Lamar Cardinals football

For information on all Lamar University sports, see Lamar Cardinals and Lady Cardinals
Lamar Cardinals football
2018 Lamar Cardinals football team
First season 1923
Athletic director Marco Born
Head coach Mike Schultz
2nd season, 3–13 (.188)
Stadium Provost Umphrey Stadium
(Capacity: 16,000)
Field W. S. Bud Leonard Field
Field surface Hellas Matrix Turf[1]
Location Beaumont, Texas
Conference Southland Conference
All-time record 207–280–9 (.426)
Bowl record 1–1 (.500)
Conference titles 5 (1957, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1971)
Rivalries McNeese State
Louisiana–Lafayette
Sam Houston State
Colors Red and White[2]
         
Fight song Cardinals Fight!
Mascot Cardinal
Marching band The Showcase of Southeast Texas[3]
Website Lamar Cardinals

The Lamar Cardinals football program represents Lamar University in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) level. The Cardinals are members of the Southland Conference and play their home games in the 16,000 seat Provost Umphrey Stadium.[4] The team's head coach is Mike Schultz.

History

The early years

From its inception as South Park Junior College in 1923, football was a part of Lamar's history. It was discontinued in 1928 because of a lack of common opponents but was revived again in 1932 by the renamed Lamar College. Coach John Gray led his charges to records of 8–1 that season and 8–1–1 in 1934 before the program was discontinued again in 1942 and did not resume again until the end of World War II. Football was restored in 1946 and the first football scholarships were offered. In the 1946 season Lamar posted an 8–2 ledger. The 1948 club (8–4–0) won two bowl games, and the 1949 outfit won an all time school record 10 games and another bowl trophy as the school bade farewell to the junior college era.

After the school moved up to the NAIA level in the Lone Star Conference, the Cardinals didn’t have a winning season until a superb 8–0–2 season in 1957 ignited a string of 11 consecutive winning campaigns. The 1961 team advanced to the Tangerine Bowl (now the Capital One Bowl) against Middle Tennessee State on December 29, 1961, and won 21–14.

Just as the Cardinals were becoming a perennial contender in the Lone Star loop, school officials moved the athletic program forward into the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) college division ranks in 1963 via the Southland Conference. The football team enjoyed immediate success with three straight SLC grid titles (1964–66). In 1964 the Cardinals were invited to the Pecan Bowl after a 6–3–1 campaign. The Cardinals lost 19–17 to Northern Iowa. The Cardinals had a second-place finish in 1967. A year later, the school's athletic program embarked on another challenge by upgrading to the NCAA Division I level.[5]

Lamar averaged 12,000 patrons through 1974, drawing a then record 16,226 against arch-rival McNeese State to Cardinal Stadium in 1972. The transition to Division I proved to be a spark for many LU sports but football experienced a downturn after 1974. Fans responded when new coach Larry Kennan delivered a 6–3–2 club in 1979; Games against Louisiana Tech (17,600) and West Texas State (17,250) rank second and third, respectively, behind the standing-room-only 18,500 Baylor drew for the 1980 opener. Lamar set an all-time attendance record by averaging 16,380 that season. The Cardinals’ signature win came on September 5, 1981, in an 18–17 win over the UPI #20 ranked Baylor Bears under Head Coach Larry Kennan.

Football went independent when Lamar left the SLC in 1987 to join the basketball-flavored American South Conference.

Disbandment and reintroduction

Dismal support finally led to larger-than-expected deficits and provided the bottom line fodder for five new appointees to the then-Lamar University System board of regents to pull the plug on football at their first official session in 1989 (5 to 4 vote).

In 2010, as a member of the Texas State University System, the university brought the football team back.[6] In preparation for the return of play the University did extensive work on the facilities including, Provost Umphrey Stadium, a new 54,000 sq ft Athletic complex,[7] and seven high class suites built into the existing Montagne Center,[8] new field turf,[1] and a new 26' X 51' video board.[9] The university hired former NFL player Ray Woodard as the head coach to lead the charge in bringing the Cardinals back to the gridiron. Former Basketball Coach Billy Tubbs was hired as the Athletic Director in 2006 and had a significant role in bringing back the Cardinals football team.

The football program, discontinued at the end of the 1989 season, was restarted with its first season back in 2010. The team competed as an independent that year. The first conference competition following the restart was in 2011.

