87 season. They joined their current conference (MVC) in '97 but it was as an independent from '88-'96 that they seen their most success. Only winning one con title (MVC), they have racked up 260 wins (12th) at 7.43 a year while winning 62% of the time (tied for 23rd). While earning 11 post season appearances (tied for 13th), they've won 25 playoff games (3rd) at a 78% clip (3rd). They've earned 6 natty appearances (tied for 3rd) and won 4 of them (3rd). They were also the 4th best team of the 90's winning 78% of their games and own the 7th best 10 year run going 103-29 through that same time span. The real story with them is their Independent success from '88-'96. In those 9 years they earned 6 playoff appearances going 16-3 and winning 3 nattys and 84% of their playoff games. Amazingly enough though, they're still not the most successful Independent team.
#3 Montana has been in the Big Sky and the FCS all 38 years of its existence. While leading the BSC in con titles with 13, they have racked up 327 wins (1st all time) at 8.60 wins a year (3rd) while winning 69% of their match ups (tied for 7th). With 24 trips to the post season (1st all time) and 34 playoff victories (2nd all time), they've won 61% of their games. They've earned 7 trips to the natty (2nd all time) but have only won a disappointing 2 of them (tied for 5th). They were the 6th best team of the 90's winning 74% of their games and their best 10 year run was an amazing 119-23 from '00-'09 winning 84% of the time giving them the best 10 year run ever and making them the best of the aught decade; obviously. Arguably, if Montana would have won their heartbreaker to Georgia Southern in '00 and could have stopped the "one man show" that was Villanova in '09, they could be at the top of this list.
#2 Georgia Southern was the best FCS team ever for a long time. Joining the FCS as an Independent in '84 and staying there tell joining the SoCon in '93, they remained in the FCS tell their move up to the FBS in '14. In those 30 years, they won 9 SoCon titles (3rd), 282 games (7th) at an amazing 9.4 a year (2nd only to NDSU), and were victorious 73% of the time (5th). With 19 trips to the playoffs (4th), they racked up an awesome 44 victories (1st all time) winning 77% of their contests (4th). Earning 8 natty appearances (1st all time), they've won 6 titles (1st all time). Only playing six seasons in the 80's ('84-'89), they had the best winning percentage of any one winning 83% of the time. In the 90's they were 7th best with a 72% win rate. Their best 10 year run is 6th all time going 106-28 from '84-'93 winning 79% of the time. As I mentioned earlier, they are also the most successful Independent and start up of all time. As an Independent from '84-'92, they made the playoffs 6 times going 20-2 with 91% post season winning percentage and winning 4 nattys. The more amazing part is that GSU didn't start playing NCAA sanctioned football until '84, only two years after forming a club team, 41 years after football was cancelled at GSU. Winning their first title the next year in '85, they were well on their way to greatness.
Drum roll please, no nevermind, this is a no brainer. #1 North Dakota State has secured themselves as the best team ever in the history of 1-AA/FCS football. Now with 5 natty's (2nd) in 5 title appearances (5th) there is no sign of them slowing down. With 6 playoff appearances (tied for 29th), they have 22 playoff wins (tied for 6th) at a ludicrous 96% winning percentage(1st). Their all time winning percentage of 79% is also good for 1st. They also have 7 conference titles (6 in MVC good for 2nd in con and 1 in the Great West) under their belt. Since 2010 they have the best record in the FCS going 80-11 winning 88% of the time. Their best 10 year run from '06 to now is good for 4th all time going 108-25 at an 81% clip. Oh, and during this 5 natty run, 70-5 at 93%! WTF! At least one of those losses is to us. The only thing that can stop these guys from their dominance in the FCS is a move to the FBS. Probably sooner then later.
Disclaimer
Once again, I'm sorry about the length of this. I started with just a couple small comparisons and it grew into a monster. If you want to go straight to the top 25, it's allllllllllllll the way at the bottom. If you continue on, don't say I didn't warn you.
First I'm starting with the all time rankings in several key categories. National titles, title game appearances, post season appearances and records, along with wins and winning percentage. These were the basis for determining most of my top 25 ranking.
Natty's
1st Georgia Southern 6
2nd North Dakota State 5
3rd Youngstown State 4
4th Appalachian State 3
t5th Montana 2
t5th Marshall 2
t5th Eastern Kentucky 2
8th 14 tied with 1
Top 10 in Title Game Appearances
1st Georgia Southern 8
2nd Montana 7
t3rd Youngstown State 6
t3rd Marshall 6
5th North Dakota State 5
t6th Delaware 4
t6th Eastern Kentucky 4
t8th Appalachian State 3
t8th Furman 3
t8th Massachusetts 3
Top 25 Playoff appearances(appearances, win-loss and winning %)
1st Montana 24, 34-22 61%
2nd Eastern Kentucky 21, 16-19 46%
3rd Appalachian State 20, 24-17 59%
4th Georgia Southern 19, 44-13 77%
5th Northern Iowa 18, 22-18 55%
t6th Furman 16, 18-15 55%
t6th McNeese State 16, 11-16 41%
t6th Eastern Illinois 16, 4-16 20%
9th Delaware 15, 22-14 61%
10th New Hampshire 14, 11-14 44%
t11th James Madison 12, 9-11 45%
t11th Jackson State 12, 0-12 0%
t13th Youngstown State 11, 25-7 78%
t13th Eastern Washington 11, 14-10 58%
t13th Villanova 11, 11-10 52%
t13th Idaho 11, 6-11 35%
t17th Richmond 10, 13-9 59%
t17th William & Mary 10, 7-10 41%
t17th Western Illinois 10, 7-10 41%
t20th Sam Houston State 9, 16-9 64%
t20th Massachusetts 9, 10-7 59%
t20th Lehigh 9, 6-9 40%
t23rd Marshall 8, 23-6 79%
t23rd Western Kentucky 8, 8-7 53%
t23rd Southern Illinois 8, 8-7 53%
t23rd Montana State 8, 6-7 46%
t23rd Colgate 8, 6-10 38%
t29th North Dakota State 6 22-1 96%
Top 25 Most wins all time
1st Montana 327
2nd Eastern Kentucky 311
3rd Northern Iowa 306
t4th Appalachian State 286
t4th Furman 286
6th Delaware 285
7th Georgia Southern 282
8th Grambling State 277
t9th New Hampshire 270
t9th Lehigh 270
11th Jackson State 265
12th Youngstown State 260
13th South Carolina State 250
14th Southern 249
15th Florida A&M 245
16th McNeese State 240
17th James Madison 239
18th William & Mary 234
19th Harvard 233
20th Eastern Illinois 232
21st Massachusetts 225
t22nd Bethune-Cookman 220
t22nd Villanova 220
24th Penn 219
t25th Eastern Washington 218
t25th Northern Arizona 218
t25th Colgate 218
30th Montana State 212
Top 25 winning % all time
1st North Dakota State 124-33 79%
2nd Dayton 193-56 78%
3rd Old Dominion 46-14 77%
4th Troy 84-26-1 76%
5th Georgia Southern 282-105-1 73%
6th Nevada 123-46-1 72%
t7th Montana 327-148-1 69%
t7th Eastern Kentucky 311-139-2 69%
t7th Northern Iowa 306-136-2 69%
t7th Duquesne 161-73 69%
11th Coastal Carolina 104-52 67%
t12th Appalachian State 286-149-4 65%
t12th Delaware 285-150-1 65%
t14th Grambling State 277-152-4 64%
t14th San Diego 158-87 64%
t14th Boise State 134-76 64%
t14th Louisiana-Monroe 90-48-2 64%
t14th UCF 44-25 64%
t14th UAB 21-12 64%
t20th Furman 286-163-5 63%
t20th Lehigh 270-158-4 63%
t20th Idaho 134-79 63%
t23rd New Hampshire 270-162-5 62%
t23rd Youngstown State 260-159-2 62%
t23rd South Carolina State 250-155-1 62%
t23rd McNeese State 240-142-6 62%
t23rd Harvard 233-138-5 62%
t23rd Central Arkansas 66-40 62%
t36th Eastern Washington 218-152-2 59%
For some extra fun, I included the best "10 year run" of all the schools. I also broke down the winningest schools by each decade(I included '78 and '79 in with the 80's).
