Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football
The Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football program is the intercollegiate American football team for Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA) located in the U.S. state of Texas. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) as members of the Southland Conference, which SFA rejoins for the 2024 season after a three-year absence.[2] SFA had played the 2023 season in the United Athletic Conference (UAC), newly formed for the 2023 season as a merger of the football leagues of SFA's previous home of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) and the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN). It replaced an alliance between the two conferences that operated in the 2021 and 2022 seasons.[3][4]
| Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
| First season | 1923 | ||
| Athletic director | Ryan Ivey | ||
| Head coach | Colby Carthel 6th season, 26–29 (.473) | ||
| Stadium | Homer Bryce Stadium (capacity: 14,575) | ||
| Field surface | Hellas Matrix Turf | ||
| Location | Nacogdoches, Texas | ||
| NCAA division | Division I FCS | ||
| Conference | Southland Conference | ||
| All-time record | 426–545–30 (.441) | ||
| Bowl record | 1–0 (1.000) | ||
| Conference titles | 6 (1 Gulf Star, 4 SLC, 1 WAC) | ||
| Rivalries | Northwestern State Demons (rivalry) Sam Houston Bearkats (rivalry) | ||
| Colors | Purple and white[1] | ||
| Website | www.sfajacks.com | ||
SFA had long been a member of the Southland Conference (SLC) before joining the WAC in July 2021, the same time that conference relaunched its football league at the FCS level.[5] It returned to the SLC for 2024 and beyond. Stephen F. Austin's first football team was fielded in 1923. The team plays its home games at the 14,575 seat Homer Bryce Stadium in Nacogdoches, Texas.
Conference championships
| Year | Coach | Conference | Overall record | Conference record | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985† | Jim Hess | Gulf Star Conference | 9–2 | 4–1 | |
| 1989 | Lynn Graves | Southland Conference | 12–2–1 | 6–0–1 | |
| 1999† | Mike Santiago | 8–3 | 6–1 | ||
| 2009† | J. C. Harper | 10–3 | 6–1 | ||
| 2010 | 9–3 | 6–1 | |||
| 2022 | Colby Carthel | Western Athletic Conference | 6–5 | 3–1 | |
| Conference championships | 6 | ||||
† Co-champions
Head coaches
- Bob Shelton (1923–1928)
- Gene White (1929–1936)
- Red Willis (1937–1940)
- Maurice A. Baumgarten (1941)
- No team (1942–1945)
- Bill Pierce (1946)
- Ted Jefferies (1947–1955)
- Harold J. Fischer (1956–1958)
- Red Conkright (1959–1961)
- Shorty Hughes (1962–1970)
- John Levra (1971–1974)
- Dick Munzinger (1975)
- Charles Simmons (1976–1981)
- Jim Hess (1982–1988)
- Lynn Graves (1989–1991)
- John Pearce (1992–1998)
- Mike Santiago (1999–2004)
- Robert McFarland (2005–2006)
- J. C. Harper (2007–2013)
- Clint Conque (2014–2017)
- Jeff Byrd (interim) (2018)
- Colby Carthel (2019–present)
Notable former players
Notable alumni include:
Postseason history
The Lumberjacks earned a berth in the NCAA Division I FCS playoffs in 2009, the first postseason appearance for the team since 1995. The 2010 season marked the first time that the school had won an outright conference championship since 1989.
The team's only bowl game was the 1973 Poultry Bowl, in which the team defeated Gardner–Webb, 31–10, in Gainesville, Georgia.
Division I-AA/FCS Playoffs results
The Lumberjacks have appeared in the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs eight times with an overall record of 7–8.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | First round Quarterfinals | Jackson State Georgia Southern | W 24–0 L 6–27 |
| 1989 | First round Quarterfinals Semifinals National Championship Game | Grambling State Southwest Missouri State Furman Georgia Southern | W 59–56 W 55–25 W 21–19 L 34–37 |
| 1993 | First round | Troy State | L 20–42 |
| 1995 | First round Quarterfinals Semifinals | Eastern Illinois Appalachian State Montana | W 34–29 W 27–17 L 14–70 |
| 2009 | First round Quarterfinals | Eastern Washington Montana | W 44–33 L 0–51 |
| 2010 | Second round | Villanova | L 24–54 |
| 2014 | First round | Northern Iowa | L 10–44 |
| 2021 | First round | Incarnate Word | L 28–35 OT |
Rivalries
The Lumberjacks have active rivalries with the Northwestern State Demons and the Sam Houston Bearkats.
Future non-conference opponents
Announced schedules as of December 4, 2022.[6] Austin Peay, announced as a non-conference opponent for 2024 and 2025, became a conference opponent with the formation of the UAC. However, the statuses of these matchups, and in some cases their existence, are subject to change due to SFA's return to the SLC for 2024 and beyond,
| 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | 2030 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| at Troy | at Kansas | at Nicholls | Missouri State | at Missouri State | at Louisville | ||
| Alcorn State | at North Texas | Nicholls | |||||
| at Northwestern State | at Montana State | Montana State | |||||
| Texas A&M–Commerce | at Texas A&M–Commerce | ||||||
| Northwestern State |
References
- SFA Official University Identity Standards Manual (PDF). June 17, 2020. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
- "SFA Athletics Accepts Invitation to Join Southland Conference in 2024-25" (Press release). Southland Conference. May 29, 2024. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
- "ASUN And WAC Unveil 2023 Football Schedule" (Press release). Western Athletic Conference. December 20, 2022. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- "ASUN-WAC Football Partnership Formally Rebrands As The United Athletic Conference" (Press release). ASUN Conference. April 17, 2023. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
- "WAC Announces Expedited Entrance for Four Texas Institutions" (Press release). Western Athletic Conference. January 21, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
- "Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks Football Future Schedules". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved December 4, 2022.