Conference affiliations

Seasons Conference
1923–1926Independent
1927–1931Football not a sponsored sport
1932–1942Independent
1943–1945Football not a sponsored sport – World War II
1946–1950Southwestern Junior College Conference
1951–1962Lone Star Conference
1963–1986Southland Conference
1987–1989Division I-AA Independent
1990–2009Football not a sponsored sport
2010–presentSouthland Conference

Division history

Seasons Division
1923–1926National Junior College Athletic Association
1927–1931Football not a sponsored sport
1932–1942National Junior College Athletic Association
1943–1945Football not a sponsored sport – World War II
1946–1950National Junior College Athletic Association
1951–1962National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA)
1963–1972NCAA College Division (Small College)
1973–1977NCAA Division I (University)
1978–1981NCAA Division I-A
1982–1989NCAA Division I-AA
1990–2009Football not a sponsored sport
2010–presentNCAA Division I FCS

Early Years Reference: [10]

Bowl games

Lamar participated in two NCAA College Division level bowl games, going 1–1.

Season Coach Bowl Opponent Result
1961James B. HigginsTangerine BowlMiddle TennesseeW 21–14
1964Vernon GlassPecan BowlNorthern IowaL 17–19

Seasons

This listing includes only the seasons Lamar competed as a four-year college beginning with the 1951 season.

Conference Champions * Bowl game berth ^
Season Head coach Conference Season results Bowl result Notes
Conference finish Wins Losses Ties
Lamar Cardinals
1951 Stan Lambert Lone Star 5th 4 6 0 —
1952 Lone Star 5th 2 7 0 —
1953 J. B. Higgins Lone Star 4th 3 7 0 —
1954 Lone Star 6th 3 7 0 —
1955 Lone Star 4th 4 6 0 —
1956 Lone Star 5th 4 4 1 —
1957 * Lone Star T–1st 8 0 2 —
1958 Lone Star T–2nd 6 2 0 —
1959 Lone Star T–3rd 8 3 0 —
1960 Lone Star T–2nd 8 4 0 —
1961 Lone Star 3rd 8 2 1 — Won 1961 Tangerine Bowl vs Middle Tennessee State, 21–14 ^
1962 Lone Star 4th 7 3 0 —
1963 Vernon Glass Independent - 5 4 0 —
1964 * Southland Conference 1st 6 3 1 — Lost 1964 Pecan Bowl vs Northern Iowa, 17–19 ^
1965 * Southland Conference 1st 6 4 0 —
1966 * Southland Conference T–1st 6 4 0 —
1967 Southland Conference 2nd 7 3 0 —
1968 Southland Conference 5th 0 10 0 —
1969 Southland Conference 5th 3 7 0 —
1970 Southland Conference 2nd 3 7 0 —
1971 * Southland Conference T–1st 5 6 0 —
1972 Southland Conference T–3rd 8 3 0 —
1973 Southland Conference T–2nd 5 5 0 —
1974 Southland Conference 2nd 8 2 0 —
1975 Southland Conference 6th 1 10 0 —
1976 Bob Frederick Southland Conference 6th 2 9 0 —
1977 Southland Conference 6th 2 9 0 —
1978 Southland Conference 6th 2 8 1 —
1979 Larry Kennan Southland Conference 3rd 6 3 2 —
1980 Southland Conference 5th 3 8 0 —
1981 Southland Conference 5th 4 6 1 —
1982 Ken Stephens Southland Conference T–5th 4 7 0 —
1983 Southland Conference 7th 2 9 0 —
1984 Southland Conference T–6th 2 9 0 —
1985 Southland Conference 7th 3 8 0 —
1986 Ray Alborn Southland Conference 6th 2 9 0 —
1987 Independent - 3 8 0 —
1988 Independent - 3 8 0 —
1989 Independent - 5 5 0 —
1990–2009
No football program
2010 Ray Woodard Independent - 5 6 0 —
2011 Southland Conference 6th 4 7 0 —
2012 Southland Conference 7th 4 8 0 —
2013 Southland Conference 6th 5 7 0 —
2014 Southland Conference T–3rd 8 4 0 —
2015 Southland Conference T–5th 5 6 0 —
2016 Southland Conference T–8th 3 8 0 —
2017 Mike Schultz Southland Conference 11th 2 9 0 —
Total 206 279 9 (only includes regular season games)
1 1 0 (only includes bowl games)
207 280 9 (all games)
References:[10][11][12]

Attendance

Highest attendance

Source:[10]

Below is a list of the Cardinals best-attended home games (all at Provost Umphrey Stadium).

