1997 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game
Youngstown-McNeese postseason game
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The 1997 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game was a postseason college football game between the Youngstown State Penguins and the McNeese State Cowboys. The game was played on December 20, 1997, and was the first I-AA title game contested at Finley Stadium, home field of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. The culminating game of the 1997 NCAA Division I-AA football season, it was won by Youngstown State, 10–9.[3]
| 1997 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| I-AA National Championship Game | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 20, 1997 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 1997 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Finley Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Chattanooga, Tennessee | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Ron Buckner (SoCon)[1][2] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 14,771[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ESPN | ||||||||||||||||||||
Teams
The participants of the Championship Game were the finalists of the 1997 I-AA Playoffs, which began with a 16-team bracket.[4]
Youngstown State Penguins
Youngstown State finished their regular season with a 9–2 record (4–2 in conference).[5] Seeded eighth in the playoffs, the Penguins defeated ninth-seed Hampton, first-seed Villanova, and third-seed Eastern Washington to reach the final. This was the fifth appearance for Youngstown State in a Division I-AA championship game, having won three titles (1991, 1993, and 1994) against one loss (1992).
McNeese State Cowboys
McNeese State finished their regular season with a 10–1 record (6–1 in conference).[6] The Cowboys, seeded sixth, defeated 11-seed Montana, second-seed Western Illinois, and fourth-seed Delaware to reach the final. This was the first appearance for McNeese State in a Division I-AA championship game.
Game summary
Scoring summary
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Game statistics
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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| No. 8 Penguins | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| No. 6 Cowboys | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 9 |
| Statistics | YSU | MSU |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 12 | 11 |
| Plays–yards | 60–200 | 57–201 |
| Rushes–yards | 39–73 | 29–58 |
| Passing yards | 127 | 143 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 12–21–0 | 14–28–1 |
| Turnovers | ||
| Time of possession | 31:37 | 28:23 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Youngstown State | Passing | Demond Tidwell | 11–20, 110 yds, 1 TD |
| Rushing | Jake Andreadis | 16 car, 47 yds | |
| Receiving | Tim Tyrrell | 4 rec, 54 yds | |
| McNeese State | Passing | Blake Prejean | 14–28, 143 yds, 1 INT |
| Rushing | William Davis | 19 car, 59 yds | |
| Receiving | Donnie Ashley | 4 rec, 45 yds |