1974 NCAA Division III football season

The 1974 NCAA Division III football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division III level, began in August 1974, and concluded with the NCAA Division III Football Championship in December 1974 at Garrett-Harrison Stadium in Phenix City, Alabama. The Central Dutch won their first Division III championship, defeating the Ithaca Bombers by a final score of 10−8.^[1]

1974 NCAA Division III football season
Regular season	August – November 1974
Playoffs	November – December 1974
National championship	Garrett-Harrison Stadium Phenix City, AL
Champion	Central (IA)
← 1973 · NCAA Division III football seasons · 1975 →

Conference standings

1974 College Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Rose–Hulman $ 3 – 0 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 Southwestern (TN) 2 – 1 – 1 3 – 3 – 3 Centre 2 – 2 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Sewanee 2 – 2 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Principia 1 – 3 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1974 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 9 Illinois Wesleyan + 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 No. 11 Millikin + 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Carroll (WI) 5 – 3 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Augustana (IL) 4 – 3 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 Carthage 4 – 3 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 Wheaton (IL) 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 North Park 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Elmhurst 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 North Central (IL) 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 + – Conference co-champions Rankings from NAIA Division II poll	1974 Eastern Football Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Central Connecticut State $ 3 – 0 – 0 4 – 5 – 1 Glassboro State 2 – 1 – 0 6 – 3 – 1 Montclair State 1 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 1 Southern Connecticut State 0 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1974 Independent College Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Ithaca $^ 3 – 0 – 0 10 – 1 – 0 Hobart 3 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 St. Lawrence 3 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Alfred 2 – 2 – 0 4 – 4 – 0 RIT 1 – 4 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 RPI 0 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant	1974 Indiana Collegiate Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Butler $ 6 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Evansville ^ 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 DePauw 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Indiana Central 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Wabash 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Valparaiso 2 – 4 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Saint Joseph's (IN) 0 – 6 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant	1974 Iowa Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Central (IA) $^ 7 – 0 – 0 11 – 0 – 0 No. 8 William Penn 6 – 1 – 0 9 – 2 – 0 Buena Vista 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Upper Iowa 4 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Luther 3 – 4 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Simpson (IA) 2 – 5 – 0 2 – 6 – 1 Dubuque 1 – 6 – 0 4 – 7 – 0 Wartburg 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division II poll
1974 Mason–Dixon Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Towson State $ 4 – 0 – 0 10 – 0 – 0 Randolph–Macon 2 – 1 – 0 6 – 2 – 1 Hampden–Sydney 2 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Salisbury State 1 – 1 – 0 4 – 4 – 1 Bridgewater 1 – 2 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Western Maryland 1 – 2 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Gallaudet 0 – 1 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Johns Hopkins 0 – 2 – 0 3 – 5 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1974 Metropolitan Intercollegiate Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T C. W. Post $ 4 – 0 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Merchant Marine 3 – 1 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Seton Hall 2 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Wagner 2 – 2 – 0 5 – 3 – 1 Fordham 0 – 3 – 1 3 – 5 – 1 Hofstra 0 – 4 – 1 1 – 9 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1974 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Olivet $ 5 – 0 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Hope 4 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Alma 3 – 2 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Albion 2 – 3 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Kalamazoo 1 – 4 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Adrian 0 – 5 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1974 Middle Atlantic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Northern Division Wilkes x 6 – 0 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Juniata 5 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Albright 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Susquehanna 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 1 Delaware Valley 2 – 4 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Lycoming 1 – 5 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Upsala 0 – 6 – 0 0 – 8 – 0 Southern Division Franklin & Marshall x 8 – 0 – 0 9 – 0 – 0 Widener 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Moravian 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Johns Hopkins 3 – 2 – 1 3 – 5 – 1 Dickinson 5 – 4 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Lebanon Valley 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Muhlenberg 2 – 6 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Ursinus 1 – 5 – 1 1 – 6 – 1 Western Maryland 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Swarthmore 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 7 – 0 x – Division champion/co-champions	1974 Midwest Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Coe $ 7 – 0 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 Lawrence 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Ripon 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Cornell (IA) 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Carleton 3 – 4 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Grinnell 2 – 5 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Beloit 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Knox 1 – 6 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Monmouth (IL)   –   7 – 2 – 0 Lake Forest   –   2 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion Games against and Lake Forest Monmouth (IL) were not counted in the conference standings.	1974 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Concordia–Moorhead + 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 No. 20 Saint John's (MN) + 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Minnesota–Duluth 4 – 2 – 1 7 – 2 – 1 Hamline 4 – 2 – 1 4 – 5 – 1 St. Thomas (MN) 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Gustavus Adolphus 4 – 3 – 0 4 – 6 – 0 Augsburg 3 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 St. Olaf 1 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Macalester 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 8 – 0 + – Conference co-champions Macalester's win over Gustavus Adolphus counted in the conference standings for Macalester, but not for Gustavus Adolphus. Rankings from NAIA Division I poll
