The Northwestern State Demons football program is the intercollegiate

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

team for

Northwestern State University Northwestern State University of Louisiana (NSU) is a public university primarily situated in Natchitoches, Louisiana, with a nursing campus in Shreveport and general campuses in Leesville/Fort Polk and Alexandria. It is a part of the Univer ...

located in the U.S. state of

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and is a member of the

Southland Conference The Southland Conference, abbreviated as SLC, is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the South Central United States (specifically Texas and Louisiana). It participates in the NCAA's Division I for all sports; for football, it ...

. Northwestern State's first football team was fielded in 1907. The team plays its home games at the 15,971 seat

Harry Turpin Stadium Harry Turpin Stadium is a 15,971-seat multi-purpose stadium in Natchitoches, Louisiana. It opened in 1975 and is home to the Northwestern State University Demons football team. History Donald Gray Horton (1945–2013), a Coushatta lawyer and phi ...

Natchitoches, Louisiana Natchitoches ( ; french: link=no, Les Natchitoches) is a small city and the parish seat of Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana, United States. Established in 1714 by Louis Juchereau de St. Denis as part of French Louisiana, the community was named ...

History

Northwestern State football has the distinction of being the only NCAA division IAA/FCS member to have 2 NFL rookies of the year. In 1981,

Joe Delaney Joe Alton Delaney (; October 30, 1958 – June 29, 1983) was an American football running back who played two seasons in the National Football League (NFL). In his two seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, Delaney set four franchise records ...

, running back for the Kansas City Chiefs, was awarded the AFC Rookie of the year by UPI. In 1988, John Stephens, running back for the New England Patriots, was named Offensive/AFC Rookie of the year. No other 4-year institution in the state of Louisiana has more than one.

Conference affiliations

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

(1907–1913, 1926–1927, 1971, 1976–1977) *

Louisiana Intercollegiate Athletic Association The Louisiana Intercollegiate Athletic Association (LIAA) was an intercollegiate athletic conference that existed from 1912 to 1925. The conference's members were located in the state of Louisiana.SIAA (1928–1941) *

Louisiana Intercollegiate Conference The Louisiana Intercollegiate Conference (LIC) was an intercollegiate athletic conference that existed from 1939 to 1947, and featured institutions located in the state of Louisiana. The conference sponsored the following sports during its existenc ...

(1942–1947) *

Gulf States Conference The Gulf States Conference (GSC) was an intercollegiate athletic football conference that existed from 1948 to 1971. The league had members in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi. Many of the league's members from Louisiana joined after the Louisi ...

(1948–1970) *

Gulf South Conference The Gulf South Conference (GSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, which operates in the Southeastern United States. History Originally known as the Mi ...

(1972–1974) * Division II Independent (1975) * Division I-AA Independent (1978–1983) * Gulf Star Conference (1984–1986) *

(1987–present)

Championships

Conference championships

Northwestern State has 12 conference championships. † Co-champions

Division I-AA/FCS Playoffs results

The Demons have appeared in the I-AA/FCS playoffs six times with an overall record of 3–6.

Rivalries

McNeese State

McNeese State McNeese State University is a public university in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Founded in 1939 as Lake Charles Junior College, it was renamed McNeese Junior College after John McNeese, an early local educator. The present name was adopted in 1970. ...

leads the series 45–22–1 through the 2018 season.

Nicholls

Northwestern State leads the series with Nicholls 28–18 through the 2018 season.

Southeastern Louisiana

Southeastern Louisiana leads the series 28–22 through the 2018 season.

Stephen F. Austin

Battle for Chief Caddo Each season, Stephen F. Austin State University of

Nacogdoches, Texas Nacogdoches ( ) is a small city in East Texas and the county seat of Nacogdoches County, Texas, United States. The 2020 U.S. census recorded the city's population at 32,147. Nacogdoches is a sister city of the smaller, similarly named Natchito ...

and Northwestern State play for the country's largest football trophy.2013 Chief Caddo 2013
/ref> In 1961, longtime rivals SFA and Northwestern State decided to award the winner of the game a trophy, the game was won by Northwestern State University. According to the stipulations of that particular match, the loser would have to present the winner with a tree chopped down from a nearby forest. In March 1962, the Lumberjacks of SFA in Nacogdoches, Texas, presented NSU with a black gum tree trunk from the SFA campus from which a statue was to be carved. The black gum tree weighed over a ton and was thirty inches in diameter. An Indian statue, Chief Caddo, was chosen because of the historic founding of Natchitoches, Louisiana and Nacogdoches, Texas by Indian tribes. Natchitoches means chinquapin eaters and Nacogdoches means persimmon eaters. It was carved by Harold Greene in Logansport and required over 200 hours of labor. The name “Chief Indian Caddo” was selected in honor of the ancient federation of Caddo Indian tribes, which once inhabited the northern Louisiana area. The final painting of the statue was done at Northwestern. The finished product stands around 7.6 feet tall and weighs about 320 pounds. The first game for Chief Caddo was September 15, 1962. Northwestern won 23–6. Tradition has it that the winner of the annual NSU and SFA football game keeps Chief Caddo on their respective campus. Currently, Chief Caddo is the largest college football trophy in the nation.

