List of NCAA Division III football championship appearances by team

The following is a list of current Division III schools that have participated in the playoffs leading to the NCAA Division III Football Championship.

The playoffs began with four teams in 1973, expanded to eight teams to 1975, 16 teams in 1985, 28 teams in 1999, 32 teams in 2005, and 40 teams in 2024.

Current Division III members

Qualified programs

• Teams in bold participated in the 2025 postseason.
• Updated before 2026 playoffs on November 14, 2026.

Not yet qualified

• American Rivers Conference (2) – Loras, Nebraska Wesleyan
• American Southwest Conference (2) – Howard Payne, Schreiner
• College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (1) – North Park
• Conference of New England (3) – New England, New England College, Nichols
• Empire 8 (1) – SUNY Morrisville
• Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (2) – Bluffton, Manchester
• Landmark Conference (1) – Keystone
• Liberty League (1) – Hilbert
• Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (4) – Dean, Fitchburg State, Massachusetts Maritime, Worcester State
• Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (2) – Calvin, Kalamazoo
• Middle Atlantic Conference (4) – Alvernia, FDU Florham, Misericordia
• Midwest Conference (7) – Beloit, Chicago, Cornell (IA), Grinnell, Knox, Luther, Ripon
• Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (1) – Hamline
• New England Small College Athletic Conference (10) – Amherst, Bates, Bowdoin, Colby, Hamilton, Middlebury, Trinity (CT), Tufts, Wesleyan, Williams
• New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (1) – Salve Regina
• New Jersey Athletic Conference (1) – Castleton
• North Coast Athletic Conference (3) – Kenyon, Oberlin, Ohio Wesleyan
• Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (2) – Rockford, Wisconsin Lutheran
• Northwest Conference (4) – George Fox, Lewis & Clark, Pacific (OR), Puget Sound
• Ohio Athletic Conference (3) – Marietta, Muskingum, Wilmington (OH)
• Old Dominion Athletic Conference (3) – Averett, Guilford, Roanoke
• Presidents' Athletic Conference (4) – Geneva, Saint Francis, St. Vincent, Westminster (PA)
• Southern Athletic Association (2) – Sewanee, Southwestern
• Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (2) – Azusa Pacific, Whittier
• Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (3) – Austin, Centenary, Lyon
• Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (1) – Westminster (MO)
• USA South Athletic Conference (4) – Brevard, Greensboro, Methodist, Southern Virginia

Former Division III members

Former NCAA Division III teams that sponsored football at D-III level and had made at least one appearance in playoffs but had left NCAA Division III.

Defunct Division III programs

Currently NCAA Division III teams that sponsored football at D-III level and had made at least one appearance in playoffs but dropped their football programs.

Notes

Program changes

• Program has since joined Division I FCS.
• Program has since joined NCAA Division I but has dropped football.
• Program has since joined Division II.
• Program has since joined Division II but has dropped football.
• Program has since joined the NAIA.
• College has closed its doors.

See also

• NCAA Division III football championship
• List of NCAA Division III football programs
• List of NCAA Division I FBS football bowl records
• List of NCAA Division I FCS playoff appearances by team
• List of NCAA Division II football championship appearances by team
• List of NAIA national football championship series appearances by team

References

External links

• Past winners