1997 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) championship game, see 1997 Sugar Bowl.

1997 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship
I-AA National Championship Game
Youngstown State Penguins McNeese State Cowboys
(12–2) (13–1)
Gateway Southland
10 9
Head coach: 
Jim Tressel		 Head coach: 
Bobby Keasler
TSNSeed
48
TSNSeed
76
1234 Total
Youngstown State 0307 10
McNeese State 3060 9
DateDecember 20, 1997
Season1997
StadiumFinley Stadium
LocationChattanooga, Tennessee
RefereeRon Buckner (SoCon)[1][2]
Attendance14,771[1]
United States TV coverage
NetworkESPN
NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship
 < 1996 1998 > 

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]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference YSUbox was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Recipients Named For Seventh Annual Golden Whistle Merit Awards" (PDF). NCHSAA Bulletin. Vol. 65, no. 4. Summer 2013. p. 4. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  3. ^ "Youngstown Wins 4th Championship Penguins Use Improvised Play To Squeeze By Mcneese State". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. AP. December 21, 1997. Retrieved February 21, 2019.