INDIANAPOLIS — The NCAA Division III Football Committee announced today the field of 32 teams for the 2017 NCAA Division III Football Championship. The committee selected teams based on conference results and competition within an institution's respective evaluation region.

Twenty-five conferences received automatic-qualifying berths. Two berths are reserved for true independents or teams that are members of a conference that do not receive automatic qualification. The remaining five berths were awarded to teams from either automatic qualifying conferences that did not win an automatic berth, the remaining true independent teams or teams in non-automatic qualifying conferences.

RELATED: Interactive bracket

The first round of the championship will be played November 18 at the host institution's campus or at an alternate site approved by the football committee. The Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, the national championship game, will be played Friday, December 15, at Salem Stadium in Salem, Virginia. The game will be broadcast live on ESPNU at 7 p.m. Eastern time.

Pool A Berths (25):

Automatic Bids By Conference
Conference School
Centennial Conference Johns Hopkins University
College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin North Central College
Commonwealth Coast Football Western New England University
Eastern Collegiate Football Conference Husson University
Empire 8 College at Brockport, State University of New York
Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Franklin College
Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Wartburg College
Liberty League Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Plymouth State University
Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Trine University
Middle Atlantic Conference Delaware Valley University
Midwest Conference Monmouth College (Illinois)
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference University of St. Thomas (Minnesota)
New Jersey Athletic Conference Wesley College
North Coast Athletic Conference Wittenberg University
Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Lakeland University
Northwest Conference Linfield College
Ohio Athletic Conference University of Mount Union
Old Dominion Athletic Conference Washington and Lee University
Presidents' Athletic Conference Washington and Jefferson College
Southern Athletic Association Berry College
Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Chapman University
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference Eureka College
USA South Athletic Conference Huntingdon College
Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh

Pool B Berths (2):

University of Mary Hardin-Baylor
Springfield College

Pool C Berths (5):

Case Western Reserve University
Frostburg State University
Hardin-Simmons University
Illinois Wesleyan University
St. John's University (Minnesota)

The Division III Football Committee also announced the following 16 regional sites:

  • Belton, Texas – Chapman vs. Mary Hardin-Baylor
  • McMinnville, Oregon – Hardin-Simmons vs. Linfield
  • Mount Berry, Georgia – Huntingdon College vs. Berry
  • Naperville, Illinois – Saint John’s (Minnesota) vs. North Central
  • Doylestown Township, Pennsylvania – Western New England vs. Delaware Valley
  • Springfield, Massachusetts – Husson vs. Springfield
  • Alliance, Ohio – Washington and Lee vs. Mount Union
  • Brockport, New York – Plymouth State vs. College at Brockport
  • St. Paul, Minnesota – Eureka vs. St. Thomas (Minnesota)
  • Bloomington, Illinos – Case Western Reserve vs. Illinois Wesleyan
  • Washington, Pennsylvania – Johns Hopkins vs. Washington & Jefferson
  • Oshkosh, Wisconsin – Lakeland vs Wisconsin-Oshkosh
  • Springfield, Ohio – Frostburg State vs. Wittenberg
  • Dover, Delaware – Rensselaer vs. Wesley
  • Waverly, Iowa – Franklin vs. Wartburg
  • Angola, Indiana – Monmouth (Illinois) vs. Trine

All games start at noon local time.

In the 2016 championship, Mary Hardin-Baylor defeated Wisconsin-Oshkosh 10-7.