In 1998 the Bearcats won the NCAA Division II national football championship by going 15-0 -- the first time a Division II school had won 15 games in history and the first time a Northwest school won a team national championship in any sport. In 2006 the Bearcats will play their first nationally televised game from Bearcat Stadium when they play the semifinals which will be broadcast by ESPN. The game will also be marked by the first time that temporary lights (provided by ESPN) will be used at Bearcat Stadium (its lights were removed in 1977).
In 1999 Northwest defeated Carson-Newman College 58-52 in four overtimes to defend the title. The game was the longest in terms of the number of extra periods in NCAA football playoff history, surpassing six contests that were extended by three overtimes. The broadcast analyst on ESPN called it the best college football game he'd ever seen. The game solidified ESPN's interest in Division II football, prompting ESPN coverage to include the semi-final games.
In 2005, the Bearcats were a Cinderella team being ranked 22nd at the start of the playoffs but winning all of their playoff games on the road until reaching the finals with Grand Valley State University. Northwest led the game until the closing minutes and still almost pulled the game out. The Cinderella nature of Northwest coming from 22nd to challenge the #1 team in the final has been evoked as a weakness of the Bowl Championship Series where such a run would be impossible.
During the Tjeersma run through 2006, Northwest has made eight post-season appearances and won six MIAA titles.
In the 2006 regular season, the Bearcats went undefeated 11-0. They then went 3-0 in the playoffs to go in a rematch against Grand Valley State University at the national Championship.
