The 2003 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 2003, and concluded with the NCAA Division III Football Championship, also known as the Stagg Bowl, in December 2003 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 Saint John's (MN) Johnnies won second Division III championship by defeating the three-time defending national champion

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 ...

, 24−6. The Gagliardi Trophy, given to the most outstanding player in Division III football, was awarded to Blake Elliott, wide receiver, punter, and kick returner from Saint John's (MN).

Conference changes and new programs

Conference standings

Conference champions

Postseason

The 2003 NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs were the 31st 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 11th time. This was the fifth bracket to feature 28 teams since last expanding in 1999.

Playoff bracket

* ''Overtime''

Final D3football.com Poll

Others receiving votes: 26. Capital 50, 27. Hardin–Simmons 47, 28. Allegheny 42, 29. Trinity (CT) 38, 30. Redlands 22, 31. Hope 21, 32. Wisconsin–Whitewater 19, 32. Hanover 19, 34. Curry 18, 35. Concordia (WI) 16, 36. Washington & Jefferson 12, 37. Muhlenberg 9, 38. Rowan 7, 38. Augustana (IL) 7, 40. Delaware Valley 6, 41. Menlo 3, 42. Willamette 2, 43. New Jersey State 1, 43. Shenandoah 1.

Awards

Gagliardi Trophy: Blake Elliott

AFCA Coach of the Year The AFCA Coach of the Year Award is given annually to college football coaches by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA). Separate awards are presented at all levels of U.S. college football. The AFCA as a whole presents the award fo ...

John Gagliardi John Gagliardi ( ; November 1, 1926 – October 7, 2018) was an American football coach. He was the head football coach at Saint John's University in Collegeville, Minnesota, from 1953 until 2012. From 1949 to 1952, he was the head footb ...

AFCA Regional Coach of the Year: Region 1: Mike DeLong, Springfield College Region 2: Jeff Hand, Waynesburg College Region 3: Ralph Harris, East Texas Baptist University Region 4: Mike Swider, Wheaton College Region 5: John Gagliardi, St. John’s University (Minn.)

References

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