Rk.DateOpponentAttendance
Highest attendance
1September 13, 1980Baylor18,500
2September 22, 1979Louisiana Tech17,600
3October 9, 2010Langston University17,306
4October 6, 1979West Texas State17,250
5September 17, 1977Louisiana-Lafayette17,222
6October 2, 2010Sam Houston State17,187

As of the 2013–14 season.

Yearly attendance

Below is the Cardinals' home attendance since program reinstatement.

SeasonAverageHigh
Lamar Cardinals
2017[13]6,6318,417
2016[13]7,4298,697
2015[13]9,36413,136
2014[13]8,34710,212
2013[13]8,37910,738
2012[13]11,11915,367
2011[13]14,44215,367
2010[13]16,07817,306

As of the 2017 season.

Rivalries

McNeese State Cowboys

The two teams have met 34 times on the football field, with McNeese State currently holding a 24–9–1 edge in the all-time series. The rivalry has been expanded from football to head-to-head competition in all sports under a joint agreement with the two universities and Verizon Wireless.[14]

McNeese State–Lamar: All-Time Record
Games played First meeting Last meeting Lamar wins Lamar losses Ties Win %
33 November 10, 1951 (lost 7–13) November 28, 2015 (lost 14–20) 9 24 1 27.9%

Inactive rivalry

Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns

The first Sabine Shoe trophy was first awarded in 1937 to the winner of the SLI–Lamar football game.[15] The name of the bronze rivalry trophy was derived from the Sabine River that forms the Texas–Louisiana border. USL defeated Lamar in the 1978 edition of the rivalry game, but the Ragin' Cajuns were not awarded the trophy as it had vanished.[16] The Sabine Shoe trophy now sits in at trophy case in the Ragin' Cajun Athletic Complex.

UL Lafayette–Lamar: All-Time Record
Games played First meeting Last meeting Lamar wins Lamar losses Ties Win %
34 October 27, 1923 (lost 16–19) September 1, 2012 (lost 0–40) 11 23 0 32.4%

Future scheduled out of conference games

Future Out of Conference Games
YearHome GamesNeutral GamesAway Games
2019Texas A&M[17]
2020Rice[18]

References

  1. 1 2 "Football Artificial Turf Project Underway – LAMARCARDINALS.COM – Lamar Cardinals Official Athletic Site". lamarcardinals.com. Archived from the original on 2014-07-15.
  2. ↑ LU Visual Standards (PDF). Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  3. ↑ http://fineartscomm.lamar.edu/music/ensembles/bands/marching-band.html
  4. ↑ "LAMARCARDINALS.COM – Lamar Cardinals Official Athletic Site – Football". lamarcardinals.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-13.
  5. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-22. Retrieved 2011-08-11.
  6. ↑ "Houston couple gives Lamar University engineering, football program million gift – LAMARCARDINALS.COM – Lamar Cardinals Official Athletic Site". lamarcardinals.com. Archived from the original on 2014-11-29.
  7. ↑ "LAMARCARDINALS.COM – Lamar Cardinals Official Athletic Site – Facilities". lamarcardinals.com. Archived from the original on 2014-07-12.
  8. ↑ "Morgan Suites to enhance Lamar University athletics facilities – LAMARCARDINALS.COM – Lamar Cardinals Official Athletic Site". lamarcardinals.com. Archived from the original on 2014-07-15.
  9. ↑ "Lamar University". daktronics.com.
  10. 1 2 3 http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/lama/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2012-13/misc_non_event/6-3-1.pdf
  11. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-07-29. Retrieved 2014-07-21.
  12. ↑ "The Automated ScoreBook". lamarcardinals.com. Archived from the original on 2014-07-29.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Archived Team-by-Team Final Statistics". web1.ncaa.org/stats. National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  14. ↑ "Verizon Wireless Announces Lamar-McNeese State Rivalry Series – LAMARCARDINALS.COM – Lamar Cardinals Official Athletic Site". lamarcardinals.com. Archived from the original on 2014-10-24.
  15. ↑ "Tribal lore". The Sporting News. 1997. Archived from the original on 2012-07-09.
  16. ↑ "The Week". CNN. October 9, 1978.
  17. ↑ Kevin Kelley (December 8, 2016). "Texas A&M to Host Northwestern State in 2018, Lamar in 2019". FBSSchedules. Retrieved May 10, 2018.
  18. ↑ Kevin Kelley (March 21, 2018). "Rice adds Lamar to 2020 football schedule". FBSSchedules. Retrieved May 10, 2018.
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