The 1971 Tampa Spartans football team represented the

University of Tampa The University of Tampa (UT) is a private university in Tampa, Florida. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. UT offers more than 200 programs of study, including 22 master's degrees and a broad variety of majors, ...

in the

1971 NCAA College Division football season The 1971 NCAA College Division football season was the 16th season of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the NCAA College Division level. Conference standings Rankings College Div ...

. It was the Spartans' 35th season. The team was led by head coach

Bill Fulcher William Marcus Fulcher (February 9, 1934 – September 23, 2022) was an American professional football player and college coach. He played college football at the Georgia Institute of Technology and then played pro ball for the Washington Redsk ...

, in his first year, and played their home games at

Tampa Stadium Tampa Stadium (nicknamed The Big Sombrero and briefly known as Houlihan's Stadium) was a large open-air stadium (maximum capacity about 74,000) located in Tampa, Florida, which opened in 1967 and was significantly expanded in 1974–75. The faci ...

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

. They finished with a record of six wins and five losses (6–5). Fulcher was hired on January 7, 1971, to serve as the replacement for

Fran Curci Fran Curci (born June 11, 1938) is a former American football player and coach. He was an All-American quarterback at the University of Miami in 1959. He served as head coach at the University of Tampa from 1968 to 1970, the University of Miami ...

who resigned to become the head coach at

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

. After an upset loss against

Louisiana Tech Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activi ...

to open the season, the Spartans won four consecutive games against

Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...

, , and . Ranked No. 2 as they entered their game against Villanova, Tampa was upset by the Wildcats 24–3. After the loss, the Spartans would lose three of their next four games. A week after their loss at

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

, Tampa returned home and lost to Ole Miss by a single point in a game that saw the Spartans score on touchdown passes of 93 and 49 yards. Tampa then rebounded the next week with a 43–7 win over

East Carolina East Carolina University (ECU) is a public research university in Greenville, North Carolina. It is the fourth largest university in North Carolina. Founded on March 8, 1907, as a teacher training school, East Carolina has grown from its orig ...

. The Spartans then closed the season with a loss at Vanderbilt and a victory over . On January 21, 1972, Fulcher resigned as head coach of the Spartans to take the same position at

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

Schedule

References

{{Tampa Spartans football navbox

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough County ...

Tampa Spartans football seasons

Tampa Spartans football The Tampa Spartans football program was an intercollegiate American football team for the University of Tampa (UT) located in Tampa, Florida, that began play in 1933. The program competed against other small college programs in the forerunner of ...