Top 25 Ten year run
1st Montana '00-'09 119-23 84% 1 natty
2nd Harvard '06-'15 83-17 83%
3rd Dayton '93-'02 87-19 82%
4th North Dakota State '06-'15 108-25 81%
5th Duquesne '95-'04 87-22 80%
6th Georgia Southern '84-'93 106-28 79% 4 nattys
7th Youngstown State '90-'99 103-29 78% 4 nattys
8th Eastern Kentucky '79-'88 99-26-2 78% 2 nattys
9th Furman '80-'89 95-25-4 77% 1 natty
10th Marshall '87-'96 106-33 76% 2 nattys
11th Appalachian State '01-'10 101-32 76% 3 nattys
12th Lehigh '95-'04 87-31 74%
13th Grambling State '00-'09 86-30 74%
14th Hampton '97-'06 86-31 74%
15th McNeese State '94-'03 93-34 73%
16th Nevada '82-'91 91-33 73%
17th Idaho '85-'94 90-33 73%
18th Middle Tennessee State '83-'92 88-33 73%
19th San Diego '05-'14 83-30 73%
20th Penn '01-'10 72-27 73%
21st Northern Iowa '89-'98 89-34 72%
22nd Southern '93-'02 85-33 72%
t23rd South Carolina State '02-'11 83-33 72%
t23rd Colgate '99-'08 83-33 72%
25th Jackson State '78-'87 81-30-3 71%
37th Eastern Washington '05-'14 86-42 67% 1 natty
40th Montana State '05-'14 80-41 66%
*denotes team played four or less seasons in the time frame and I didn't give them a ranking but included their percentage.
Best record in '78-'89 top 10
1st Georgia Southern 70-14 83% 6 seasons
2nd Eastern Kentucky 116-31-2 78%
3rd Holy Cross 69-18-2 78% 8 seasons
4th Furman 108-34-4 74%
5th Jackson State 97-35-5 73%
6th Grambling State 94-37-4 70%
*Liberty 7-3 70% 1 season
7th Nevada 98-43-1 69%
8th Villanova 31-14-1 67% 5 seasons
9th Delaware 77-40 66% 10 seasons
10th Boise State 89-48 65%
? Montana 64-67-1 48%
Best record in '90-'99 top 10
*Nevada 25-3 89% 2 seasons
1st Dayton 58-14 81% 7 seasons
2nd Marshall 79-21 79% 7 seasons
3rd Duquesne 49-15 77% 6 seasons
4th Youngstown State 103-30-2 76%
5th Troy 67-20-1 76% 7 seasons
6th Montana 93-32 74%
7th Georgia Southern 93-36 72%
8th Northern Iowa 89-34 72%
9th Eastern Kentucky 85-35 71%
10th Delaware 88-36-1 70%
Best record in '00-'09 top 10
1st Montana 119-23 84%
2nd Dayton 87-23 79%
3rd Harvard 76-23 77%
4th Appalachian State 101-33 75%
5th Grambling State 86-30 74%
*Troy 17-6 74% 2 seasons
6th Northern Iowa 89-36 71%
7th Penn 70-29 71%
8th McNeese State 83-35 70%
9th Colgate 82-35 70%
10th San Diego 74-33 69%
Best record in '10-pres top 10
1st North Dakota State 80-11 88%
2nd Harvard 52-8 87%
t3rd Bethune-Cookman 55-16 77%
t3rd Old Dominion 46-14 77% 5 seas
t5th Eastern Washington 59-21 74%
t5th Jacksonville State 56-20 74%
7th Sam Houston State 62-23 73%
t8th San Diego 48-19 72%
t8th Dayton 48-19 72%
10th Jacksonville 47-19 71%
t13th Montana State 50-24 68%
t16th Montana 50-26 66%
Conference and schools
Team/years in con/con record and %/(overall record and %)
*denotes team played in more then one conference.
This is the bulk of my research. Following is a break down of every conference to play D1-AA and every team to play in the conference. Included is the team's years in the con and records while in the conference along with their overall record. Con champs are also included along with the best five and ten year runs while in the conference. The teams and conferences playoff history's are also included in each conference breakdown. The conference's are mostly in order of success. Some conferences that just changed names(Colonial to Patriot) are kept together. Other conferences that blended into bigger cons are in close proximity to each other (Gulf/Southland). All the Independent schools are at the bottom with their playoff records.
Big Sky Conference '78-pres
*Nevada '79-'91 112-45-1 71% (123-46-1 72%)
Montana '78-pres 327-148-1 69%
Boise State '78-'95 134-76 64%
Idaho '78-'95 134-79 63%
*Eastern Washington '87-pres 197-142-1 58% (218-152-2 59%)
*Cal Poly '12-pres 26-21 55% (134-112 54%)
Northern Arizona '78-pres 218-206 51%
*Cal State Northridge '96-'00 28-28 50% (37-49 43%)
Montana State '78-pres 212-220 49%
*Southern Utah '12-pres 23-25 48% (99-156-1 39%)
Weber State '78-pres 194-230 46%
*Portland State '96-pres 104-121 46% (123-135 48%)
*North Dakota '12-pres 20-25 44% (43-45 49%)
*Sacramento State '96-pres 80-145 36% (93-162-1 36%)
Idaho State '78-pres 146-269-2 35%
*UC Davis '12-pres 13-32 29% (57-76 43%)
*Northern Colorado '06-pres 24-88 21% (30-104 22%)
Con champs(out right champs only unless head to head match ups couldn't break the tie)
Montana 13
Montana State 6
Idaho 5
Eastern Washington 5
Nevada 4
Boise State 2
Idaho State 2
Northern Arizona 1
Weber State 1
Southern Utah 1
Top 5 five year run in con
Montana '05-'09 59-10 86%
Eastern Washington '10-'14 53-16 77%
Boise State '78-'82 45-14 76%
Nevada '82-'86 47-16 75%
Idaho '85-'89 46-15 75%
Top 5 ten year run in con
Montana '00-'09 119-23 84%
Nevada '82-'91 91-33 73%
Idaho '85-'94 90-33 73%
Eastern Washington '05-'14 86-42 67%
Montana State '05-'14 80-41 66%
Playoff record for con:81 appearances 82-75 52% 6 nattys
(In order by winning %)
Idaho State 2 appearances 3-1 75% 1 natty
Boise State 5 appearances 8-4 67% 1 natty
Montana 24 appearances 34-22 61% 2 nattys
Nevada 6 appearances 9-6 60%
Eastern Washington 10 appearances 13-9 59% 1 natty
Montana State 8 appearances 6-7 46% 1 natty
Idaho 11 appearances 6-11 35%
Weber State 4 appearances 2-4 33%
Northern Arizona 5 appearances 1-5 17%
Portland State 2 appearances 0-2 0%
Southern Utah 2 appearances 0-2 0%
Cal Poly 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Sacramento State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Cal State Northridge 0 appearances 0-0 0%
North Dakota 0 appearances 0-0 0%
UC Davis 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Northern Colorado 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons in the playoffs
SWAC 3-0 100%
Pioneer 1-0 100%
Northeast 1-0 100%
MEAC 1-0 100%
Ohio Valley 7-3 70%
Southland 25-17 60%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 9-8 53%
Southern 10-10 50%
Big South 1-1 50%
Great West 1-1 50%
MVC/Gateway 13-16 45%
Independent 2-10 17%
Patriot 0-1 0%
vs Big Sky 8
Great West Conference '04-'11
*North Dakota State '04-'07 35-9 80% (124-33 79%)
*Cal Poly '04-'11 56-33 63% (134-112 54%)
*South Dakota State '04-'07 25-18 58% (85-57 60%)
*North Dakota '08-'11 23-20 53% (43-45 49%)
*UC Davis '04-'11 44-44 50% (57-76 43%)
*South Dakota '08-'11 21-22 49% (34-55 38%)
*Southern Utah '04-'11 31-56 36% (99-156-1 39%)
*Northern Colorado '04-'05 6-16 27% (30-104 22%)
Con champs
Cal Poly 3
UC Davis 2
North Dakota State 1
South Dakota State 1
Southern Utah 1
5 year run
Cal Poly '04-'08 40-17 70%
UC Davis '04-'08 28-27 51%
Southern Utah '07-'11 21-34 38%
Playoff record for con:2 appearances 1-2 0 nattys
Cal Poly 2 appearances 1-2 33%
North Dakota State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
South Dakota State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
North Dakota 0 appearances 0-0 0%
UC Davis 0 appearances 0-0 0%
