History

The NCAA split its membership into the University and College Divisions in 1957. The University Division was for the association’s larger and more prevalent programs while the College Division hosted the association’s smaller, emerging programs. This split aimed to create association-wide competitive balance by acknowledging the difference in resources institutions were willing to devote to athletics. The association reorganized its divisional structure into three divisions in 1973. The University Division was renamed Division I while the College Division was split into Divisions II and III. Division II differed from Division III because it allowed members to offer student-athletes athletic scholarships. Each division was classified by its members’ ability to offer athletes financial aid and granted them the authority to establish legislation and postseason formats of their own.

Membership

Each Division maintains unique standards for active and provisional membership. Division III membership is available to both four-year and two-year upper level institutions (institutions that award baccalaureate degrees to students who completed lower-level coursework before enrollment):

“An active member is a four-year college or university or a two-year upper-level collegiate institution accredited by the appropriate regional accrediting agency and duly elected to active membership under the provisions of this article.” [2]

“Membership is available to colleges, universities and athletics conferences that have acceptable academic standards that are located in the U.S., its territories or possessions and further defined in the constitution.” [2]

NCAA members are not prohibited from joining other governing bodies/organizations. Some Division II and III members compete in other organizations (e.g., the NCCAA) that provide supplemental postseason opportunities should they miss their respective division’s.

Structure

Division III is a sub-organization of the National Collegiate Athletic Association. NCAA members are governed by one of the association’s three divisions: Division I, Division II, and Division III.

Division III is organized by regions and conferences. Member institutions are assigned to a region with the option of also joining a conference.

Regions

Each Division III member is assigned to a region based solely on their geography. Each state and its member institutions are paired with one of six regions. Due to postseason “in-region play” requirements, regional affiliation can have implications on who teams schedule games against and their postseason eligibility:

“To be eligible for selection to Division III team championships, a minimum percentage [70%] of an institution’s scheduled regular-season contests shall be against in-region opponents. End-of-season conference tournaments and postseason competitions are not included in the in-region calculation.” [2]

Conferences

Every Division III member is permitted, but not obligated, to join a conference of their choosing. The main function of DIII conferences is to schedule matchups for their members. Most Division III conferences are hyper-regional, meaning members hail from just one or a few neighboring states. This setup offers several assurances for members. First and foremost, conference members consistently compete against each other, which often promotes sustainable regional rivalries. It also keeps transportation costs low, an essential for colleges with limited athletics budgets. Larger conferences sometimes elect to establish divisions to regionalize their members further. Organizations with this structure can pit division champions against each other at the end of the regular season to crown a true conference champion.

Teams who choose not to join a conference, or “Independents,” are solely responsible for scheduling their games annually. Despite not being in a conference, independents are still eligible for a berth in the postseason.

Governance

Authority

The NCAA is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Organizations with this designation are tax-exempt, as outlined by 26 U.S. Code § 501 [3]:

“An organization described in subsection (c) or (d) or section 401(a) shall be exempt from taxation under this subtitle unless such exemption is denied under section 502 or 503.” [3]

“The following [exempt] organizations are referred to in subsection (a): Corporations, and any community chest, fund, or foundation, organized and operated exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, testing for public safety, literary, or educational purposes, or to foster national or international amateur sports competition (but only if no part of its activities involve the provision of athletic facilities or equipment), or for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals, no part of the net earnings of which inures to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual, no substantial part of the activities of which is carrying on propaganda, or otherwise attempting, to influence legislation (except as otherwise provided in subsection (h)), and which does not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distributing of statements), any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office.” [3]

The highest authority in the NCAA is the Board of Governors (the board):

“Bringing together presidents and chancellors from each division, former student-athletes, along with select leaders from inside and outside the NCAA membership, the board is responsible for leading the NCAA and presiding over issues that affect the entire NCAA membership.” [4]

While it is the foremost authority of the association, the Board of Governors acts largely in an advisory capacity. The board and all association-wide committees established by the board are not permitted to enact association-wide legislation or compel divisions to adopt legislation:

“Changes in legislation, however, require each division to take action. The Association-wide committees propose changes to the divisions, which then debate and vote on the proposals through their legislative processes. These committees explore issues impacting the health and safety of student-athletes or opportunities for women and minority groups in college sports.” [5]

Instead, each division has a governing structure that best suits its members needs:

“Each division shall determine its own governing structure and membership.” [6]

The highest authority in the division is the Presidents Council:

“The Presidents Council shall establish and direct the general policy of Division III.” [2]

