1986 NCAA Division I-AA football season
The 1986 NCAA Division I-AA football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division I-AA level, began in August 1986, and concluded with the 1986 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 19, 1986, at the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, Washington. The Georgia Southern Eagles won their second consecutive I-AA championship, defeating the Arkansas State Indians by a final score of 48–21.
Conference changes and new programs
- Prior to the season, the Colonial League, now known as the Patriot League, was established as a six-member, football-only league for teams in Massachusetts, New York, and Pennsylvania. The Colonial League, however, was totally separate from the current Colonial Athletic Association.
- Prior to the 1986 season, the Gateway Conference was formed out of the four remaining members of the disbanded Association of Mid-Continent Universities and two former members of the Missouri Valley Conference. The MVC stopped sponsoring football after the 1985 season.
| School | 1985 Conference | 1986 Conference |
| Bucknell | I-AA Independent | Colonial |
| Colgate | I-AA Independent | Colonial |
| Delaware | I-AA Independent | Yankee |
| Drake | Missouri Valley | Dropped Program |
| Eastern Illinois | AMCU | Gateway |
| Florida A&M | I-AA Independent | MEAC |
| Holy Cross | I-AA Independent | Colonial |
| Illinois State | Missouri Valley | Gateway |
| Indiana State | I-AA Independent | Gateway |
| Lafayette | I-AA Independent | Colonial |
| Lehigh | I-AA Independent | Colonial |
| Northern Iowa | AMCU | Gateway |
| Richmond | I-AA Independent | Yankee |
| Southern Illinois | Missouri Valley | Gateway |
| Southwest Missouri State | AMCU | Gateway |
| Texas–Arlington | Southland | Dropped Program |
| Western Illinois | AMCU | Gateway |
| West Texas State | Missouri Valley | Division II |
Conference standings
Conference champions
| Conference Champions |
Big Sky Conference – Nevada Colonial League – Holy Cross Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference – Eastern Illinois Ivy League – Penn Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference – North Carolina A&T Ohio Valley Conference – Murray State Southern Conference – Appalachian State Southland Conference – Arkansas State Southwestern Athletic Conference – Jackson State Yankee Conference – Connecticut, Delaware, and Massachusetts |