South Dakota 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Southern Utah 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Northern Colorado 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Big Sky 1-1 50%
Southland 0-1 0%
American West Conference '93-'95
*Cal Poly '94-'95 12-10 55% (134-112 54%)
*Sacramento State '93-'95 13-17-1 42% (93-162-1 36%)
*Cal State Northridge '93-'96 9-21 30% (37-49 43%)
*Southern Utah '93-'95 9-23-1 27% (99-156-1 39%)
Con champs
Cal Poly 1
Southern Utah 1
Sacramento State 1
No playoff appearances
Gateway Football Conference '85-'08
Missouri Valley Football Conference '78-'85, '09-pres
*North Dakota State '08-pres 89-24 79% (124-33 79%)
*Northern Iowa '85-pres 282-117-1 71% (306-136-2 69%)
*Western Kentucky '01-'06 50-24 68% (186-156-2 54%)
*South Dakota State '08-pres 60-39 61% (85-57 60%)
*Youngstown State '97-pres 136-89 60% (260-159-2 62%)
*Eastern Illinois '85-'95 69-56-1 55% (232-175-3 56%)
*Western Illinois '85-pres 192-165-1 54% (208-191-2 52%)
Illinois State '81-pres 195-196 50%
Southern Illinois '78-pres 213-223 49%
*Missouri State '85-pres 175-199-2 47% (195-218-5 47%)
*Drake '78-'85 38-50 43% (193-135-1 59%)
Indiana State '78-pres 164-262 38%
*South Dakota '12-pres 13-33 28% (34-55 38%)
West Texas State '82-'85 12-29-2 28%
Con champs
Northern Iowa 14
North Dakota State 6
Western Illinois 5
Southern Illinois 3
Illinois State 3
Youngstown State 1
Eastern Illinois 1
Missouri State 1
Top 5 five year run
North Dakota State '11-'15 70-5 93%
Southern Illinois '03-'07 50-14 78%
Northern Iowa '89-'93 47-15 76%
Western Illinois '96-'00 47-15 76%
Youngstown State '97-'01 48-16 75%
Top 5 ten year run
Northern Iowa '89-'98 89-34 72%
Southern Illinois '03-'12 85-37 70%
Western Illinois '94-'03 84-36 70%
Illinois State '05-'14 72-47 61%
Missouri State '88-'97 63-48-1 56%
Playoff record for con:
Missouri Valley 25 appearances 42-19 69% 6 nattys
Gateway 44 appearances 47-42 53% 2 nattys
North Dakota State 6 appearances 22-1 96% 5 nattys
Youngstown State 4 appearances 9-3 75% 1 natty
Western Kentucky 4 appearances 5-3 63% 1 natty
Illinois State 6 appearances 8-6 57%
Northern Iowa 18 appearances 22-18 55%
Southern Illinois 8 appearances 8-7 53% 1 natty
Western Illinois 10 appearances 7-10 41%
Eastern Illinois 3 appearances 2-3 40%
Indiana State 3 appearances 2-3 40%
South Dakota State 5 appearances 3-5 38%
Missouri State 2 appearances 1-2 33%
South Dakota 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Drake 0 appearances 0-0 0%
West Texas State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
MEAC 4-0 100%
Big South 3-0 100%
Northeast 1-0 100%
Pioneer 1-0 100%
SWAC 1-0 100%
Mid-Continent 1-0 100%
Ohio Valley 16-3 84%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 15-10 60%
Southland 8-6 57%
Big Sky 16-13 55%
Patriot 2-3 40%
Southern 8-14 36%
Independent 1-3 25%
vs MVC/Gateway 9
Mid-Continent Athletic Association '81-'84
*Eastern Illinois '81-'84 32-14-1 68% (232-175-3 56%)
*Northern Iowa '81-'84 24-19-1 55% (306-136-2 69%)
*(SW)Missouri St '81-'84 20-19-3 48% (195-218-5 47%)
*Western Illinois '81-'84 16-26-1 37% (208-191-2 52%)
Con champs
Eastern Illinois 4
Northern Iowa 2
Western Illinois 1
Playoff record for con:2 appearance 1-2 33% 0 nattys
Eastern Illinois 2 appearances 1-2 33%
vs other cons
SWAC 1-0 100 %
Independent 0-1 0%
MVC/Gateway 0-1 0%
Colonial Athletic Association '07-pres
Atlantic-10 Conference '97-'06
Yankee Conference '78-'96
*Old Dominion '11-'12 21-5 81% (46-14 77%)
*Delaware '86-pres 236-129-1 64% (285-150-1 65%)
New Hampshire '78-pres 270-162-5 62%
*James Madison '93-pres 168-106 61% (239-177-2 57%)
*Villanova '88-pres 202-138-1 59% (220-143-1 60%)
*William & Mary '93-pres 158-110 59% (234-159-2 59%)
Massachusetts '78-'11 225-161-2 58%
Connecticut '78-'99 123-116-2 51%
*Richmond '86-pres 177-175-1 50% (196-200-1 49%)
Maine '78-pres 206-222-2 48%
Boston '78-'97 108-115-1 48%
*Towson '04-pres 64-76 46% (147-171 46%)
*Hofstra '01-'09 47-56 46% (117-86-2 57%)
*Stony Brook '13-pres 15-18 45% (95-89 52%)
*Northeastern '93-'09 76-115 40% (108-177-1 38%)
Rhode Island '78-pres 142-284-1 33%
*Albany '13-pres 11-24 31% (107-82 57%)
*Georgia State '12 1-10 9% (4-18 18%)
*Elon '14-pres 1-11 8% (76-105 42%)
Con champs
Massachusetts 8
Delaware 7
Richmond 5
New Hampshire 4
Boston 4
Villanova 3
James Madison 3
Rhode Island 3
Maine 3
Towson 1
Old Dominion 1
Hofstra 1
Northeastern 1
Connecticut 1
William & Mary 1
Top 5 five year run
James Madison '04-'08 49-15 77%
Delaware '91-'95 48-14-1 76%
Richmond '05-'09 50-17 75%
Massachusetts '03-'07 46-16 74%
New Hampshire '04-'08 47-17 73%
Top 5 ten year run
Delaware '91-'00 94-28-1 76%
New Hampshire '05-'14 93-37 72%
Massachusetts '98-'07 85-40 68%
James Madison '04-'13 82-40 67%
Villanova '01-'10 82-41 67%
Playoff record for con:
Colonial 37 appearances 45-35 56% 2 nattys
Atlantic-10 27 appearances 34-24 59% 3 natty
Yankee 26 appearances 10-26 28% 0 nattys
Delaware 13 appearances 20-12 63% 1 natty
Richmond 9 appearances 12-8 60% 1 natty
Towson 2 appearances 3-2 60%
Massachusetts 8 appearances 10-7 59% 1 natty
Villanova 11 appearances 11-10 52% 1 natty
Old Dominion 2 appearances 2-2 50%
Connecticut 1 appearance 1-1 50%
James Madison 10 appearances 8-9 47% 1 natty
William & Mary 7 appearances 6-7 46%
New Hampshire 14 appearances 11-14 44%
Rhode Island 3 appearances 2-3 40%
Maine 7 appearances 3-7 30%
Boston 5 appearances 2-5 29%
Hofstra 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Northeastern 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Stoney Brook 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Georgia State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Elon 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
MEAC 8-0 100%
SWAC 1-0 100%
Northeast 1-0 100%
Ohio Valley 15-3 83%
Patriot 16-6 73%
Southland 8-7 53%
Big South 3-3 50%
Big Sky 8-9 47%
MVC/Gateway 11-16 41%
Southern 17-28 38%
Independent 3-7 30%
vs CAA/A-10/Yankee 9
Southern Conference '78-pres
*Georgia Southern '93-'13 186-80-1 70% (282-105-1 73%)
Appalachian State '78-'13 286-149-4 65%
Furman '78-pres 286-163-5 63%
*Wofford '97-pres 130-90 59% (140-102 58%)
Marshall '78-'96 138-97-3 58%
*Samford '08-pres 49-41 54% (160-140 53%)
*Mercer '14-pres 11-12 48% (21-14 60%)
The Citadel '78-pres 195-229-3 46%
Chattanooga '78-pres 177-227-3 43%
*Elon '03-'13 53-72 42% (76-105 42%)
*East Tennessee State '79-'03 115-163-1 41% (121-179-1 40%)
Western Carolina '78-pres 165-263-3 38%
*VMI '78-'02, '14-pres 73-219-5 25% (102-313-5 24%)
*Davidson '83-'86 5-35 13% (106-203-1 34%)
Con champs
Appalachian State 11
Furman 10
Georgia Southern 9
Chattanooga 6
Wofford 3
Marshall 3
Samford 1
The Citadel 1
Top 5 five year run
Georgia Southern '98-'02 63-10 86%
Marshall '92-'96 62-12 84%
Appalachian State '05-'09 61-12 84%
