2016 NAIA football national championship

The 2016 NAIA football national championship was a four-round, sixteen team tournament played between November 19 and December 17 of 2016. The tournament concluded on December 17 with a single game, played as the 61st Annual NAIA Football National Championship Presented by Waste Pro. Waste Pro became the newest title game sponsor in an announcement made October 31, 2015. The game featured two teams that had never before won a national championship, the undefeated #2 Baker Wildcats facing the once-beaten #4 Saint Francis Cougars.

The championship game was played at Municipal Stadium in Daytona Beach, Florida. This was the 3rd time the championship game was played at this venue after the prior six games were played at Barron Stadium in Rome, Georgia. A total of sixteen teams were selected to participate in the single-elimination tournament from across the country. The field included ten conference champions who received automatic bids. The field was filled with at-large selections that were awarded to the highest ranked teams that were not conference champions. First-round seeding was based on the final edition of the 2016 NAIA Coaches' Poll, with certain minor modifications given based on geographic considerations. Each subsequent round was re-seeded based on the rankings of all teams advancing to that round.

Quarterfinal pairings were announced by the NAIA on November 20, a day after the first round results were known.

Semifinal pairings were confirmed by the NAIA on November 26, soon after completion of the day's quarterfinal games.

Junior quarterback Logan Brettell of Baker was awarded the Rawlings Award for most valuable player in the NAIA prior to the championship. The St. Francis Cougars won the NAIA national championship, defeating Baker 38-17.

Postseason

Playoff bracket

2016 Waste Pro NAIA Football National Championship
Saint Francis Cougars Baker Wildcats (12–1) (14–0) 38 17 Head coach:  Kevin Donley Head coach:  Mike Grossner Coaches 4 Coaches 2
1 2 3 4 Total Saint Francis 10 7 7 14 38 Baker 3 0 7 7 17
Date	December 17, 2016
Season	2016
Stadium	Municipal Stadium
Location	Daytona Beach, Florida
MVP	Seth Coate (WR, Saint Francis) (Offensive) Lucas Sparks (DE, Saint Francis) (Defensive)
Referee	David White
Attendance	2,500
United States TV coverage
Network	ESPN3
Announcers	Drew Fellios Forrest Conoly

Scoring Summary

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP Saint Francis Cougars Baker Wildcats 1 12:18 12 67 2:42 Baker Wildcats 26-yard field goal by Clarence Clark 0 3 1 8:22 7 56 3:56 Saint Francis Cougars Seth Coate 5-yard touchdown reception from Nick Ferrer, Ryan Nix kick Good 7 3 1 0:49 13 36 6:10 Saint Francis Cougars 44-yard field goal by Ryan Nix 10 3 2 1:57 1 39 0:07 Saint Francis Cougars Justin Green 39-yard touchdown run, Ryan Nix kick Good 17 3 3 6:35 8 70 2:45 Baker Wildcats Damon Nolan 13-yard touchdown reception from Logan Brettell, Clarence Clark kick Good 17 10 3 0:44 6 87 2:42 Saint Francis Cougars Seth Coate 59-yard touchdown reception from Nick Ferrer, Ryan Nix kick Good 24 10 4 12:21 3 80 1:09 Saint Francis Cougars Seth Coate 36-yard touchdown reception from Nick Ferrer, Ryan Nix kick Good 31 10 4 3:39 12 29 3:42 Baker Wildcats Cornell Brown 1-yard touchdown run, Clarence Clark kick Good 31 17 4 2:48 2 37 0:51 Saint Francis Cougars P.J. Dean 28-yard touchdown run, Ryan Nix kick Good 38 17 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. Saint Francis Cougars Baker Wildcats

	1st Round November 19					Quarterfinals November 26					Semifinals December 3					Championship December 17
	2	Baker (KS) (11–0)	44
	13	Sterling (KS) (8–2)	21
						2	Baker (KS) (12–0)	42
						8	Lindsey Wilson (KY) (11–1)	27
	8	Lindsey Wilson (KY) (10–1)	34*
	10	Grand View (IA) (9–2)	27
											2	Baker (KS) (13–0)	45
											9	Eastern Oregon (10–2)	41
	1	Marian (IN) (10–0)	32
	15	Robert Morris (IL) (7–3)	7
						1	Marian (IN) (11–0)	0
						9	Eastern Oregon (9–2)	17
	7	Doane (NE) (9–1)	28
	9	Eastern Oregon (8–2)	34
																2	Baker (KS) (14–0)	17
																4	Saint Francis (IN) (12–1)	38
	3	Reinhardt (GA) (11–0)	52
	20	Southeastern (FL) (6–2)	22
						3	Reinhardt (GA) (12–0)	27
						6	Montana Tech (10–1)	0
	6	Montana Tech (9–1)	28
	14	Dickinson State (ND) (9–2)	21
											3	Reinhardt (GA) (13–0)	24
											4	Saint Francis (IN) (11–1)	42
	4	Saint Francis (IN) (9–1)	79
	11	Missouri Valley (MO) (9–2)	20
						4	Saint Francis (IN) (10–1)	42
						5	Morningside (IA) (10–1)	28
	5	Morningside (IA) (9–1)	65
	12	Tabor (KS) (8–2)	17

* denotes OT

Bowl games

Game	Date	Location	Winning Team (Record)	Losing Team (Record)	Score	Note
Victory Bowl	December 3	N/A	Warner 8-2 (4-1)	None	N/A	The NCCAA could not find a second team available to play