The Management Council reports directly to the Presidents Council and is considered the division’s foremost operational authority:

“The Management Council shall implement policies adopted by the Association's Board of Governors and the Presidents Council.” [2]

Structure

The Presidents Council consists of at least 20 members:

“The Presidents Council shall include no less than 18 Division III chancellors or presidents but not more than half of the number of active multi-sport conferences (rounding up to the next whole number). The council shall also include two student-athletes from the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.” [2]

The composition of the Presidents Council is as follows:

• At least three institutional chancellors or presidents from colleges or universities with full-time undergraduate enrollment of 2,400 or more;
• At least three institutional chancellors or presidents from colleges or universities with full-time undergraduate enrollment between 1,400 and 2,400;
• At least three institutional chancellors or presidents from colleges or universities with full-time undergraduate enrollment of 1,400 or less;
• At least three institutional chancellors or presidents from public colleges or universities;
• At least three institutional chancellors or presidents from private colleges or universities;
• At least four institutional chancellors or presidents who identify as female;
• At least four institutional chancellors or presidents who identify as male;
• At least two institutional chancellors or presidents who are members of an ethnic minority;
• At least two institutional chancellors or presidents who are not ethnic minorities;
• Between Presidents Council and Management Council, each active Division III multi-sport conference will have a slot for one non-student-athlete representative. That conference slot will rotate between the councils.
• Two members of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee;

The Presidents Council is granted significant authority over the division’s various committees and bodies, including the Management Council. Powers and responsibilities of the Presidents Council include but are not limited to:

“Implement policies adopted by the Association's Board of Governors;” [2]

“Establish a strategic plan for Division III;” [2]

“Adopt noncontroversial and intent-based amendments and administrative bylaws to govern Division III independent of the Management Council;” [2]

“ Sponsor Division III legislation independent of the Management Council;” [2]

“ Determine before the publishing of the notice of any Convention, the voting method for Division III proposals;” [2]

“ Delegate the resolution of management issues to the Management Council and ratify those actions;” [2]

“Ratify, amend or rescind the actions of the Management Council;” [2]

“Make budgetary recommendations to the Association's Board of Governors related to Division III matters, including championships, and approve the use of funds allocated to Division III;” [2]

“Approve regulations providing for the administration of Division III championships;” [2]

“Advise the Board of Governors concerning the employment of the NCAA president and concerning the oversight of their employment.” [2]

The Management Council also consists of at least 20 members:

“The Management Council shall include no less than 18 members (who are not student-athletes) but no more than half of the number of active multi-sport conferences (rounding up to the next whole number) and shall be comprised of Division III chancellors or presidents, athletics direct reports (non-chancellors or presidents with oversight of intercollegiate athletics), faculty athletics representatives, directors of athletics, senior woman administrators and conference representatives. The council shall also include two student-athletes.” [2]

The composition of the Management Council is as follows:

• At least nine directors of athletics or senior woman administrators;
• At least two institutional chancellors or presidents;
• At least two athletics direct reports;
• At least two faculty athletics representatives;
• At least three members of an ethnic minority;
• At least eight who identify as male;
• At least eight who identify as female;
• Between Presidents Council and Management Council, each active Division III multi-sport conference will have a slot for one non-student-athlete representative. That conference slot will rotate between the councils.
• Two members of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee;

The powers and duties of the Management Council are granted by the Presidents Council and include but are not limited to:

“Implement policies adopted by the Association's Board of Governors and the Presidents Council;” [2]

“Resolve Division III issues;” [2]

“Make recommendations to the Presidents Council related to Division III matters as it deems appropriate, including budgetary recommendations and recommendations related to championships;” [2]

“Adopt noncontroversial and intent-based amendments and administrative bylaws to govern Division III;” [2]

“Sponsor legislative proposals in accordance with Bylaw 9.3.3;” [2]

“Make interpretations of the bylaws of Division III;” [2]

“Delegate the resolution of Division III issues to the Division III substructure and consider relevant reports and recommendations from the Division III substructure;” [2]

“Review appeals by member institutions of decisions made by a Division III committee or the NCAA staff regarding the application of NCAA legislation to a particular situation when no other committee, subcommittee or conference has the authority to act. The Management Council shall review the complete record in order to determine whether there is sufficient basis to grant relief from the application of the legislation;” [2]

“Administer duties related to the business session of the annual Convention, including arrangements, programs, rules, voting and the examination and approval of the voting credentials of delegates;” [2]

The division has numerous committees that accept input from institutional leaders, debate proposed legislation, and present self-sponsored proposals to the body they report to. Every committee reports directly to the Management Council except for the Administrative Committee, which reports to both the Management Council and Presidents Council. Each committee is responsible for fulfilling the duties delegated to it by its reporting body including but not limited to hearings, appeals, and oversight. The composition of each committee varies by purpose.