Furman '85-'89 51-13-2 77%
Wofford '02-'06 42-17 71%
Top 5 ten year run
Georgia Southern '95-'04 102-31 77%
Furman '80-'89 95-25-4 77%
Marshall '87-'96 106-33 76%
Appalachian State '01-'10 101-32 76%
Wofford '02-'11 81-39 68%
Playoff record for con:74 appearances 102-66 61% 8 nattys
Marshall 8 appearances 23-6 79% 2 nattys
Western Carolina 1 appearance 3-1 75%
Georgia Southern 13 appearances 24-11 69% 2 nattys
Appalachian State 20 appearances 24-17 59% 3 nattys
Furman 16 appearances 18-15 55% 1 natty
Wofford 6 appearances 5-6 45%
Chattanooga 3 appearances 2-3 40%
The Citadel 4 appearances 2-4 33%
East Tennessee State 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Elon 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Samford 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Mercer 0 appearances 0-0 0%
VMI 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Davidson 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Patriot 3-0 100%
SWAC 1-0 100%
MEAC 8-2 80%
Big South 2-1 67%
MVC/Gateway 14-8 64%
Ohio Valley 9-5 64%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 28-17 62%
Big Sky 10-10 50%
Southland 6-6 50%
Independent 3-7 30%
vs Southern 6
Southland Conference '82-pres
*Troy '96-'00 46-16 74% (84-26-1 76%)
Louisiana-Monroe '82-'93 90-48-2 64%
McNeese State '82-pres 240-142-6 62%
Central Arkansas '07-pres 66-40 62%
*Arkansas State '82-'86 39-21-3 62% (61-54-5 51%)
*Louisiana Tech '82-'86 38-22-1 62% (45-37-1 54%)
*Sam Houston State '87-pres 186-153 55% (201-159 56%)
*Stephen F Austin '87-pres 171-159-5 51% (192-170-6 52%)
*Northwestern State '87-pres 168-162-2 51% (213-212-3 50%)
North Texas '83-'94 64-68-3 47%
*Texas State '87-'11 127-155-1 45% (141-174-1 45%)
*Southeastern Louisiana '05-pres 54-72 43% (96-117-1 45%)
Texas Arlington '82-'85 19-24-1 43%
*Abilene Christian '14-pres 9-14 39% (15-19 44%)
*Lamar '82-'86, '11-pres 44-74 37% (60-101 37%)
*Jacksonville State '97-'02 24-41 37% (131-88 60%)
*Incarnate Word '14-pres 8-14 36% (14-19 42%)
*Nichols State '91-pres 88-175-1 33% (151-233-3 39%)
*Houston Baptist '14-pres 4-18 18% (7-22 24%)
Con champs
McNeese State 10
Stephen F Austin 3
Northwestern State 3
Louisiana-Monroe 3
Troy 3
Arkansas State 2
Louisiana Tech 2
North Texas 2
Southeastern Louisiana 2
Sam Houston State 1
Central Arkansas 1
Texas State 1
Nichols State 1
Top 5 five year run
Sam Houston State '11-'15 56-18 76%
McNeese State '93-'97 49-17 74%
Troy '96-'00 46-16 74%
Stephen F Austin '93-'97 40-16-2 69%
Central Arkansas '08-'12 40-20 67%
Top 5 ten year run
McNeese State '94-'03 93-34 73%
Sam Houston State '06-'15 84-44 66%
Louisiana-Monroe '84-'93 74-42-2 63%
Northwestern State '95-'04 70-49 59%
Stephen F Austin '88-'97 68-47-4 57%
Playoff record for con:62 appearances 58-61 49% 1 natty
Sam Houston State 8 appearances 16-8 67%
Louisiana Tech 2 appearances 4-2 67%
Louisiana-Monroe 4 appearances 5-3 63% 1 natty
Arkansas State 3 appearances 5-3 63%
Stephen F Austin 7 appearances 7-7 50%
Texas State 2 appearances 2-2 50%
Troy 4 appearances 3-4 43%
McNeese State 16 appearances 11-16 41%
Northwestern State 6 appearances 3-6 33%
Southeastern Louisiana 2 appearances 1-2 33%
Central Arkansas 2 appearances 1-2 33%
North Texas 4 appearances 0-4 0%
Nichols State 2 appearances 0-2 0%
Texas Arlington 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Abilene Christian 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Lamar 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Jacksonville State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Incarnate Word 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Houston Baptist 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
SWAC 7-0 100%
Patriot 1-0 100%
Big South 1-0 100%
Great West 1-0 100%
Ohio Valley 6-3 67%
Southern 6-6 50%
MEAC 2-2 50%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 7-8 47%
MVC/Gateway 6-8 43%
Big Sky 17-25 40%
Independent 0-3 0%
vs Southland 6
Gulf-South Conference '84-'86
*Sam Houston State '85-'86 17-6 74% (201-159 56%)
*Stephen F Austin '84-'86 21-11-1 64% (192-170-6 52%)
*Nichols State '84-'86 22-13 63% (151-233-3 39%)
*Northwestern State '84-'86 15-17-1 45% (213-212-3 50%)
*Texas State '84-'86 14-19 42% (141-174-1 45%)
*Southeastern Louisiana '84-'85 4-17-1 18% (96-117-1 45%)
Con champs
Sam Houston State 2
Northwestern State 1
Playoff record for con:2 appearances 1-2 33% 0 nattys
Nichols State 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Sam Houston State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
vs other cons
Southern 1-0 100%
Southland 0-1 0%
Independent 0-1 0%
Ohio Valley Conference '78-pres
Eastern Kentucky '78-pres 311-139-2 69%
*Jacksonville State '03-pres 107-47 69% (131-88 60%)
*Western Kentucky '78-'81, '99-'00 45-20 69% (186-156-2 54%)
Middle Tennessee State '78-'98 141-96-2 59%
*Eastern Illinois '96-pres 131-105-1 55% (232-175-3 56%)
Akron '80-'86 41-35-1 53%
Murray State '78-pres 209-213-4 49%
*Youngstown State '81-'87 39-39 50% (260-159-2 62%)
*Tennessee State '88-pres 144-160-2 47% (202-179-6 52%)
*Samford '03-'07 24-31 44% (160-140 53%)
Tennessee Tech '78-pres 162-253 39%
Tenn-Martin '92-pres 102-168 38%
*East Tennessee State '78 4-7 36% (121-179-1 40%)
SE Missouri St '91-pres 98-184 35%
*Austin Peay '78-'96, '07-pres 95-212 31% (125-295 30%)
*Morehead State '78-'95 57-138-2 29% (164-241-2 40%)
Con champs
Eastern Kentucky 13
Eastern Illinois 6
Murray State 5
Jacksonville State 5
Middle Tennessee State 3
Western Kentucky 3
Tennessee State 2
SE Missouri State 1
Tennessee Tech 1
Top 5 five year run
Eastern Kentucky '78-'82 54-9 86%
Middle Tennessee State '81-'85 44-14 76%
Murray State '95-'99 43-15 74%
Jacksonville State '10-'14 47-17 73%
Eastern Illinois '05-'09 38-23 62%
Top 5 ten year run
Eastern Kentucky '79-'88 99-26-2 78%
Middle Tennessee State '83-'92 88-33 73%
Jacksonville State '05-'14 84-36 70%
Eastern Illinois '00-'09 72-47 66%
Murray State '79-'88 70-38-3 63%
Playoff record for con:59 appearances 31-57 35% 2 nattys
Western Kentucky 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Eastern Kentucky 21 appearances 16-19 46% 2 nattys
Middle Tennessee State 7 appearances 6-7 46%
Jacksonville State 6 appearances 5-6 45%
Tennessee State 3 appearances 1-3 25%
Murray State 5 appearances 1-5 17%
Eastern Illinois 11 appearances 1-11 8%
Tennessee Tech 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Akron 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Tenn-Martin 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Youngstown State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
SE Missouri St 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Austin Peay 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Morehead State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
