| 2004 Linfield Wildcats football | |
|---|---|
NCAA Division III national champion NWC champion | |
Stagg Bowl, W 28–21 vs. Mary Hardin–Baylor | |
| Conference | Northwest Conference |
| Ranking | |
| D3Football.com | No. 1 |
| Record | 13–0 (5–0 NWC) |
| Head coach |
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| Home stadium | Maxwell Field |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 1 Linfield $^ | 5 | – | 0 | 13 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 23 Willamette ^ | 4 | – | 1 | 7 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Whitworth | 3 | – | 2 | 7 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pacific Lutheran | 2 | – | 3 | 6 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Puget Sound | 1 | – | 4 | 5 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lewis & Clark | 0 | – | 5 | 1 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2004 Linfield Wildcats football team was an American football team that represented Linfield University as a member of the Northwest Conference (NWC) during the 2004 NCAA Division III football season. In their ninth season under head coach Jay Locey, the Wildcats compiled a perfect 13–0 record and won the NCAA Division III national championship.[1]
The team opened its season with a 58–17 victory over Division II Western Oregon.[2] The following week, Linfield, ranked No. 2 in Division III, traveled east to face No. 7 Wisconsin–Stevens Point, winning that game by a 46–35 score.[3][4]
After sweeping through the regular season and winning an NWC championship, the Wildcats advanced to the Division III playoffs. They received a bye in the first round and then defeated Wisconsin–La Crosse in the second round, Occidental in the quarterfinals, Rowan in the semifinals, and Mary Hardin–Baylor in the Stagg Bowl for the national championship.[1]
Quarterback Brett Elliott broke the NCAA single-season touchdown record.[5] His season total of 59 touchdown passes included a school record seven in the Division III quarterfinal game against Occidental.[6] Elliott played high school football in Lake Oswego, Oregon, began his college career playing for Urban Meyer at Division I Utah, and transferred to Linfield after losing the starting job to Alex Smith.[5]
Jay Locey won the AFCA Coach of the Year for NCAA Division III for the 2004 NCAA Division III football season.
Linfield also won NAIA national championships in 1982, 1984, and 1986. The program extended its record to 49 consecutive seasons with a winning record, the longest such streak in all divisions of college football.[7]
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