Northwest Missouri State Bearcats football
| Northwest Missouri State Bearcats football | |||
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| First season | 1908 | ||
| Athletic director | Mel Tjeerdsma | ||
| Head coach |
Rich Wright 1st year, 0–0 (–) |
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| Stadium | Bearcat Stadium | ||
| Field | Mel Tjeerdsma Field | ||
| Year built | 1917 | ||
| Seating capacity | 6,500 | ||
| Field surface | FieldTurf | ||
| Location | Maryville, Missouri | ||
| NCAA division | Division II | ||
| Conference | MIAA | ||
| All-time record | 571–395–33 (.588) | ||
| Claimed nat'l titles | 6 (1998–99, 2009, 2013, 2015, 2016) | ||
| Conference titles | 28 | ||
| Consensus All-Americans | 69 | ||
| Colors | Bearcat Green and White |
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| Mascot | Bobby Bearcat | ||
| Marching band | Bearcat Marching Band | ||
| Outfitter | Adidas | ||
| Rival | Pittsburg State, Missouri Western, Truman State | ||
| Website | www.bearcatsports.com | ||
The Northwest Missouri State Bearcats football team has appeared in nine NCAA Division II national title games – winning five – since going 0–11 in Mel Tjeerdsma's first season in 1994. The Bearcats have made the playoffs in 18 seasons and have also won or shared 27 MIAA titles.
Northwest Missouri State plays its games at Bearcat Stadium, built in 1917, and the oldest NCAA Division II stadium still in use. The field was expanded to 6,500 seats and a video screen was added in 2003 after Tjeerdsma began his run. This screen was replaced in 2014 by a 20-foot by 40-foot high-resolution screen with the scoreboard attached underneath.
It used to play its games with Pittsburg State University at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri in the Fall Classic at Arrowhead. The series was discontinued in 2013, games are now played on campus sites. Pittsburg has made four national title appearances since 1991. The Oct. 17, 2002 game was witnessed by 26,695—the largest number in MIAA history.
The team's best-attended local home game was 11,002 on October 18, 2014 against Pittsburg State University.
Northwest was one of the original 1912 organizers of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association. It has not played in any other conference. The conference headquarters until 1997 was in the Maryville, Missouri home of its first commissioner Ken B. Jones. In 1997 it moved to Overland Park, Kansas and has subsequently moved to Kansas City.
In 1998, the Bearcats won the NCAA Division II football national championship by going 15–0. It was the first time in history a Division II school won 15 games and the first time a Northwest athletic program won a team national championship in any sport.
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