East Tennessee State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Samford 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Big South 1-0 100%
Pioneer 1-0 100%
SWAC 1-0 100%
MEAC 1-1 50%
Independent 5-8 38%
Southern 5-9 36%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 3-6 33%
Big Sky 3-7 30%
Southland 3-6 33%
MVC/Gateway 3-16 16%
vs Ohio Valley 3
Big South Conference '02-pres
Coastal Carolina '03-'15 104-52 67%
*Stony Brook '08-'12 36-23 61% (95-89 52%)
*Liberty '02-pres 91-69 57% (164-138 54%)
Kennesaw State '15-pres 6-5 55%
*Monmouth '14-pres 11-11 50% (129-103 56%)
Charleston Southern '02-pres 78-82 49%
Gardner-Webb '02-pres 76-80 49%
*Elon '02 4-7 36% (76-105 42%)
Presbyterian '08-pres 23-66 26%
*VMI '03-'13 29-94 24% (102-313-5 24%)
Con champs
Liberty 5
Coastal Carolina 5
Stony Brook 4
Charleston Southern 2
Gardner-Webb 2
Top 5 five year run
Coastal Carolina '11-'15 48-17 74%
Liberty '07-'11 41-15 73%
Stony Brook '08-'12 36-23 61%
Gardner-Webb '02-'06 33-22 60%
Charleston Southern '05-'09 33-22 60%
Top 5 ten year run
Coastal Carolina '05-'14 79-43 67%
Liberty '06-'15 76-39 66%
Charleston Southern '06-'15 62-53 54%
Gardner-Webb '02-'11 57-53 52%
VMI '03-'12 27-84 24%
Playoff record for con:11 appearances 8-11 42% 0 nattys
Stony Brook 2 appearances 2-2 50%
Liberty 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Charleston Southern 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Coastal Carolina 6 appearances 4-6 40%
Elon 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Kennesaw State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Monmouth 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Gardner-Webb 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Presbyterian 0 appearances 0-0 0%
VMI 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
MEAC 2-0 100%
Northeast 1-0 100%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 3-3 50%
Big Sky 1-1 50%
Southern 1-2 33%
Southland 0-1 0%
Ohio Valley 0-1 0%
MVC/Gateway 0-3 0%
Ivy League '78-pres
Harvard '78-pres 233-138-5 62%
Penn '78-pres 219-153-3 58%
Yale '78-pres 203-168-4 54%
Brown '78-pres 192-180-4 51%
Princeton '78-pres 186-185-5 49%
Dartmouth '78-pres 171-198-7 45%
Cornell '78-pres 164-209-3 44%
Columbia '78-pres 81-311-5 20%
Con champs
Harvard 9
Penn 9
Dartmouth 6
Yale 3
Brown 3
Princeton 3
Cornell 1
Top 5 five year run
Harvard '11-'15 45-5 90%
Penn '00-'04 42-7 86%
Princeton '91-'95 39-10-1 78%
Brown '97-'01 36-13 73%
Dartmouth '93-'97 36-13-1 72%
Top 5 ten year run
Harvard '06-'15 83-17 83%
Penn '01-'10 72-27 73%
Dartmouth '88-'97 68-29-3 68%
Princeton '87-'96 64-34-2 64%
Brown '96-'05 63-36 64%
No playoff appearances
Patriot League '90-pres
Colonial League '86-'89
*Lehigh '86-pres 213-127-2 62% (270-158-4 63%)
*Colgate '86-pres 190-156-1 55% (218-172-2 56%)
*Holy Cross '86-pres 167-168-1 50% (196-182-3 51%)
*Towson '97-'03 36-40 47% (147-171 46%)
*Lafayette '86-pres 152-176-4 46% (197-213-6 47%)
*Bucknell '86-pres 146-180-1 45% (181-222-4 44%)
*Fordham '90-pres 121-171-1 41% (123-177-1 41%)
*Georgetown '01-pres 49-114 30% (102-142 42%)
*Davidson '87-'88 1-20 5% (106-203-1 34%)
Con champs
Lehigh 7
Colgate 7
Holy Cross 6
Lafayette 6
Fordham 3
Bucknell 1
Top 5 five year run
Holy Cross '87-'91 50-4-1 91%
Lehigh '98-'02 53-9 85%
Colgate '99-'03 48-13 79%
Bucknell '95-'99 36-19 65%
Lafayette '05-'09 36-21 63%
Top 5 ten year run
Lehigh '95-'04 87-31 74%
Colgate '99-'08 83-33 72%
Holy Cross '86-'95 74-35-1 67%
Bucknell '95-'04 61-47 56%
Lafayette '02-'11 62-52 54%
Playoff record for con:
Patriot 25 appearances 13-25 34% 0 nattys
Colonial 0 appearances 0-0 0% 0 nattys
Lehigh 7 appearances 5-7 42%
Colgate 8 appearances 5-8 38%
Fordham 5 appearances 3-5 38%
Lafayette 4 appearances 0-4 0%
Holy Cross 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Towson 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Bucknell 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Georgetown 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Davidson 0 appearance 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Big Sky 1-0 100%
Independent 1-0 100%
MVC/Gateway 3-2 60%
Northeast 1-1 50%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 6-16 27%
Southland 0-1 0%
Southern 0-3 0%
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference '80-pres
South Carolina State '80-pres 250-155-1 62%
Hampton '96-pres 137-91 60%
*Florida A&M '80-'83, '88-'03, '05-pres 205-150-1 59% (245-187-3 56%)
Bethune-Cookman '80-pres 220-172-2 56%
North Carolina A&T '80-pres 204-199-1 50%
North Carolina Central '11-pres 28-29 49%
Delaware State '80-pres 186-207 47%
Howard '80-pres 183-210-2 46%
Norfolk State '97-pres 80-131 38%
Morgan State '86-pres 100-230-1 30%
*Savannah State '11-pres 4-52 7% (19-134 12%)
Con champs
South Carolina State 8
Florida A&M 7
Bethune-Cookman 6
North Carolina A&T 6
Delaware State 4
Hampton 4
Howard 2
Norfolk State 1
Morgan State 1
Top 5 five year run
Bethune Cookman '10-'14 46-14 77%
Florida A&M '95-'99 48-15 76%
Hampton '02-'06 45-14 76%
Delaware State '83-'87 40-12-1 75%
South Carolina State '05-'09 43-15 74%
Top 5 ten year run
Hampton '97-'06 86-31 74%
South Carolina State '02-'11 83-33 72%
Delaware State '83-'92 74-31-1 70%
Florida A&M '94-'03 83-38 69%
North Carolina A&T '90-'99 79-35 69%
Playoff record for con:30 appearances 6-30 17% 0 nattys
Florida A&M 6 appearances 3-6 33%
South Carolina State 6 appearances 2-6 25%
North Carolina A&T 4 appearances 1-4 20%
Hampton 5 appearances 0-5 0%
Bethune-Cookman 5 appearances 0-5 0%
Delaware State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Howard 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Norfolk State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Morgan State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
North Carolina Central 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Savannah State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Southland 2-2 50%
Ohio Valley 1-1 50%
Independent 1-2 33%
Southern 2-8 20%
Big Sky 0-1 0%
Big South 0-2 0%
MVC/Gateway 0-4 0%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 0-8 0%
Southwestern Athletic Conference '78-pres
Grambling State '78-pres 277-152-4 64%
Jackson State '78-pres 265-161-6 61%
Southern '78-pres 249-180-3 58%
Alabama A&M '99-pres 109-88 55%
Alcon State '78-pres 212-191-2 52%
Alabama State '83-pres 192-177-4 51%
Arkansas Pine-Bluff '97-pres 99-112 47%
Mississippi Valley State '78-pres 141-255-4 35%
Texas Southern '78-pres 138-273-6 33%
Prairie View A&M '78-pres 102-291-1 26%
Con champs
Grambling State 12
Jackson State 10
Southern 4
Alcon State 4
Alabama State 3
Alabama A&M 1
Prairie View A&M 1
Arkansas Pine-Bluff 1
Top 5 five year run
Southern '95-'99 49-12 80%
Grambling State '99-'03 47-12 80%
Jackson State '78-'82 44-13-1 76%
Alabama A&M '03-'07 41-17 71%
Alabama State '87-'91 40-13-3 71%
