1978 NAIA Division I football season

American college football season

1978 NAIA Division I football season
Regular season	August–November 1978
Postseason	December 2–16, 1978
National Championship	McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium McAllen, TX
Champions	Angelo State
← 1977 NAIA Division I football season 1979 →

The 1978 NAIA Division I football season was the 23rd season of college football sponsored by the NAIA, was the ninth season of play of the NAIA's top division for football.

The season was played from August to November 1978 and culminated in the 1978 NAIA Division I Football National Championship. Known this year as the Palm Bowl, the title game was played on December 16, 1978 at McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium in McAllen, Texas.

Angelo State defeated Elon in the Palm Bowl, 24–14, to win their first NAIA national title.

Conference changes

This is the final season that the NAIA officially recognizes a football champion from two conferences, the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference and the Southwestern Athletic Conference. The SWAC has since become an NCAA Division I FCS conference while the PSAC competes at the Division II level; both continue to sponsor football.

Conference standings

1978 Arkansas Intercollegiate Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 5 Central Arkansas $^	6	–	0	–	0	9	–	2	–	0
No. 16 Henderson State	4	–	1	–	1	7	–	2	–	1
No. 9 Ouachita Baptist	4	–	2	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
Harding	3	–	2	–	1	5	–	4	–	1
Arkansas Tech	2	–	4	–	0	5	–	5	–	0
Arkansas–Monticello	1	–	5	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Southern Arkansas	0	–	6	–	0	2	–	8	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1978 Central States Intercollegiate Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 10 Kearney State $	7	–	0	–	0	8	–	0	–	1
Missouri Southern	4	–	2	–	1	6	–	3	–	1
Fort Hays State	4	–	2	–	1	6	–	5	–	1
Missouri Western	4	–	3	–	0	5	–	5	–	0
Wayne State (NE)	3	–	2	–	2	4	–	4	–	2
Emporia State	2	–	5	–	0	3	–	7	–	0
Washburn	2	–	5	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
No. T–18 Pittsburg State*	0	–	7	–	0	1	–	9	–	0

$ – Conference champion * – Pittsburg State forfeited conference wins over Kearney State, Missouri Southern, Missouri Western, Wayne State (NE), Emporia State, and Washburn. Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1978 Evergreen Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 8 Oregon College $^	5	–	1	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
Eastern Washington	4	–	2	–	0	6	–	4	–	0
Oregon Tech	3	–	3	–	0	5	–	4	–	0
Eastern Oregon	3	–	3	–	0	5	–	5	–	0
Southern Oregon	3	–	3	–	0	4	–	5	–	0
Western Washington	3	–	3	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Central Washington	0	–	6	–	0	0	–	9	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant Central Washington forfeited victories over Eastern Oregon, Oregon Tech, and Southern Oregon because of an inelgible player. Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1978 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 4 Grand Valley State $^	5	–	0	–	0	9	–	3	–	0
Wayne State (MI)	4	–	1	–	0	5	–	4	–	0
Northwood	2	–	3	–	0	5	–	4	–	0
Saginaw Valley State	1	–	3	–	1	4	–	5	–	1
Ferris State	1	–	3	–	1	3	–	5	–	2
Hillsdale	1	–	4	–	0	5	–	6	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1978 Lone Star Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 1 Angelo State $^	7	–	0	–	0	14	–	0	–	0
No. 11 Abilene Christian	5	–	2	–	0	7	–	3	–	0
Sam Houston State	4	–	3	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
No. 20 Texas A&I	4	–	3	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
Southwest Texas State	3	–	4	–	0	6	–	4	–	0
Stephen F. Austin	3	–	4	–	0	3	–	8	–	0
East Texas State	2	–	3	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Howard Payne	0	–	7	–	0	2	–	8	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1978 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 1 Concordia–Moorhead * +	7	–	1	–	0	11	–	1	–	0
St. Olaf +^	7	–	1	–	0	9	–	2	–	0
No. 15 Gustavus Adolphus	6	–	2	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
No. T–20 Saint John's (MN)	5	–	3	–	0	6	–	3	–	0
St. Thomas (MN)	4	–	4	–	0	5	–	4	–	0
Hamline	3	–	4	–	1	5	–	4	–	1
Augsburg	2	–	5	–	1	3	–	6	–	1
Bethel (MN)	1	–	7	–	0	2	–	8	–	0
Macalester	0	–	8	–	0	0	–	9	–	0

+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant * – NAIA Division II playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division II poll

1978 Oklahoma Intercollegiate Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
East Central $	4	–	0	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
NW Oklahoma State	3	–	1	–	0	6	–	4	–	0
Northeastern State	1	–	2	–	1	6	–	3	–	1
SW Oklahoma State	1	–	2	–	1	2	–	6	–	1
SE Oklahoma State	0	–	4	–	0	2	–	7	–	0

