The 2002 NCAA Division I-AA football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I-AA level, began in August 2002, and concluded with the 2002 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 20, 2002, at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers won their first I-AA championship, defeating the McNeese State Cowboys by a final score of 34âÂÂ14.
The top four teams in the tournament were seeded; seeded teams were assured of hosting games in the first two rounds.
<nowiki>*</nowiki> Denotes host institution
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The Walter Payton Award is given to the year's most outstanding player