This might come as a surprise:  many Division II teams beat Division I teams.  So you can immediately drop the notion that Division Ii is inherently worse than Division I.  

The NCAA's Division II is comprised of about 285 colleges, which makes it the smallest NCAA Division.

As with NCAA Division I recruiting (and unlike NCAA Division III recruiting), NCAA Division II teams are allowed to have athletic scholarships.  Scroll down for a list of the scholarship limits by sport and gender.  

Another considerable difference between Divisions II and I is the amount of times coaches can spend with their players in the off-season.  When going through the NCAA Division II recruiting process, their something you have to take into consideration:  how much time do you want to dedicate to your sport in the off-season?

Division II rules allow college coaches to spend a maximum of 8 hours per week with their players in the off-season.  Here's where it gets interesting.  The only things a coach can do with his players are weight training, conditioning, individual skill instruction and, in football, review of game film.  And only two hours max can be spent on individual skill training, with a group of no more than four players. 

Why does the NCAA restrict Division II like this?  To make sure coaches don't overwork their players.  The result is that DII athletes have a lot of time to pursue other activities on campus and to study.
 

NCAA Division II Men's Sports Scholarships


Baseball: 9

Basketball: 10

Cross Country/Track and Field: 12.6

Football: 36

Golf: 3.6

Gymnastics: 5.4

Ice Hockey: 13.5

Lacrosse: 10.8

Soccer: 9

Swimming and Diving: 8.1

Water Polo: 4.5

Wrestling: 9


NCAA Division II Scholarship Limits - Women


Basketball: 10

Cross Country/Track and Field: 12.6

Field Hockey: 6.3

Golf: 5.4

Gymnastics: 6

Ice Hockey: 18

Lacrosse: 9.9

Soccer: 9.9

Softball: 7.2

Squash: 9

Swimming and Diving: 8.1

Tennis: 6

Volleyball: 8

Water Polo: 8


NCAA II Academic Requirements

Unlike Division I, Division II does not use a sliding 

scale for academic eligibility.

A. Graduate from high school

B. Earn a 2.0 GPA or better in these 14 core courses:

3 years English

2 years Math (Algebra I or higher)

2 years Natural/physical science (1 year of lab if 

offered by high school)

2 years Social Science

2 years of your choice of additional English OR Math 

OR Science

3 years Any of above OR foreign language OR non-

doctrinal religion/philosophy

C. Earn an SAT score of at least 820 OR an ACT sum score of at least 68.



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