Top 5 ten year run
Grambling State '00-'09 86-30 74%
Southern '93-'02 85-33 72%
Jackson State '78-'87 81-30-3 71%
Alcon State '84-'93 64-35-1 64%
Alabama A&M '02-'11 73-44 62%
Playoff record for con:19 appearances 0-19 0 nattys
Jackson State 12 appearances 0-12 0%
Grambling State 3 appearances 0-3 0%
Alcon State 3 appearances 0-3 0%
Mississippi Valley State 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Southern 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Alabama A&M 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Alabama State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Arkansas Pine-Bluff 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Texas Southern 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Prairie View A&M 0 appearances 0-0 0%
vs other cons
MVC/Gateway 0-1 0%
Mid-Continent 0-1 0%
Ohio Valley 0-1 0%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 0-1 0%
Southern 0-1 0%
Big Sky 0-3 0%
Independent 0-4 0%
Southland 0-7 0%
Northeast Conference '96-pres
*Albany '99-'12 96-58 62% (107-82 57%)
*Monmouth '96-'12 98-81 55% (129-103 56%)
*Duquesne '08-pres 48-41 54% (161-73 69%)
Bryant '09-pres 41-37 53%
Robert Morris '96-pres 107-104 51%
Sacred Heart '98-pres 98-98 50%
*Wagner '96-pres 106-110 49% (129-119 52%)
*Central Connecticut State '96-pres 100-114 47% (112-132 46%)
*Stony Brook '99-'06 38-43 47% (95-89 52%)
*St Johns '00-'01 6-15 29% (52-45 54%)
*St Francis Pa '96-pres 50-164 23% (55-188-1 23%)
Con champs
Robert Morris 5
Monmouth 4
Albany 4
Sacred Heart 3
Wagner 1
Central Connecticut State 1
Stony Brook 1
Duquesne 1
Top 5 five year run
Sacred Heart '00-'04 40-13 75%
Robert Morris '96-'00 39-13 75%
Monmouth '03-'07 40-15 73%
Albany '08-'12 39-18 68%
Central Connecticut State '06-'10 38-18 68%
Top 5 ten year run
Albany '03-'12 70-43 62%
Monmouth '00-'09 66-42 61%
Robert Morris '96-'05 62-40 61%
Central Connecticut State '02-'11 65-45 59%
Sacred Heart '00-'09 59-48 55%
Playoff record for con:5 appearances 1-5 17% 0 nattys
Wagner 1 appearance 1-1 50%
Albany 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Duquesne 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Robert Morris 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Sacred Heart 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Bryant 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Monmouth 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Central Connecticut State 0 appearance 0-0 0%
Stony Brook 0 appearance 0-0 0%
St Johns 0 appearance 0-0 0%
St Francis Pa 0 appearance 0-0 0%
vs other cons
Patriot 1-1 50%
Big Sky 0-1 0%
MVC/Gateway 0-1 0%
Big South 0-1 0%
Colonial/A-10/Yankee 0-1 0%
Pioneer Football League '93-pres
*Mercer '13 10-2 83% (21-14 60%)
Dayton '93-pres 193-56 78%
San Diego '93-pres 158-87 64%
*Drake '93-pres 155-85-1 64% (193-135-1 59%)
*Jacksonville '01-pres 91-70 57% (101-89 53%)
*Morehead State '01-pres 74-86 46% (164-241-2 40%)
*Marist '09-pres 35-42 45% (120-121 50%)
Evansville '93-'97 22-28 44%
Butler '93-pres 105-142 43%
Valparaiso '93-pres 86-164 34%
*Davidson '01-pres 53-104 34% (106-203-1 34%)
*Austin Peay '01-'05 18-37 33% (125-295 30%)
Campbell '08-pres 27-63 30%
Stetson '13-pres 10-24 29%
Con champs
Dayton 10
Drake 5
San Diego 5
Butler 3
Jacksonville 2
Valparaiso 1
Marist 1
Top 5 five year run
Dayton '93-'97 46-6 88%
San Diego '04-'08 47-10 82%
Drake '93-'97 39-12-1 75%
Jacksonville '08-'12 40-17 70%
Morehead State '01-'05 37-21 64%
Top 5 ten year run
Dayton '93-'02 87-19 82%
San Diego '05-'14 83-30 73%
Drake '04-'13 82-39 68%
Jacksonville '06-'15 70-41 63%
Morehead State '01-'10 60-54 53%
Playoff record for con:3 appearances 0-3 0% 0 nattys
Butler 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Dayton 1 appearance 0-1 0%
San Diego 1 appearance 0-1 0%
Jacksonville 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Morehead State 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Marist 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Evansville 0 appearances 0-0
Drake 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Mercer 0 appearances 0-0 0%
Valparaiso 0 appearances 0-0
Davidson 0 appearances 0-0
Austin Peay 0 appearances 0-0
Campbell 0 appearances 0-0
Stetson 0 appearances 0-0
vs other cons
Big Sky 0-1 0%
MVC/Gateway 0-1 0%
Ohio Valley 0-1 0%
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference '93-'07
*Duquesne '94-'07 113-32 78% (161-73 69%)
*Georgetown '93-'99 48-22 69% (102-142 42%)
*St John's '93-'98, '02 46-30 61% (52-45 54%)
Fairfield '96-'02 44-28 61%
*Marist '94-'07 76-67 53% (120-121 50%)
*Iona '93-'07 59-93 39% (62-120 34%)
La Salle '97-'07 35-75 32%
Canisius '93-'02 24-66 27%
Saint Peter's '93-'06 37-104 26%
Siena '93-'03 22-83 21%
Con champs
Duquesne 9
Georgetown 2
Marist 1
Fairfield 1
Iona 1
Top 5 five year run
Duquesne '98-'02 45-11 80%
Georgetown '95-'99 39-13 75%
Fairfield '97-'01 38-14 73%
St John's '93-'97 36-17 68%
Marist '94-'98 33-17 66%
Top 5 ten year run
Duquesne '95-'04 87-22 80%
Marist '94-'03 59-42 58%
Iona '98-'07 43-60 42%
La Salle '97-'06 35-65 35%
Saint Peter's '95-'04 31-71 30%
No playoff appearances
Independent
*Abilene Christian '13 6-5 55% (15-19 44%)
*Arkansas State '87-'91 22-33-2 39% (61-54-5 51%)
*Austin Peay '97-'00, 06 12-46 21% (125-295 30%)
*Bucknell '78-'85 35-42-3 44% (181-222-4 44%)
Buffalo '93-'98 22-44 33%
*Cal Poly '96-'03 40-48 45% (134-112 54%)
*Central Connecticut State '93-'95 12-18 40% (112-132 46%)
Charlotte '13-'14 10-12 45%
*Colgate '82-'85 28-16-1 62% (218-172-2 56%)
*Davidson '89, '93-'00 47-44-1 51% (106-203-1 34%)
*Delaware '80-'85 49-21 70% (285-150-1 65%)
*East Tennessee State '15-pres 2-9 18% (121-179-1 40%)
*Eastern Washington '84-'86 21-10-1 66% (218-152-2 59%)
*Elon '99-'01 18-15 55% (76-105 42%)
*Florida A&M '78-'79, '84-'87, '04 40-37-2 51% (245-187-3 56%)
Florida Atlantic '01-'04 26-21 55%
Florida International '02-'04 10-23 30%
*Fordham '89 2-6 25% (123-177-1 41%)
*Georgetown '00 5-6 45% (102-142 42%)
*Georgia Southern '84-'92 96-25 79% (282-105-1 73%)
*Georgia State '11 3-8 27% (4-18 18%)
*Hofstra '92-'00 70-30-2 69% (117-86-2 57%)
*Holy Cross '82-'85 29-14-2 64% (196-182-3 51%)
*Houston Baptist '13 3-4 43% (7-22 24%)
*Iona '08 3-8 27% (62-120 34%)
*Incarnate Word '13 6-5 55% (14-19 42%)
*Jacksonville '98-'00 10-19 34% (101-89 53%)
*James Madison '80-'92 71-71-2 49% (239-177-2 57%)
*Lafayette '78-'85 45-37-2 54% (197-213-6 47%)
*Lamar '87-'89, '10 16-27 37% (60-101 37%)
*Lehigh '78-'85 57-31-2 63% (270-158-4 63%)
*Liberty '89-'01 73-69 51% (164-138 54%)
*Louisiana Tech '87-'88 7-15 32% (45-37-1 54%)
*Marist '93, '08 9-12 43% (120-121 50%)
*Monmouth '94-'95, 13 20-11 65% (129-103 56%)
*Morehead State '96-'00 33-17 66% (164-241-2 40%)
*Nevada '78 11-1 92% (123-46-1 72%)
*Nicholls St '80-'83, '87-'90 41-45-2 47% (151-233-3 39%)