1974 New England Football Conference standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Nichols $ 6 – 0 – 1 7 – 1 – 1 Plymouth State 5 – 1 – 1 7 – 1 – 1 Boston State 5 – 2 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 Curry 5 – 2 – 1 5 – 3 – 1 Framingham State 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 3 – 0 Bridgewater State 4 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Massachusetts Maritime 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0 Maine Maritime 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 New Haven 0 – 8 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1974 New Jersey State Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Glassboro State $ 4 – 0 – 1 6 – 3 – 1 Kean 3 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Trenton State 3 – 1 – 1 5 – 4 – 1 Montclair State 2 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 1 William Paterson 1 – 4 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Jersey City State 0 – 5 – 0 0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1974 Ohio Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Blue Division Wittenberg xy$ 3 – 0 – 1 7 – 1 – 2 Mount Union 3 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Capital 2 – 2 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Ohio Wesleyan 1 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Denison 0 – 3 – 1 3 – 5 – 1 Red Division Baldwin–Wallace xy 5 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Otterbein 4 – 1 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Marietta 3 – 2 – 0 6 – 3 – 0 Muskingum 2 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Heidelberg 1 – 4 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Wooster 0 – 5 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Not competing for championship Oberlin   –   5 – 4 – 0 Kenyon   –   2 – 6 – 1 Ohio Northern   –   2 – 7 – 0 Championship: Wittenberg 17, Baldwin–Wallace 0 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant
1974 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T East Division West Chester xy 5 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 No. 6 Millersville 5 – 1 – 0 8 – 1 – 0 East Stroudsburg 4 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Kutztown 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Cheyney 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 4 – 0 Mansfield 0 – 4 – 1 1 – 7 – 1 Bloomsburg 0 – 5 – 1 1 – 7 – 1 West Division No. 13 Slippery Rock xy$^ 5 – 0 – 1 9 – 1 – 1 Clarion 4 – 1 – 1 6 – 2 – 1 Indiana (PA) 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Shippensburg 3 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Edinboro 2 – 2 – 2 5 – 2 – 2 California (PA) 1 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 Lock Haven 0 – 6 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 Championship: Slippery Rock 20, West Chester 7 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant ^ – NCAA Division III playoff participant Rankings from AP small college poll for Slippery Rock and NAIA Division I poll for Millersville	1974 Presidents' Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Allegheny + 6 – 1 – 0 7 – 1 – 0 John Carroll + 6 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 Bethany (WV) 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 3 – 1 Hiram 3 – 3 – 1 4 – 4 – 1 Thiel 3 – 3 – 1 4 – 4 – 1 Carnegie Mellon 2 – 5 – 0 3 – 5 – 0 Case Western Reserve 2 – 5 – 0 2 – 7 – 0 Washington & Jefferson 1 – 6 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 + – Conference co-champions	1974 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 13 Redlands $ 5 – 0 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 No. T–17 Whittier 4 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 0 La Verne 3 – 2 – 0 5 – 5 – 0 Claremont-Mudd 1 – 4 – 0 2 – 6 – 0 Occidental 1 – 4 – 0 1 – 7 – 0 Pomona-Pitzer 1 – 4 – 0 1 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from NAIA Division II poll
1974 Virginia College Athletic Association football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Virginia Union 2 – 0 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 Randolph–Macon 4 – 0 – 1 6 – 2 – 1 Hampden–Sydney 4 – 1 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Virginia State 2 – 1 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Madison 3 – 2 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Hampton 1 – 2 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Bridgewater 1 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 0 Washington and Lee 0 – 2 – 1 1 – 8 – 1 Emory & Henry 0 – 3 – 0 3 – 8 – 0 Saint Paul's (VA) 0 – 3 – 0 1 – 8 – 0	1974 Wisconsin State University Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T No. 17 Wisconsin–Platteville + 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 0 No. 18 Wisconsin–Whitewater + 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 3 – 0 No. 16 Wisconsin–La Crosse + 7 – 1 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Wisconsin–River Falls 5 – 3 – 0 7 – 3 – 0 Wisconsin–Eau Claire 4 – 4 – 0 6 – 4 – 0 Wisconsin–Oshkosh 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Wisconsin–Stevens Point 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 7 – 0 Wisconsin–Stout 1 – 7 – 0 2 – 8 – 0 Wisconsin–Superior 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 9 – 0 + – Conference co-champions Wisconsin–La Crosse forfeited one non-conference game. Rankings from NAIA Division I poll	1974 NCAA Division III independents football records v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Albany   –   9 – 0 – 0 Colorado College   –   8 – 1 – 0 St. Norbert   –   8 – 2 – 0 Georgetown   –   6 – 2 – 0 Norwich   –   6 – 3 – 0 Millsaps   –   5 – 3 – 0 Grove City   –   5 – 3 – 1 Bridgeport   –   6 – 4 – 0 Ashland   –   5 – 5 – 0 Salisbury State   –   4 – 4 – 1 Trinity (TX)   –   5 – 5 – 1 Rochester (NY)   –   3 – 6 – 0 Saint Mary's   –   3 – 6 – 0 Saint Peter's   –   3 – 6 – 0 Cortland   –   2 – 6 – 1 Maryville (TN)   –   2 – 6 – 1 San Diego   –   3 – 8 – 0 Brockport   –   2 – 6 – 0 Fairleigh Dickinson–Florham   –   0 – 5 – 0 Chicago   –   0 – 8 – 0

