1985 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game

This article is about the Division I-AA (now FCS) championship game. For the Division I-A (now FBS) champions, see 1985 Oklahoma Sooners football team.

1985 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship
I-AA National Championship Game
Diamond Bowl
Georgia Southern Eagles Furman Paladins
(12–2) (12–1)
Independent SoCon
44 42
Head coach: 
Erk Russell		 Head coach: 
Dick Sheridan
NCAASeed
9–
NCAASeed
2 (tie)3
1234 Total
Georgia Southern 062216 44
Furman 714714 42
DateDecember 21, 1985
Season1985
StadiumTacoma Dome
LocationTacoma, Washington
RefereeMike Standley[1]
Attendance5,306[1]
United States TV coverage
NetworkESPN
AnnouncersMike Patrick (play-by-play), Sam Adkins (color)[2]
NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship
 < 1984 1986 > 

The 1985 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game was a postseason college football game between the Furman Paladins and the Georgia Southern Eagles. The game was played on December 21, 1985, at the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, Washington. The culminating game of the 1985 NCAA Division I-AA football season, it was won by Georgia Southern, 44–42.[3]

Contemporary news reports also referred to this game as the Diamond Bowl,[3] as the NCAA had introduced Diamond Bowl branding for the Division I-AA championship game earlier in the year.[4]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference NCAAbox was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "1985 I-AA National Championship - Georgia Southern vs Furman". August 6, 2013. Retrieved May 4, 2019 – via YouTube. at 2:21:07
  3. ^ a b "Georgia Southern 44, Furman 42". AP. December 21, 1985. Retrieved May 3, 2018 – via apnews.com.
  4. ^ "I-AA championship moved to Tacoma". Billings Gazette. Billings, Montana. AP. January 5, 1985. p. 2-C. Retrieved May 1, 2019 – via newspapers.com.