The participants of the Championship Game were the finalists of the 2000 I-AA Playoffs, which began with a 16-team bracket.[5]
Montana Grizzlies
Montana finished their regular season with a 10–1 record (8–0 in conference); their only loss had been to Hofstra, 10–9, in the season opener. Seeded first in the playoffs, the Grizzlies defeated 16-seed Eastern Illinois, eight-seed Richmond, and 13-seed Appalachian State to reach the final. This was the third appearance for Montana in a Division I-AA championship game, having won in 1995 and having lost in 1996.
Georgia Southern Eagles
Georgia Southern finished their regular season with a 9–2 record (7–1 in conference); one of their losses had been to Georgia of Division I-A. The Eagles, seeded third, defeated 14-seed McNeese State, 11-seed Hofstra, and second-seed Delaware to reach the final. This was the eighth appearance for Georgia Southern in a Division I-AA championship game, having five prior wins (1985, 1986, 1989, 1990, 1999) and two prior losses (1988, 1998).
^ ab"Scoring Summary (Final) Georgia Southern vs Montana" (PDF). December 16, 2000. Retrieved April 20, 2019 – via AWS.
^Rogers, Prentis (December 16, 2000). "Div. I-AA game looking better vs. a so-so NFL slate". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. p. H2. Retrieved February 7, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
^"2000 I-AA National Championship - Georgia Southern vs Montana". August 25, 2013. Retrieved February 7, 2019 – via YouTube.
^"Georgia Southern 27, Montana 25 (final)". Missoulian. Missoula, Montana. December 16, 2000. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
^"Division I-AA Football Playoff Bracket". The Montana Standard. Butte, Montana. November 20, 2000. p. B4. Retrieved February 6, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
^ ab"Grizzly Summary (box score)". Missoulian. Missoula, Montana. December 17, 2000. p. C2. Retrieved February 7, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
^ ab"FCS Playoff History" (PDF). Southern Conference. 2009. Retrieved February 7, 2019 – via soconsports.com.
Further reading
"National Championship Rewind: 2000". gseagles.com. August 21, 2014. Retrieved February 7, 2019.