1981 NCAA Division I-AA football season

1981 NCAA Division I-AA season
Regular season
Number of teams51
DurationSeptember 5–November 28, 1981
Playoff
DurationDecember 5–December 19, 1981
Championship dateDecember 19, 1981
Championship siteMemorial Stadium
Wichita Falls, Texas
ChampionIdaho State
NCAA Division I-AA football seasons

The 1981 NCAA Division I-AA football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division I-AA level, began in August 1981 and concluded with the 1981 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game on December 19, 1981, at Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, Texas. The Idaho State Bengals won their first I-AA championship, defeating the Eastern Kentucky Colonels in the Pioneer Bowl, 34−23.