| Year: | 2017 |
| Championship: | Children's Mercy Park Kansas City, KS December 16, 2017 |
| Champion: | Texas A&M–Commerce |
| Hill: | Luis Perez (QB, Texas A&M–Commerce) |
The 2017 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, began on August 31, 2017 and ended with the Division II championship on December 16, 2017 at Children's Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas.[1] Northwest Missouri State were the defending champions from the previous season.[2] Texas A&M–Commerce won the school's first Division II National Championship and second overall, defeating West Florida, 37–27.
Coverage of the Division 2 Playoffs was on ESPN's streaming service, ESPN 3, up until the championship, which was broadcast on ESPN 2.
September 2, 2017 - Virginia State 14, Norfolk State 10
September 2, 2017 - Tuskegee 14, Alabama State 6
September 9, 2017 - Catawba 27, VMI 20
October 14, 2017 - Central State 40, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 35
October 14, 2017 - Tuskegee 33, Jackson State 7
| School | Former conference | New conference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Independent (D-III) | |||
| Independent (NAIA) | GLIAC | ||
| G-MAC | |||
| G-MAC | |||
| G-MAC | |||
| South Atlantic | |||
| G-MAC | |||
| CSFL (NAIA) | |||
| School closed | |||
| G-MAC |
Oklahoma Baptist completed their transition to Division II and became eligible for the postseason.
The GNAC and NSIC moved from Super Region 3 to Super Region 4, while the GLIAC and GLVC moved in the opposite direction. The newly-expanded G-MAC joined Super Region 1, replacing the CIAA, which moved to Super Region 2.
| Division: | II |
| Year: | 2017 |
| Teams: | 28 |
| Stadium: | Children's Mercy Park |
| Location: | Kansas City, Kansas |
| Champions: | Texas A&M–Commerce |
| Titlecount: | 1st |
| Champgamecount: | 1st |
| Runnerup: | West Florida |
| Gamecount: | 1st |
| Semifinal1: | IUP |
| Semifinal2: | Harding |
| Coach: | Colby Carthel |
| Coachcount: | 1st |
The 2017 NCAA Division II Football Championship was the 45th edition of the Division II playoffs. The playoffs began on November 18 and concluded with the championship game on December 16.
The field consisted of 28 teams, seven from each of the four super regions. The participants in each region were determined by the regional rankings; if a conference's highest-ranked team was ranked in the top eight, that team qualified via the "earned access" provision, and all other participants were selected directly from the rankings. The top seed in each region received a first-round bye. After the quarterfinals, the regional winners were reseeded one through four, with No. 1 meeting No. 4 in the semifinals and No. 2 meeting No. 3.
| Date | Game | Site | Teams | Affiliations | Results | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2 | Corsicana Bowl | Tiger Stadium Corsicana, Texas | (7–4) Tarleton State Texans (6–5) | MIAA Lone Star | Central Oklahoma 38 Tarleton State 31 | |
| C.H.A.M.P.S. Heart of Texas Bowl | Bulldawg Stadium Copperas Cove, Texas | (6–5) (6–5) | MIAA Lone Star | Washburn 41 Angelo State 25 | ||
| Live United Texarkana Bowl | Razorback Stadium Texarkana, Arkansas | (7–4) (8–3) | MIAA GAC | style=white-space:nowrap | Pittsburg State 41 Arkansas Tech 31 | |
| Mineral Water Bowl | Tiger Stadium Excelsior Springs, Missouri | (8–3) (9–2) | MIAA NSIC | style=white-space:nowrap | Central Missouri 38 Minnesota–Duluth 28 |