Scheduling

Regular Season

Divisions of the association are tasked with establishing legislation related to scheduling requirements and procedures. Each division’s respective bylaws specify a minimum and maximum number of games its members and their student-athletes can partake in, as well as any other requirements.

The Division III playing season specifications are outlined in the division’s Bylaws [2]:

“The length of the institution’s playing season shall be limited to a maximum of 18 weeks.” [2]

“A member institution shall not play its first contest (game) against outside competition in football before the Thursday preceding the weekend that is 11 weeks before the first round of the Division III Football Championship, except as provided in Bylaw 17.11.4.1.1.” [2]

Division III programs must play a minimum of 7 games and can play a maximum of 10 regular season contests:

“In each sport, the institution’s team shall engage in at least a minimum number [7] of intercollegiate contests (against four year, degree-granting collegiate institutions) each year.” [2]

“A member institution shall limit its total regular-season playing schedule against outside competition in football during the permissible football playing season in any one year to a maximum of 10 contests (games, exhibitions and scrimmages), except as provided under Bylaw 17.11.6.3.” [2]

The following are not counted towards a member’s total number of regular season contests:

• Conference Championships
• Foreign Tour (once in three years)
• Hawaii, Alaska, and Puerto Rico (once in four years)
• National Team
• Season-Ending Tournament
• Up to two exhibitions, scrimmages, or joint practices

The division does not perform the actual function of scheduling; rather, this responsibility is deferred to conferences, their member institutions, and independents. Conferences typically schedule a fixed number of matchups between their members, ensuring each team plays the same number of conference opponents. How a conference does this is determined internally. The remainder of a team’s schedule is open-ended. A team can fill it with opponents outside their conference or designate any remaining conference opponents as “non-conference.” As implied, independents are solely responsible for scheduling their games in a given season.

Conference Championships

Division III conference championship games are counted towards each institution’s playing season:

“An institution’s intercollegiate season includes any scheduled participation in the conference championship in the sport in question but excludes the period between the last regularly scheduled competition and the NCAA championship in that sport.” [2]

A conference championship game, however, is not counted towards an institution’s regularly scheduled contest maximum:

“The maximum number of contests or dates of competition during the traditional segment shall exclude competition in one conference championship tournament (or the tournament used to determine the conference’s automatic entry in the NCAA championship).” [2]

Conferences may host a championship game to bolster their members’ case for a postseason berth/invitation. Participating conferences will pit their two highest-seeded members or, if the conference has divisions, their two division crowns, against each other. A conference determines its highest seeds with internal metrics, which can also be applicable when selecting the site of the championship game. Conferences that do not host a designated championship game also utilize internal metrics to crown a regular season champion.

Postseason

Postseason play, including the Division III Football Championship and bowl games, begins after the regular season has concluded.

NCAA Division III Football Championship

Every DIII program is eligible to compete for the Division III Football Championship. The DIII playoffs is a 40-team field of automatic qualifiers and at-large bids. Each conference champion is granted an automatic berth to the playoffs. The remaining at-large slots are determined statistically by the NCAA Power Index (NPI):

“NPI is a system that houses the division’s statistical data and objectively applies the selection criteria to the data based on the sport committee’s established weighted criteria. NPI is a combination of the following: winning percentage; strength of schedule; home-away multiplier; quality win bonus; and overtime results (not used for DIII Football).” [8]

The categories and their weighting are defined as follows:

The division also outlines the rationale for each category and its respective weight:

