The 2001 NCAA Division III football season, part of the

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

season organized by the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

at the

Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Third ...

level in the United States, began in August 2001, and concluded with the NCAA Division III Football Championship, also known as the Stagg Bowl, in December 2001 at

Salem Football Stadium Salem Stadium is a stadium in Salem, Virginia, United States. It is primarily used for American football and hosts the home football games of the Salem High School (Salem, Virginia), Salem High School Spartans. It was built in 1985 and seats 7,1 ...

Salem, Virginia Salem is an independent city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,346. It is the county seat of Roanoke County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combine ...

. The

Mount Union Purple Raiders The University of Mount Union is a private university, private Liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Alliance, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1846, the university was affiliated with the Methodist Church until 2019. It had an enrollme ...

won their sixth, and second consecutive, Division III championship by defeating the Bridgewater (VA) Eagles, 30−27. The Gagliardi Trophy, given to the most outstanding player in Division III football, was awarded to Chuck Moore, running back from Mount Union.

Conference and program changes

Conference changes

Program changes

*After Salisbury State University shortened its name to

Salisbury University Salisbury University is a public university in Salisbury, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1925, Salisbury University is a member of the University System of Maryland, with a fall 2022 enrollment of 7,123. Salisbury University offers unde ...

in 2001, the Salisbury State Sea Gulls became the

Salisbury Sea Gulls The Salisbury Sea Gulls (formerly the Salisbury State Sea Gulls) are the athletic teams that represent Salisbury University, located in Salisbury, Maryland, in NCAA Division III intercollegiate sports. The Sea Gulls compete as members of the Co ...

at the start of the 2001 season.

Conference standings

Conference champions

Postseason

The 2001 NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs were the 29th annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's

NCAA Division III NCAA Division III (D-III) is the lowest division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States. D-III consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that do not offer athletic scholarships to student- ...

college football. The championship Stagg Bowl game was held at

for the ninth time. This was the third bracket to feature 28 teams since last expanding in 1999.

Playoff bracket

* ''Overtime''

References

{{NCAA football season navbox