1987 NCAA Division I-AA football season

Conference changes and new programs

• The Gulf Star Conference folded after the 1986 season when four of its founding members, Northwestern State, Sam Houston State, Southwest Texas State, and Stephen F. Austin, joined the Southland Conference. The Gulf Star's remaining football member, Nicholls State, opted to become an Independent. Three former Southland Conference members, Arkansas State, Lamar, and Louisiana Tech, moved to DI-AA Independent status after joining the newly formed (non-football) American South Conference as charter members.

• "unclassified" for 1985 (partial season) and 1986 (full season)

Conference standings

Conference champions

Postseason

The playoff bracket of sixteen teams had four seeded teams; Appalachian State, Northeast Louisiana, Northern Iowa, and Idaho were first through fourth, respectively. Undefeated and top-ranked Holy Cross, featuring Heisman Trophy candidate Gordie Lockbaum, did not participate in the postseason, per the rules of their conference, the Colonial League (known as the Patriot League since 1990).

The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) conference champion Howard Bison (9–1) did not receive an invitation to the I-AA playoffs and filed a lawsuit against the NCAA and sought a temporary restraining order to delay the start of the playoffs. The lawsuit asserted "unlawful and racially motivated reasons" for the team being passed over. Howard then advocated that they, plus three other teams, should be added to the second round of the playoffs; the proposal was rejected by the NCAA, who said that Howard had played a weak schedule. In September 1989, MEAC stripped Howard of their 1987 conference championship, retroactively awarding it to Delaware State, after finding that Howard had used some players beyond their four years of NCAA eligibility.

The I-AA playoff field remained at sixteen through the 2009 season, expanding to twenty in 2010 and 24 in 2013.

NCAA Division I-AA playoff bracket

|RD1-text1=November 28 – Boone, NC |RD1-seed1= |RD1-team01=Richmond |RD1-score01=3 |RD1-seed2=1 |RD1-team02=Appalachian State* |RD1-score02=20

|RD1-text2=November 28 – Statesboro, GA |RD1-seed3= |RD1-team03=Maine |RD1-score03=28 |RD1-seed4= |RD1-team04=Georgia Southern* |RD1-score04=31*

|RD1-text3=November 28 – Moscow, ID |RD1-seed5= |RD1-team05=Weber State |RD1-score05=59 |RD1-seed6=4 |RD1-team06=Idaho* |RD1-score06=30

|RD1-text4 = November 28 – Huntington, WV |RD1-seed7= |RD1-team07=James Madison |RD1-score07=12 |RD1-seed8= |RD1-team08=Marshall* |RD1-score08=41

|RD1-text5 = November 28 – Monroe, LA |RD1-seed9= |RD1-team09=North Texas State |RD1-score09=9 |RD1-seed10=2 |RD1-team10=Northeast Louisiana* |RD1-score10=30

|RD1-text6 = November 28 – Richmond, KY |RD1-seed11= |RD1-team11=Western Kentucky |RD1-score11=17 |RD1-seed12= |RD1-team12=Eastern Kentucky* |RD1-score12=40

|RD1-text7 = November 28 – Cedar Falls, IA |RD1-seed13= |RD1-team13=Youngstown State |RD1-score13=28 |RD1-seed14=3 |RD1-team14=Northern Iowa* |RD1-score14=31

|RD1-text8 = November 28 – Jackson, MS |RD1-seed15= |RD1-team15=Arkansas State |RD1-score15=35 |RD1-seed16= |RD1-team16=Jackson State* |RD1-score16=32

|RD2-text1 = December 5 – Boone, NC |RD2-seed1=1 |RD2-team01=Appalachian State* |RD2-score01=19 |RD2-team02=Georgia Southern |RD2-score02=0

|RD2-text2 = December 5 – Huntington, WV |RD2-team03=Weber State |RD2-score03=23 |RD2-team04=Marshall* |RD2-score04=51

|RD2-text3 = December 5 – Monroe, LA |RD2-seed5=2 |RD2-team05=Northeast Louisiana* |RD2-score05=33 |RD2-team06=Eastern Kentucky |RD2-score06=32

|RD2-text4 = December 5 – Cedar Falls, IA |RD2-seed7=3 |RD2-team07=Northern Iowa* |RD2-score07=49 |RD2-team08=Arkansas State |RD2-score08=28

|RD3-text1= December 12 – Boone, NC |RD3-seed1=1 |RD3-team01=Appalachian State* |RD3-score01=10 |RD3-team02=Marshall |RD3-score02=24

|RD3-text2= December 12 – Monroe, LA |RD3-seed3=2 |RD3-team03=Northeast Louisiana* |RD3-score03=44** |RD3-seed4=3 |RD3-team04=Northern Iowa |RD3-score04=41

|RD4-text1=December 19 – Pocatello, ID |RD4-team01=Marshall |RD4-score01=42 |RD4-seed2=2 |RD4-team02=Northeast Louisiana |RD4-score02=43

• Next to team name denotes host institution
• Next to score denotes overtime periods

References

References

1. "1987 NCAA Division I Football Championship".
2. (November 23, 1987). "Southland foes meet in playoffs". The Town Talk.
3. (November 24, 1987). "Div. I-AA poll". [[The San Francisco Examiner]].
4. (November 21, 1987). "Lockbaum now waits to hear from pros". [[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]].
5. (November 26, 1987). "Howard University files suit vs. NCAA". [[The Santa Fe New Mexican]].
6. (November 28, 1997). "Judge Orders Playoffs In Division I-AA To Go On". [[St. Louis Post Dispatch]].
7. (December 1, 1987). "Howard plans pursuing suit". [[Indianapolis News]].
8. (September 26, 1989). "MEAC strips Howard of Division I-AA title". [[Sun-Sentinel]].