Conference champions

Conference	Champion(s)
College Athletic Conference	Rose–Hulman
College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin	Illinois Wesleyan Millikin
Independent College Athletic Conference	Ithaca
Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Central (IA)
Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association	Olivet
Middle Atlantic Conference	Wilkes (North) Franklin & Marshall (South)
Midwest Collegiate Athletic Conference	Coe
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Concordia–Moorhead Saint John's (MN)
New England Football Conference	Boston State Nichols
New Jersey State Athletic Conference	Glassboro State
Northwest Conference	Linfield
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Clark Atlanta
Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Redlands
Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Wisconsin–La Crosse Wisconsin–Platteville Wisconsin–Whitewater

Postseason

The 1974 NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs were the second annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division III college football. The championship game was held at Garrett-Harrison Stadium in Phenix City, Alabama. Like the 1973 championship, this year's bracket featured only four teams.^[2]

Playoff bracket

	Semifinals Campus Sites					National Championship Game Garrett-Harrison Stadium Phenix City, AL
	Central (IA)		17
	Evansville		16
						Central (IA)		10
						Ithaca		8
	Ithaca		27
	Slippery Rock		14

Coaching changes

This list includes all head coaching changes announced during or after the season.

School	Outgoing coach	Reason	Replacement	Previous position
Boston State	Lary Kuharich	Hired as defensive coordinator for Rhode Island[3]	Mac Singleton[4]	Boston State director of intramural athletics (1974)
Dubuque	Maury Waugh	Resigned[a][6]	Larry Pohlman[7]	Crown Point HS (IN) head coach (1972–1974)
Fordham	Dean Loucks	Fired[8]	Dave Rice[9]	Western Connecticut head coach (1972–1974)
Franklin & Marshall	Bob Curtis	Hired as head coach for Bucknell[10]	Tom Gilburg[11]	Lehigh linebackers coach (1971–1974)
Hofstra	Howdy Myers	Retired[b][12]	Bill Leete[13]	Hofstra defensive coordinator (1969–1974)
Kean	Ron San Fillipo	Hired as athletic director for James Caldwell HS (NJ)[14]	Johnny Allen[15]	Kean backfield coach (1973–1974)
North Central (IL)	N/A	Hired co-head coach	Ron Guenther[16]	Boston College offensive line coach (1971–1974)
North Park	Mike Watson	Hired as athletic director for Minnehaha Academy (MN)[17]	Gene Mitz[18]	Drake offensive line coach (1973–1974)
Norwich	Joseph G. Sabol	Hired as head coach for Gettysburg[19]	Barry Mynter[20]	Norwich defensive coordinator (1965–1974)
Oberlin	Cass Jackson	Hired as head coach for Morris Brown[21]	Richard Riendeau	Albany Metro Mallers head coach (1973)
Otterbein	Bob Agler	Retired[22]	Rich Seils[23]	Otterbein backfield coach (1973–1974)
Simpson	Larry Johnson (full-season interim)	Permanent replacement hired	Maury Waugh[5]	Dubuque head coach (1969–1974)
Swarthmore	Lew Elverson	Retired[24]	Tom Lapinski[25]	Mount Pleasant HS (DE) head coach (1972–1974)
Trenton State	Dick Curl	Hired as wide receivers coach and tight ends coach for Rutgers[26]	Carmen Piccone[27]	Cornell offensive coordinator (1967–1974)
William Paterson	Bob Trocolor	Resigned[28]	Jack Stephans[29]	William Paterson assistant coach (1974)
Wisconsin–Superior	Ed Bender	Resigned	Mertz Mortorelli[30]	Wisconsin–Superior head coach (1954–1969)[c]
Wooster	Pat O'Brien	Fired[31]	Don Hunsinger[32]	Capital defensive coordinator (1973–1974)

1. Initially announced his resignation on October 17, 1974, but did not take effect until the end of the season. He was subsequently hired as the head coach for Simpson in January 1975.^[5]
2. Forced to retire due to Hofstra's mandatory retirement age of 65, but he continued to coach elsewhere.
3. Also served as Wisconsin–Superior athletic director since 1954.

See also

• 1974 NCAA Division I football season
• 1974 NCAA Division II football season
• 1974 NAIA Division I football season
• 1974 NAIA Division II football season