$ – Conference champion

1978 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
East Division
East Stroudsburg xy$	5	–	0	–	0	10	–	1	–	0
Cheyney	4	–	1	–	0	6	–	3	–	0
Bloomsburg	3	–	2	–	0	6	–	4	–	0
Millersville	2	–	3	–	0	6	–	3	–	0
Kutztown	1	–	4	–	0	2	–	7	–	0
Mansfield	0	–	5	–	0	2	–	8	–	0
West Division
No. 17 Clarion xy	5	–	1	–	0	8	–	3	–	0
Shippensburg x	5	–	1	–	0	7	–	3	–	0
Slippery Rock	4	–	2	–	0	6	–	3	–	0
Edinboro	3	–	3	–	0	3	–	6	–	1
Indiana (PA)	2	–	4	–	0	4	–	5	–	1
California (PA)	1	–	4	–	1	2	–	7	–	1
Lock Haven	0	–	5	–	1	1	–	8	–	1
Championship: East Stroudsburg 49, Clarion 4
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Shippensburg was ineligible for conference title game. Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1978 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 3 Western State (CO) $^	8	–	0	–	0	10	–	1	–	0
Southern Utah	5	–	3	–	0	7	–	3	–	0
Adams State	5	–	3	–	0	6	–	4	–	0
Western New Mexico	5	–	3	–	0	5	–	4	–	0
Fort Lewis	4	–	4	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Mesa	4	–	4	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Westminster (UT)	2	–	6	–	0	2	–	7	–	0
Colorado Mines	2	–	6	–	0	3	–	7	–	0
New Mexico Highlands	1	–	7	–	0	1	–	9	–	0
Southern Colorado *	0	–	0	–	0	8	–	2	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant * – ineligible for conference title Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1978 South Atlantic Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 2 Elon +^	6	–	0	–	1	9	–	1	–	1
No. 13 Presbyterian +	6	–	0	–	1	8	–	2	–	1
No. T–18 Newberry	4	–	3	–	0	7	–	3	–	0
Lenoir–Rhyne	4	–	3	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
Mars Hill	2	–	5	–	0	5	–	7	–	0
Gardner–Webb	2	–	5	–	0	4	–	5	–	1
Catawba	2	–	5	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Carson–Newman	1	–	6	–	0	2	–	8	–	0

+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1978 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
Northern Division
Shepherd xy	6	–	3	–	0	7	–	4	–	0
West Virginia Wesleyan	6	–	3	–	0	6	–	3	–	0
Fairmont State	5	–	4	–	0	5	–	4	–	1
Salem	4	–	5	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
West Liberty State	2	–	7	–	0	2	–	8	–	0
Southern Division
No. 6 Concord xy$^	8	–	1	–	0	10	–	2	–	0
West Virginia Tech	6	–	3	–	0	6	–	3	–	0
West Virginia State	6	–	3	–	0	6	–	4	–	0
Glenville State	1	–	7	–	0	2	–	7	–	0
Bluefield State	0	–	9	–	0	0	–	10	–	0
Championship: Concord 35, Shepherd 14
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant Conference standings based on power ratings Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1978 Wisconsin State University Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 7 Wisconsin–La Crosse +^	7	–	1	–	0	9	–	2	–	0
Wisconsin–Whitewater +	7	–	1	–	0	7	–	4	–	0
No. 12 Wisconsin–Eau Claire	6	–	2	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
Wisconsin–Stout	5	–	3	–	0	7	–	3	–	0
Wisconsin–Oshkosh	3	–	5	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Wisconsin–River Falls	3	–	5	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Wisconsin–Stevens Point	2	–	6	–	0	4	–	6	–	0
Wisconsin–Platteville	2	–	5	–	0	3	–	7	–	0
Wisconsin–Superior	1	–	7	–	0	2	–	9	–	0

+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

1978 NAIA Division I independents football records
v t e	Conf			Overall
Team	W	L	T	W		L		T
No. 15 Cameron		–		7	–	2	–	1
No. 14 Kentucky State		–		7	–	2	–	1
Guilford		–		5	–	4	–	0
Eastern New Mexico		–		5	–	6	–	0
Liberty Baptist		–		4	–	5	–	1
Langston		–		3	–	7	–	0
Wofford		–		3	–	8	–	0

Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

Conference champions

Conference	Champion	Record
Arkansas Intercollegiate	Central Arkansas	6–0
Central States	Kearney State	7–0
Evergreen	Oregon College	5–1
Great Lakes	Grand Valley State	5–0
Lone Star	Angelo State	7–0
NIC	Minnesota–Morris	8–0
Oklahoma	East Central State	4–0
PSAC	Clarion State Shippensburg State	5–1
RMAC	Western State	8–0
South Atlantic	Elon Presbyterian	6–0–1
SWAC	Grambling State	5–0–1
WVIAC	North: Shepherd South: Concord	6–3 8–1
Wisconsin State	Wisconsin–La Crosse Wisconsin–Whitewater	7–1 7–1

Postseason

Quarterfinals December 2, 1978 Campus sites		Semifinals December 9, 1978 Campus sites		1978 Palm Bowl December 16, 1978 McAllen, TX

Grand Valley State	24

Wisconsin–La Crosse*	14
		Grand Valley State	7

		Elon*	13
Concord	6

Elon*	21
				Elon	14

				Angelo State	24
Western State	21

Central Arkansas*	17
		Western State	3

		Angelo State*	35
Oregon College	0

Angelo State*	32

References

"NAIA Championship History" (PDF). NAIA. pp. 4–11. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 15, 2015. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
"1978 Division I NAIA Football Playoffs". JonFMorse.com. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
"NAIA Football Regular Season Records" (PDF). NAIA. pp. 20–23. Retrieved December 11, 2021.

NAIA football

Seasons

1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970–1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Division I	1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996
Division II	1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996
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Championships

1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970–1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Division I	1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996
Division II	1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996

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