• Winning Percentage/Strength of Schedule
• The committee set the Win%/SOS dial to 40/60 to balance the strength of win percentage and strength of schedule. With a significant number of undefeated teams annually, this weight balances strong scheduling with a high number of wins.
• Home/Away – Win/Loss Weights
• The committee valued data that proves it is more difficult to win games played as the visiting team vs. games played at home and elected to use a 1.1 /0.9 to reward those wins.
• Quality Win Base
• The committee set the QWB at 54.00 with the intent of the setting resulting near or equal to the number of ranked teams the committee evaluated during regional rankings, which is roughly 20% of sponsoring teams. This also gives the committee a manageable number of teams competitive teams in the membership (around 100).
• Quality Win Base Multiplier
• The committee settled on a QWB multiplier of .250 to encourage teams to schedule the most competitive teams while also not penalizing teams that play a low number of non-conference games.
• Overtime Weight
• The committee values an overtime win the same as a win in regulation time and did not place additional weight to the overtime metric.
• Minimum Wins
• The committee set the dial to 5 wins. The committee experimented with multiple minimum wins numbers and noticed a majority of teams near the at-large cut line needed to keep 5 or more wins in order to have enough data to evaluate and count. Also, they discussed 5 was the appropriate number to allow some teams to drop a game based on the strength of the bottom of their conference.

The NPI also drives the seeding process that determines the 24 teams receiving a first round bye and the top 8 that play the first round victors. Similar to FCS and DII, the Division III Football Committee works to keep early-round matchups as geographically proximate as possible, even at the expense of a higher seed playing a slightly higher, lower seed. The seeding and pairing procedures are as follows:

1. Protection of top-eight seeded teams in the bracket. In brackets greater than 32 teams, teams will be protected based on the seed lines of No. 1s and No. 2s (based on NPI ranking at the time of selection).
1. NPI rank 1-4 will be No. 1s. NPI rank 5-8 will be No. 2s.
2. No. 1s and No. 2s will be bracketed based on quarterfinal matchups providing a possibility that the top eight (8) teams could each advance to the round of eight.
3. No. 1s and No. 2s will be bracketed in the quarterfinals based on current bracketing principles (i.e., geographic proximity is maintained)
1. EXAMPLE: No. 1 could face No. 5, No. 2 could face No. 6 in quarterfinal round, etc.
2. Remaining teams will continue to be grouped in clusters according to natural geographic proximity. Teams shall then be paired according to geographic proximity. A team may be moved to numerically balance the bracket if geographic proximity is maintained. Teams shall be paired and eligible according to geographic proximity (within 500 miles). An exception may be granted when there are not enough teams within the 500-mile radius to fill the region. Geographic proximity shall take precedence over seeding for teams below the top-8 seeds.
3. Teams from the same conference shall not play one another in the first round.
4. The highest-seeded team that meets all selection criteria shall be selected as the host institutions, provided that geographic proximity is maintained and they meet all site selection criteria.

The second round victors advance to the third round, then the quarterfinals, then the semifinals. The two remaining victors play at a designated neutral site in the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl where a national champion is ultimately crowned.

Bowl Games

The division sponsors a select number of bowl games for teams not competing in the playoffs. Each bowl has conference tie-ins and is played at a designated neutral site within the participating conferences’ geographical footprint to maintain regional relevance. Bowls organizers work closely with their host location to promote the culture, commerce, and nonprofit organizations within the local community. Bowl games also allow programs to learn, practice, and compete as a team for an additional week with the opportunity to put a bow on a successful regular season campaign.

Media Rights

Conferences and members (whether conference-affiliated or not) control their media rights arrangements. Conferences can, but are not required to, provide a media and broadcasting infrastructure for their members.

Some conferences procure agreements with subscription-based providers exclusively (e.g., FloSports). Other DIII conferences broadcast games on a custom-built conference network. These networks are typically powered by industry-standard streaming platforms (e.g., HudlTV) and also allow institutions to enable a subscription service (i.e. a paywall) to generate additional revenue from viewership, should they choose. Conferences can also air games on a general streaming platform (e.g., YouTube) exclusively or in addition to another service. Instead of using a paywall, institutions can earn additional revenue from broadcasts with advertising.

Members are not mandated to exclusively utilize their conference’s media provider unless stated in the conference’s bylaws. Independents are free to broadcast games on any platform of their choosing.

Postseason participants may become subject to a new set of broadcasting agreements that take precedence over existing ones.

Recruitment

The NCAA’s recruiting standards are the most stringent and detailed in College Football. The association delegates the establishment and amendment of recruiting legislation to its divisions, as outlined in the Constitution:

“Division by-laws shall be designed to promote informed decisions and balance the interests of prospective and current (or transfer) student-athletes, their educational institution and intercollegiate athletics as a whole.” [6]

The bylaws address an all-encompassing range of scenarios, technicalities, and exceptions related to the recruiting guidelines in great detail. Authorized recruiters (recruiters) must understand the nuances of each type of recruiting activity, when they can engage in them, and which student-athletes are eligible for recruitment.

