Playoffs

Format

• A 32-team field: 8 from each of the four Super Regions, 4 of them seeded. source
• Eight teams are selected in each Super Region. Every conference with an automatic bid places its champion; the NPI fills the remaining spots. source
• The top four selected teams in each region are seeded. Seeds 1 and 4 share the upper half of the regional bracket, seeds 2 and 3 the lower half. source
• Teams selected fifth through eighth are unseeded and may be moved to another Super Region to reduce flights. source
• An automatic qualifier ranked outside its region's top eight on selection day plays a No. 1 seed in the first round. source
• All 32 teams play in the first round; there are no byes. The first three rounds stay within each regional bracket. source
• The four regional winners are reseeded one through four for the semifinals: 1 plays 4 and 2 plays 3. source

Selection

Automatic bids

15 conferences send their champion. source

• CIAA
• Conference Carolinas
• Great American
• Great Lakes Intercollegiate
• Great Lakes Valley
• Great Midwest
• Lone Star
• MIAA
• Mountain East
• Northeast-10
• Northern Sun
• PSAC
• Rocky Mountain
• South Atlantic
• SIAC

Every other conference's members compete for at-large spots.

At-large teams

Chosen by the NCAA Power Index once the automatic qualifiers are set. To be considered, a team must play at least 8 Division II opponents and 9 opponents in all during the regular season. source

NPI settings for football

As published in the manual. source The official NPI · How D2CFB's NPI est. reconstructs it

The national committee

The NCAA Division II Football Committee, two members from each Super Region. David Sharp, director of athletics at Ouachita Baptist University, chairs it for 2026-27. source

NCAA staff: Randy L. Buhr (director, championships and alliances); Jay Jay Rackley (coordinator, championships and alliances). source

• The committee elected David Sharp, director of athletics at Ouachita Baptist, chair for 2026-27. source
• Brett Gilliland, director of athletics at West Alabama, chaired the committee in 2025-26. source
• The terms of Jas Bains (Western Colorado), Brett Gilliland (West Alabama) and Meghan Mulcahy (Northeastern State) ended Aug. 31, 2026. source

Who decides what

• The Division II Football Committee runs the championship: selection, seeding, bracketing, hosts and waivers. source
• The Division II Championships Committee approves the committee's recommendations, including the NPI settings for football. source
• Playing rules come from the combined Divisions II and III Football Rules Committee, approved by the Divisions II and III Playing Rules Oversight Panel. source

Still open for 2026

• Whether the NPI keeps being published during the playoffs. That decides whether the semifinal reseeding uses the end-of-season NPI or the NPI after the quarterfinals. source
• The Division II Championships Committee is considering a nonconference-opponent requirement for at-large consideration. source

How to compare teams in a Super Region

Start with the regional NPI, the ranking the committee uses for at-large selection. Standings summarize stored finals, and statistical tables show their own snapshot dates and coverage gaps. The AFCA Coaches Poll and D2CFB's computer rankings are separate from the NCAA's championship decisions.