*Northeastern '84-'92 32-62-1 34% (108-177-1 38%)
*Northwestern St '78-'83 30-33 45% (213-212-3 50%)
*Old Dominion '09-'10, '13 25-9 74% (46-14 77%)
*Portland State '78-'80 19-14 58% (123-135 48%)
*Richmond '82-'85 19-25 43% (196-200-1 49%)
*St Francis Pa '93-'95 5-24-1 17% (55-188-1 23%)
*Samford '89-'02 87-68 56% (160-140 53%)
*Savannah State '02-'10 15-82 15% (19-134 12%)
South Alabama '11 6-4 60%
South Florida '97-'00 27-17 61%
*Southeastern Louisiana '80-'83, '03-'04 38-28 58% (96-117-1 45%)
*Southern Utah '96-'03 36-52 41% (99-156-1 39%)
*Stony Brook '07 6-5 55% (95-89 52%)
*Tennessee State '81-'87 58-19-4 72% (202-179-6 52%)
*Towson '87-'96 47-55 46% (147-171 46%)
*Troy '93-'95, '01 38-10-1 78% (84-26-1 76%)
UAB '93-'95 21-12 64%
UCF '90-'95 44-25 64%
UT-San Antonio '11 4-6 40%
*Villanova '85-'87 18-5 78% (220-143-1 60%)
*Wagner '93-'95 23-9 72% (129-119 52%)
*Western Kentucky '82-'98, '07-'08 91-112-2 44% (186-156-2 54%)
*William & Mary '82-'92 76-49-2 60% (234-159-2 59%)
*Wofford '95-'96 10-12 45% (140-102 58%)
*Youngstown State '88-'96 85-31-2 75% (260-159-2 62%)
Independents in the playoffs
Florida A&M 2-0 100% 1 natty
Georgia Southern 20-2 91% 4 nattys
Youngstown State 16-3 84% 3 nattys
Florida Atlantic 2-1 66%
Samford 2-2 50%
UCF 2-2 50%
Delaware 2-2 50%
Eastern Washington 1-1 50%
Arkansas State 1-1 50%
Richmond 1-1 50%
Western Kentucky 2-3 40%
Tennessee State 2-3 40%
Troy 2-3 40%
Hofstra 2-4 33%
James Madison 1-2 33%
Lehigh 1-2 33%
Colgate 1-2 33%
William & Mary 1-3 25%
Nevada 0-1 0%
Holy Cross 0-1 0%
Time for the meat. This is my top 25 of all time. Check em out and tell me what you think. There's a lot of numbers and rankings in there and it can get a bit cumbersome but I think most will have fun and get it. Enjoy.
Top 25 All Time
#25 Jackson State is the lone SWAC member in the top 25(Grambling State was close but only had three playoff appearances compared to Jackson State's 12). 38 years in the FCS with 0 natty's or appearances. Tied for 11th in playoff appearances with 12 but no wins in the post season. Winners of 10 SWAC titles, they are also 11th in all time wins with 265 averaging 6.97 wins a year. They were also the 5th winningest team from '78-'89 with a 73% winning percentage and had the 25th best 10 year run from '78-'87 going 81-30-3 winning 71% of their games.
#24 Sam Houston State joined the FCS in '85 entering the 1-AA/D2 Gulf South Con and then joined the Southland in '87. Winning 3 con titles between the two, they've won 201 games at 6.48 a season. They've earned 8 playoff appearances (tied for 20th) while winning 67% of those games and losing both their natty berths to NDSU on back to backs. They are also currently the 7th winningest team this decade winning 73% of their games since '10.
#23 Idaho spent 18 years in the Big Sky while in the FCS not appearing in any natty's. They won 5 Big Sky titles and made the playoffs 11 times winning only 35% of their games. All time they have 134 program wins averaging 7.44 wins a year which is the 9th best avg. They are also 20th with a 63% winning percentage all time. They also have the 17th best 10 year run from '85-'94 going 90-33 winning 73% of their games.
#22 Harvard from the Ivy has been in the FCS all 38 years. Obviously they have no post season history since the Ivy puts academics above post season accolades. They do have a tie for the conference lead with 9 Ivy titles and 233 wins good for 19th all time while averaging 6.13 a year. Remember the Ivy only plays 10 games a year. Teams like Montana and Georgia Southern avg almost 13 games a year. They are tied for 23rd with a 62% winning percentage all time. From '00-'09 they were the 3rd winningest team winning 77% of their games and carrying that success into the aughts, they are currently 2nd only to NDSU winning 87% of their games. They are also currently in the 2nd best 10 year run of all time from '06 to now going 83-17 winning 83% of their games.
#21 Lehigh started as an Independent but has played in the Patriot League since '86, totaling 38 years in the FCS. Not playing in any natty's yet, they have made 9 postseasons winning 40% of those games. While winning a conference leading 7 Patriot Titles, they have racked up 270 wins(t9th), good for a 7.11 average and the 23rd best winning percentage at 63%. They also have the 12th best 10 year run going 87-31 from '95-'04 winning 74% of their games.
#20 William & Mary has been an FCS member for 34 years and joined their current conference(CAA) in '93. They have yet to appear in or win any natty's but have made the playoffs 10 times winning 41% of their games. With 234 wins averaging 6.88 a year, they place 18th. They have also won 1 con title in the very balanced and powerful Colonial.
#19 Richmond has played 34 years but not great constantly. Joining the CAA in '86(then called the Yankee), they have only 196 wins at 5.76 a season. Their post season success is what has earned them a spot in the top 20. Earning 10 playoff bids, they have won 59% of their post season games, including their only natty appearance against the Griz in '08.
#18 Eastern Illinois has played at the FCS level for 35 years in three different conferences albeit the MCAA was swallowed up by the MVC/Gateway. Winning 11 con titles(6 OVC, 4 MCAA, and 1 Gateway), they have accumulated 232 wins(20th) at 6.63 a year. Now in the OVC (since '96), they have a total of 16 payoff appearances (tied for 6th all time) but have only won 20% of their games and have never played in a natty.
#17 Eastern Washington joined the FCS in '84 and the Big Sky in '87. At 25th all time with 218 wins, they average 6.81 a year. Winning 5 con titles, they have been invited to the post season 11 times winning 58% of their games including their only natty appearance. They are also currently tied as the 5th winningest team this decade winning 74% of their games.
#16 Villanova has been a member of the FCS since '85 and joined the CAA in '88. In that time they won 3 conference titles and 220 games (tied for 22nd) at 7.1 a year. They also have appeared in 11 postseasons (13th) while winning 52% of those games and also winning their only natty appearance, against Montana.
#15 James Madison joined the FCS in '80 but played Independent until '93. In their 36 years they won 239 games (17th) at 6.64 a year while winning 3 conference titles. They've been invited to 12 postseasons (tied for 11th) winning 45% of their playoff games and their only natty appearance against ...... the Griz.
#14 New Hampshire has been an FCS and CAA member all 38 years. While racking up 270 wins (tied for 9th) at 7.11 a year at a 62% rate (tied for 23rd), they have earned 4 conference titles and 14 playoff berths (10th) winning 44% of those games. They have yet to earn a trip to a natty though.
