KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI – The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) announced the 16 team field and the matchups for the First Round of the NAIA Football Championship Series on Sunday. The 16-team FCS will kick-off on Saturday, November 19th at eight campus host sites across the country, with the higher seed hosting each contest.
The full field features 12 automatic qualifiers and four at-large berths. In order to qualify for an automatic bid, teams must win their conference regular-season title. At-large berths were determined by the NAIA Football National Selection Committee. Teams earning an at-large berth must be ranked in the Top 20 of the final NAIA Coaches’ Top 25 poll.
The 67th Annual NAIA Football National Championship will culminate on December 17th at Durham County Memorial Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.
Qualifier Highlights
- Morningside (Iowa), Grand View (Iowa), and Bethel (Tenn.) are undefeated with a combined 32-0 record
- Seven teams have secured Red Banners led by Carroll (Mont.) with six
- The Mustangs have won three of the last four national championships
- Third seeded Northwestern (Iowa) lost by one point to Morninside in the first game of the year
- Bethel is the first team in program history to go 11-0 in the regular season, besting the 2018 team’s record
- Indiana Wesleyan and Arizona Christian reach the FCS field for the second time in program history
- Avila (Mo.) will play in the NAIA postseason for the first-time in school history
- Eleven of the 16 programs qualified for the FCS in 2021
- Carroll (Mont.) has won (42) and played in (59) more FCS games than any other qualifier
- The Mid-States Football Association has three qualifiers; four others have two each
2022 NAIA Football Championship Series – First Round Schedule
Saturday, November 19 | Campus Sites
| Seed | School | Record | Seed | School | Record | |
| 1 | Morningside (Iowa) | 10-0 | vs. | 16 | Arizona Christian | 8-2 |
| 2 | Grand View (Iowa) | 11-0 | vs. | 15 | Carroll (Mont.) | 8-2 |
| 3 | Northwestern (Iowa) | 9-1 | vs. | 14 | Dickinson State (N.D.) | 8-2 |
| 4 | Bethel (Tenn.) | 11-0 | vs. | 12 | Keiser (Fla.) | 7-3 |
| 5 | Indiana Wesleyan | 9-1 | vs. | 13 | Avila (Mo.) | 10-1 |
| 6 | Benedictine (Kan.) | 10-1 | vs. | 10 | Southwestern (Kan.) | 9-1 |
| 7 | Marian (Ind.) | 8-1 | vs. | 11 | Saint Xavier (Ill.) | 9-2 |
| 8 | Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | 9-1 | vs. | 9 | Reinhardt (Ga.) | 8-1 |
2022 NAIA Football Championship Qualifiers
(Alphabetical Listing)
| School | Qualification Method | Record | Appearances | Last | FCS Record | Titles |
| Arizona Christian | Sooner Athletic Conference Champion | 8-2 | 2 | 2020 | 0-1 | 0 |
| Avila (Mo.) | Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference Champion | 10-1 | – | – | – | – |
| Benedictine (Kan.) | Heart of America South Division Champion | 10-1 | 15 | 2018 | 7-14 | 0 |
| Bethel (Tenn.) | Mid-South Conference Champion | 11-0 | 6 | 2018 | 3-5 | 0 |
| Carroll (Mont.) | Frontier Conference Champion | 8-2 | 24 | 2020 | 42-17 | 6 |
| Dickinson State (N.D.) | North Star Athletic Association Champion | 8-2 | 23 | 2021 | 7-22 | 0 |
| Grand View (Iowa) | Heart of America North Division Champion | 11-0 | 11 | 2021 | 12-9 | 1 |
| Indiana Wesleyan | Mid-States Football Association – East | 9-1 | 2 | 2021 | 0-1 | 0 |
| Keiser (Fla.) | The Sun Conference Champion | 7-3 | 4 | 2021 | 3-3 | 0 |
| Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | At-Large | 9-1 | 8 | 2021 | 11-6 | 1 |
| Marian (Ind.) | At-Large | 8-1 | 11 | 2021 | 19-8 | 2 |
| Morningside (Iowa) | Great Plains Athletic Conference Champion | 10-0 | 19 | 2021 | 33-15 | 3 |
| Northwestern (Iowa) | At-Large | 9-1 | 24 | 2021 | 26-21 | 2 |
| Reinhardt (Ga.) | Appalachian Athletic Conference Champion | 8-1 | 8 | 2021 | 6-6 | 0 |
| Saint Xavier (Ill.) | Mid-States Football Association – West | 9-2 | 15 | 2021 | 18-13 | 1 |
| Southwestern (Kan.) | At-Large | 9-1 | 6 | 2021 | 2-5 | 0 |
