No. 2 Grand View Becomes First Heart Football Program to Capture NAIA National Championship
No. 2 nationally ranked Grand View University made history on Saturday, as they became the first football program in the history of the Heart of America Athletic Conference to win a NAIA-FCS National Championship
Under head coach Joe Woodley, the Grand View Vikings defeated No. 1 ranked and defending NAIA National Champion Keiser (Fla.), 35-7, on Saturday, December 21 at Durham County Memorial Stadium in Durham, N.C.
This marks the second NAIA football national championship for the Vikings, as they won their first in 2013 with a win over Cumberlands (Ky.), 35-23.
Following the game, NAIA National Player of the Year Jackson Waring was named the Offensive Player of the Game and Jackson Filer the Defensive Player of the Game. Waring ended the game with 203 yards rushing, 132 yards passing and four touchdowns. Filer concluded with eight tackles with four solos and a hurry on a defense that held Keiser to just one third down conversion on 13 attempts and allowed zero points on three Seahawk trips to the red zone.
Grand View is now 52-3 dating back to the beginning of the 2021 season.