#13 Massachusetts was a member of the Colonial/Atlantic 10/Yankee conference since the FCS first formed 38 years ago until their move up to the FBS in '12. In that time they won more con titles then any other CAA team with 8. They won 225 games (21st) at 6.12 a year. They earned 9 trips to the playoffs (tied for 20th) winning 59% of those games. They are also 3rd in natty appearances with 3 while winning one of them.
#12 McNeese State joined the Southland and the FCS 34 years ago. Since then they've won a con leading 10 titles. They've won 240 games (16th) at 7.06 a year winning 62% of their contests (tied for 23rd). They've been invited to 16 post seasons (tied for 6th) and won 41% of those games. They've made it to one natty losing it. They were the 8th best team in the aughts winning 70% of their games and have the 15th best 10 year run from '94-'03 going 93-34 winning 73% of the time.
#11 Boise State spent 18 years in the Big Sky and FCS winning 2 con titles. With a 134 wins averaging 7.44 a year, they finished with a 64% win rate(tied for 14th). With 5 post season invites, they won 67% of the time including one of their two trips to the natty(they should have had a third in '79 going 10-1 but a recruiting violation made them ineligible for the post season). They were also the 10th best team from '78-'89 winning 65% of the time.
#10 Northern Iowa joined the FCS in '81 and the MVC in '85. While winning 16 con titles including a MVC best 15 titles, they have racked up 306 victories (3rd all time) at an impressive 8.74 a year (3rd) while winning 69% (tied for 7th) of their contests. With 18 post season appearances (5th), and 22 victories (tied for 6th) winning 55% of the time, they have only earned one natty appearance and no titles. They are the 8th best team of the 90's winning 72% of the time and the 6th best in the aughts going at a 71% clip. They also have the 21st best 10 year run from '89-'98 going 89-34 winning 72% of the time.
#9 Furman has been a member of the Southern Con all 38 years of the FCS existence. In that time, they've won 10 SoCon titles (2nd only to App St) and 286 games (tied for 4th), good for 7.53 wins a year at a 63% rate (tied for 20th). They've earned 16 playoff berths (tied for 6th) winning 55% of the time and 3 natty appearances (tied for 8th) winning one of those. From '78-'89, they were the 4th best team winning 74% of their games and own the 9th best 10 year run of all time going 95-25-4 from '80-'89 winning 77% of their games.
#8 Delaware joined the FCS as an independent in '80 and the Yankee(CAA) in '86 winning the 2nd most CAA/A-10/Yank conference titles with 7. In that time they also won 285 games (6th all time) at an impressive 7.92 a year while winning 65% of their games (tied for 12th). They've made it to 15 post seasons (9th) earning 22 victories (tied for 6th) while winning 61% of the time. Making it to 4 natty's (tied for 6th), they have been victorious in one. They were the 9th best team in the 80's winning 66% of the time and 10th in the 90's going at a 70% rate.
#7 Eastern Kentucky has been a member of the Ohio Valley and the FCS all 38 years. In that time they've owned the OVC winning 13 titles. Winning 311 games (2nd all time) at an awesome 8.18 a year, they've recorded victories 69% of the time (tied for 7th). With 21 post season invites (2nd all time), they've won 46% of the time and are 9th in post season victories. Earning 4 trips to the natty (tied for 6th), they've come out victorious twice (tied for 5th). From '78-'89 they were the 2nd best team winning 78% of the time and the 9th best in the 90's pulling out 71% of their games. They also own the 8th best 10 year run going 99-26-2 from '79-'88 with 78% winning percentage.
#6 Marshall was an original FCS member while in the SoCon from '78 to '96. In those 19 years they won 3 con titles and 138 games at 7.26 wins a year. With 8 playoff appearances (tied for 23rd) they won an amazing 79% of their playoff games (2nd only to NDSU) for a total of 23 wins (5th). Earning 6 trips to the natty (tied for 3rd), they won 2 of them (tied for 5th). In the 90's they were the 2nd winningest team winning 79% of their games tell they jumped to the FBS in '97. They also own the 10th best 10 year run from '87-'96 going 106-33 winning 76% of the time.
#5 Appalachian State was s member of the SoCon in '78 when the FCS formed and stayed there tell they jumped up to the FBS in '14. While there, they won a SoCon best 11 conference titles and 286 games (tied for 4th) at an amazing 7.94 wins a year, good for a 65% winning percentage (tied for 12th). With 20 post season appearances (3rd), they've won 24 games (4th) with a 59% winning percentage. With 3 natty appearances (tied for 8th), they became the first FCS team to three-peat winning all three of their title games (4th). They also were the 4th best team in the aughts winning 75% of their '00-'09 contests. Along with that they own the 11th best 10 year run going 101-32 from '01-'10 winning 76% of the time.
#4 Youngstown State joined the OVC and the FCS in '81 and stayed through the '87 season. They joined their current conference (MVC) in '97 but it was as an independent from '88-'96 that they seen their most success. Only winning one con title (MVC), they have racked up 260 wins (12th) at 7.43 a year while winning 62% of the time (tied for 23rd). While earning 11 post season appearances (tied for 13th), they've won 25 playoff games (3rd) at a 78% clip (3rd). They've earned 6 natty appearances (tied for 3rd) and won 4 of them (3rd). They were also the 4th best team of the 90's winning 78% of their games and own the 7th best 10 year run going 103-29 through that same time span. The real story with them is their Independent success from '88-'96. In those 9 years they earned 6 playoff appearances going 16-3 and winning 3 nattys and 84% of their playoff games. Amazingly enough though, they're still not the most successful Independent team.
#3 Montana has been in the Big Sky and the FCS all 38 years of its existence. While leading the BSC in con titles with 13, they have racked up 327 wins (1st all time) at 8.60 wins a year (3rd) while winning 69% of their match ups (tied for 7th). With 24 trips to the post season (1st all time) and 34 playoff victories (2nd all time), they've won 61% of their games. They've earned 7 trips to the natty (2nd all time) but have only won a disappointing 2 of them (tied for 5th). They were the 6th best team of the 90's winning 74% of their games and their best 10 year run was an amazing 119-23 from '00-'09 winning 84% of the time giving them the best 10 year run ever and making them the best of the aught decade; obviously. Arguably, if Montana would have won their heartbreaker to Georgia Southern in '00 and could have stopped the "one man show" that was Villanova in '09, they could be at the top of this list.
#2 Georgia Southern was the best FCS team ever for a long time. Joining the FCS as an Independent in '84 and staying there tell joining the SoCon in '93, they remained in the FCS tell their move up to the FBS in '14. In those 30 years, they won 9 SoCon titles (3rd), 282 games (7th) at an amazing 9.4 a year (2nd only to NDSU), and were victorious 73% of the time (5th). With 19 trips to the playoffs (4th), they racked up an awesome 44 victories (1st all time) winning 77% of their contests (4th). Earning 8 natty appearances (1st all time), they've won 6 titles (1st all time). Only playing six seasons in the 80's ('84-'89), they had the best winning percentage of any one winning 83% of the time. In the 90's they were 7th best with a 72% win rate. Their best 10 year run is 6th all time going 106-28 from '84-'93 winning 79% of the time. As I mentioned earlier, they are also the most successful Independent and start up of all time. As an Independent from '84-'92, they made the playoffs 6 times going 20-2 with 91% post season winning percentage and winning 4 nattys. The more amazing part is that GSU didn't start playing NCAA sanctioned football until '84, only two years after forming a club team, 41 years after football was cancelled at GSU. Winning their first title the next year in '85, they were well on their way to greatness.
Drum roll please, no nevermind, this is a no brainer. #1 North Dakota State has secured themselves as the best team ever in the history of 1-AA/FCS football. Now with 5 natty's (2nd) in 5 title appearances (5th) there is no sign of them slowing down. With 6 playoff appearances (tied for 29th), they have 22 playoff wins (tied for 6th) at a ludicrous 96% winning percentage(1st). Their all time winning percentage of 79% is also good for 1st. They also have 7 conference titles (6 in MVC good for 2nd in con and 1 in the Great West) under their belt. Since 2010 they have the best record in the FCS going 80-11 winning 88% of the time. Their best 10 year run from '06 to now is good for 4th all time going 108-25 at an 81% clip. Oh, and during this 5 natty run, 70-5 at 93%! WTF! At least one of those losses is to us. The only thing that can stop these guys from their dominance in the FCS is a move to the FBS. Probably sooner then later.
