| Year: | 1997 |
| Number Of Teams: | 120 |
| Regular Season: | August–November |
| Playoffs: | November 29–December 20 |
| Nc Date: | December 20, 1997 |
| Championship: | Finley Stadium Chattanooga, Tennessee |
| Champions: | Youngstown State |
| Payton: | Brian Finneran (WR, Villanova) |
| Buchanan: | Chris McNeil (DE, North Carolina A&T) |
The 1997 NCAA Division I-AA football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I-AA level, began in August 1997, and concluded with the 1997 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 20, 1997, at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Youngstown State Penguins won their fourth I-AA championship, defeating the McNeese State Cowboys by a score of 10−9.[1]
| School | 1996 Conference | 1997 Conference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Independent (NAIA) | SWAC (I-AA) | ||
| I-AA Independent | |||
| Southland | |||
| New Program | I-AA Independent | ||
| Southern (I-AA) | MAC (I-A) | ||
| CIAA (D-II) | MEAC (I-AA) | ||
| New Program | I-AA Independent | ||
| Patriot | |||
| Southern | |||
| Gateway |
See also: List of NCAA Division I-AA/FCS football seasons.
The NCAA departed from standard bracket structure—where, for example, the fourth and fifth seeds could meet in the second round—in order to place teams from the same conference in different halves of the bracket.[2] * Denotes host institution
Source:[3]