The NCAA defines a prospective student-athlete as a student who has started classes for the ninth grade. If a student, the student’s family, or the student’s close associate receives financial assistance or other benefits that the institution does not provide to prospective students generally, that student is also a prospective student-athlete regardless of the student’s grade.

Division III recruiting legislation is the most relaxed in the association. A recruiter includes any authorized athletics department staff member or representative of an institution’s athletics interests. Unlike Divisions I and II, Division III institutions can designate representatives to engage in in-person, on-or off-campus recruiting contact with a prospective student-athlete. All forms of recruiting activities are permitted throughout the entire year because Division III does not maintain a recruiting calendar. Prospective student-athletes are prohibited from signing an NLI to compete at a Division III institution because binding documents are not permissible for the institutions to extend. Any form of contact with a prospect is prohibited until the conclusion of the student-athlete’s sophomore year. A recruiter may contact and engage in activities with a transfer student once written permission has been obtained by the recruiter from the athletic department of the transfer student’s institution or the transfer himself.

Compensation For Athletes

Scholarships

Current/prospective student-athletes of an NCAA institution may be eligible to receive athletic scholarships depending on their institution’s classification. Each division and subdivision has its own regulations that outline what forms of institutional aid a student-athlete can receive.

Student-athletes at Division III institutions are strictly prohibited from receiving any form of financial aid based on their athletic capabilities/associations:

“A member institution shall not award financial aid to any student on the basis of athletics leadership, ability, participation or performance.” [2]

Donors are, therefore, also prohibited from contributing to Division III athletics programs:

“It is not permissible for a donor to contribute funds to provide financial aid for student-athletes.” [2]

Despite this restrictive legislation, over 80% of Division III athletes receive some form of financial assistance. Student-athletes can receive additional financial aid from an institution, the government, family (whom the athlete is a dependent of), or other organizations, granted the aid is not based on the student’s athletic merit and the entire student body is also eligible for it:

“Division III student-athletes still have equal opportunity and access as the general student body to financial aid based on merit and need, and about 80% receive some form of a grant or nonathletics scholarship.” [9]

“Financial aid awarded solely on basis having no relationship to athletics leadership, ability, participation or performance [is a permitted source of financial aid].” [2]

Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL)

Effective July 2021, student-athletes in the association are permitted to leverage their Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) for financial gain:

“An individual may receive compensation for the use of the individual’s name, image and likeness, which may be secured or compensated based, in whole or in part, on athletics skill or reputation. Name, image and likeness activities may not be used to compensate a student-athlete for athletics participation or achievement.” [2]

NIL activity is defined in each division’s bylaws as follows:

“Name, image and likeness activity is any activity that involves the commercial use of an individual’s name, image or likeness to advertise or endorse the sale or use of a product or service. Name, image and likeness compensation must include quid pro quo (e.g., compensation for work performed), not be contingent upon initial or continued enrollment at a particular institution, and not be in return for athletics participation or achievement.” [2]

Student-athletes are permitted to utilize professional service providers to broker NIL agreements between themselves and businesses. An NIL entity (collective) is:

“An individual, group of individuals or any other entity organized to support the athletics interest of an NCAA school or group of schools by compensating student-athletes for NIL activities on behalf of itself or another third party.” [10]

Collectives can facilitate, fund, and/or organize the disbursement of NIL funds from multiple entities toward student-athletes. Institutions are permitted to provide information about legislation, collectives, and a prospective entity to a student-athlete without becoming privy to those discussions or arrangements.

The association’s legislation strictly prohibits the inducement of a student-athlete via NIL agreement(s):

“Name, image and likeness activities may not be used as an inducement for an individual to enroll or remain enrolled at a specific institution.” [2]

A collective, individual, business, or other entity cannot compensate a student-athlete contingent on his performance, prospective enrollment at an institution, or in any other fashion that fits the association’s definition of “pay-for-play.” Institutions can establish more stringent rules governing NIL activities under their purview so long as they do not contradict state legislation permitting an athlete to earn based on his NIL.

References

1. History (May 4, 2021)
2. NCAA Division III Manual (2024-2025)
3. United States Code
4. Who are the NCAA Board of Governors (May 26, 2021)
5. How The NCAA Works (2024)
6. NCAA Constitution (2021)
7. How the NCAA Works - Division III
8. NCAA Division III Prechampionship Manual (2024-2025)
9. Our Division III Students
10. Division I Council approves NIL disclosure and transparency rules (January 10, 2024)
11. Name, Image, Likeness (July 9, 2021)