1980 NCAA Division II football season

1980 NCAA Division II football season
Regular season	August – November 1980
Postseason	December 1980
National Championship	Zia Bowl University Stadium Albuquerque, NM
Champions	Cal Poly–SLO
Division II football season «1979 1981»

The 1980 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level, began in August 1980, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship in December 1980 at University Stadium in Albuquerque, NM. During the game's two-year stretch in New Mexico, it was referred to as the Zia Bowl.

Cal Poly–San Luis Obispo defeated Eastern Illinois in the championship game, 21–13, to win their first Division II national title.

Conference changes and new programs

• Three Division II programs upgraded to Division I-AA prior to the season.
• The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference reclassified as a Division II conference; all 14 members made the transition.

School	1979 Conference	1980 Conference
Delaware	D-II Independent	I-AA Independent
Nicholls State	D-II Independent	I-AA Independent
Southeastern Louisiana	D-II Independent	I-AA Independent

Conference standings

1980 Lone Star Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Southwest Texas State $ 6 – 1 – 0     8 – 3 – 0 Angelo State 5 – 1 – 1     8 – 1 – 1 Texas A&I 5 – 2 – 0     7 – 4 – 0 East Texas State 4 – 2 – 1     7 – 2 – 1 Stephen F. Austin 4 – 3 – 0     4 – 6 – 0 Sam Houston State 2 – 5 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 Abilene Christian 1 – 6 – 0     2 – 8 – 0 Howard Payne 0 – 7 – 0     1 – 8 – 1 $ – Conference champion ^ – Division II playoff participant

1980 Mid-Continent football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Eastern Illinois $^ 4 – 0 – 0     7 – 4 – 0 Northern Michigan 3 – 1 – 0     9 – 2 – 0 Northern Iowa 2 – 2 – 0     7 – 4 – 0 Youngstown State 1 – 3 – 0     2 – 8 – 1 Western Illinois 0 – 4 – 0     4 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – Division II playoff participant

1980 Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Missouri-Rolla $ 6 – 0 – 0     10 – 0 – 0 SW Missouri State 5 – 1 – 0     6 – 5 – 0 Central Missouri State 3 – 3 – 0     6 – 3 – 1 NE Missouri State 3 – 3 – 0     5 – 6 – 0 SE Missouri State 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 7 – 0 NW Missouri State 1 – 5 – 0     2 – 8 – 0 Lincoln (MO) 0 – 6 – 0     2 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – Division II playoff participant

Conference summaries

See also: List of NCAA Division II football seasons

Conference Champions

Association of Mid-Continent Universities – Eastern Illinois Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association – North Carolina Central Far Western Football Conference – UC Davis Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Hillsdale Gulf South Conference – North Alabama Lone Star Conference – Southwest Texas State Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association – Missouri–Rolla North Central Conference – Northern Colorado Northern Intercollegiate Conference – Minnesota–Duluth Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference – Clarion Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference – Adams State and CSU Pueblo South Atlantic Conference – Elon and Mars Hill Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – Alabama A&M

Postseason

1980 NCAA Division II National Football Championship playoffs
Teams	8
Finals Site	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM
Champions	Cal Poly–SLO (1st title)
Runner-Up	Eastern Illinois (2nd championship game)
Semifinalists	North Alabama Santa Clara

The 1980 NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs were the eighth single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college football. The championship game was held at University Stadium in Albuquerque, NM for the second, and final, time.

Playoff bracket

	First round Campus sites					Semifinals Campus sites					Championship University Stadium Albuquerque, NM
	Eastern Illinois		21
	Northern Colorado		14
						Eastern Illinois		56
						North Alabama		31
	North Alabama		17
	Virginia Union		8
											Eastern Illinois		13
											Cal Poly–SLO		21
	Santa Clara		27
	Northern Michigan		26
						Santa Clara		14
						Cal Poly–SLO		38
	Cal Poly–SLO		15
	Jacksonville State		0

See also

• 1980 NAIA Division I football season
• 1980 NAIA Division II football season