Louisiana–Monroe

In the 1992 edition of the rivalry game, the teams' mascots

Vic the Demon Vic the Demon is the mascot at Northwestern State University Northwestern State University of Louisiana (NSU) is a public university primarily situated in Natchitoches, Louisiana, with a nursing campus in Shreveport and general campuses in ...

and

Chief Brave Spirit Ace the Warhawk is the mascot for the Louisiana–Monroe Warhawks, the athletic teams of the University of Louisiana at Monroe in Monroe, Louisiana, USA. Ace is an anthropomorphic hawk who performs at all ULM athletic events. History Prior to ...

got involved in a fight that distracted television cameras to the point that the entire altercation is caught on video. In the scuffle, Vic the Demon's head is ripped off as the two crashed to the ground behind one of the end zones, which according to the video clip breaks a "cardinal rule" of being a mascot. The melee was broken up by college police without further incident. The game was last played in 2005. Northwestern State leads the series with Louisiana–Monroe 28–19–1.

Notable former players

Notable alumni include: *

Demetress Bell Demetress Carte Bell (born May 3, 1984), formerly known as Demetrius Bell, is a former American football offensive tackle. After playing college football for Northwestern State, he was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the seventh round of the 2008 ...

- Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles *

Mark Duper Mark "Super" Duper (born January 25, 1959) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL) from 1982 to 1992. He played collegiately at Northwestern State ...

– Miami Dolphins *

Adrian Hardy Adrian Paul Hardy (born August 16, 1970) is a former American football defensive back who played three seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals. He was drafted by the 49ers in the second ...

– San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals * Jamall Johnson – Hamilton Tiger Cats *

Shelton Eppler Shelton Eppler is an American football quarterback for the Fundidores de Monterrey of the Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional (LFA). Eppler was a three-year letter winner at Navasota High School in Navasota, Texas. As a junior, he was named t ...

- Aalborg 89ers and Fundidores de Monterrey *

Jermaine Jones Jermaine Junior Jones (born November 3, 1981) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a defensive midfielder. Born in Germany to an American father and German mother, he came up through the German club system and represe ...

- New York Jets, Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys *

– Inductee of College Football Hall of Fame - Kansas City Chiefs * Al Edwards - Buffalo Bills * Mike Green - Chicago Bears, Seattle Seahawks, Washington Redskins *

- San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals *

Bobby Hebert Bobby Joseph Hebert Jr. (surname pronounced ; born August 19, 1960) is an American sportscaster and former professional football quarterback. He played in the United States Football League (USFL) and National Football League (NFL) from 1983 to ...

– New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons * Jamall Johnson - BC Lions and Hamilton Tiger Cats *

Jeremy Lane Jeremy Rashaad Lane (born July 14, 1990) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football at Northwestern State University of Louisiana and was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL Draft. He b ...

– Seattle Seahawks * Monte Ledbetter – Houston Oilers, Buffalo Bills, Atlanta Falcons *

Terrence McGee Terrence Dewayne McGee (born October 14, 1980) is a former American football cornerback and kick returner in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by Buffalo Bills in the fourth round (111th overall) of the 2003 NFL Draft. He play ...

- Buffalo Bills *

Craig Nall Craig Matthew Nall (born April 21, 1979) is a former American football quarterback who was drafted by the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL) in the fifth round of the 2002 NFL Draft. He played college football for LSU Tigers ...

- Green Bay Packers, Buffalo Bills, Houston Texans *

Ed Orgeron Edward James Orgeron Jr. (; born July 27, 1961) is an American football coach. He was most recently the head football coach at Louisiana State University (LSU), a position he held from midway through the 2016 season until the 2021 season. Orge ...

– former

LSU Tigers The LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers are the athletic teams representing Louisiana State University (LSU), a state university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU competes in NCAA Division I, Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Associat ...

Head Coach * Petey Perot - Philadelphia Eagles and New Orleans Saints *

David Pittman David Pittman (born 23 February 1969) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Adelaide Crows in the Australian Football League (AFL). Originally from South Australian National Football League (SANFL) club Norwood, Pittma ...

- Baltimore Ravens *

T-Dre Player Tchissakid Dre Player (born February 4, 1992) is a Canadian football offensive lineman who is a free agent. He was drafted by the BC Lions in the second round of the 2014 CFL Draft. He played college football at Northwestern State University a ...

– BC Lions *

Gary Reasons Gary Phillip Reasons (born February 18, 1962) is a former American football linebacker for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL), winning Super Bowl XXI and Super Bowl XXV as a member of the team. Since his retirement as a play ...

– Inductee of College Football Hall of Fame - New York Giants and Cincinnati Bengals * Barry Rubin (born 1957) - Head Strength and Conditioning Coach of the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

in the National Football League * Deon Simon - New York Jets *

Jackie Smith Jackie Larue Smith (born February 23, 1940) is a former American football tight end in the National Football League for the St. Louis Cardinals and Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at Northwestern Louisiana State College (Northwestern ...

- Inductee of Pro Football Hall of Fame - St. Louis Cardinals and Dallas Cowboys * Marcus Spears - Chicago Bears, Kansas City Chiefs, Houston Texans * John Stephens – New England Patriots * Keith Thibodeaux - Washington Redskins, Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers *

Sidney Thornton Sidney Thornton (September 2, 1954 – January 29, 2023) was an American professional American football, football player who was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2nd round (48th overall) of the 1977 NFL Draft. A 5'11", . running back fr ...

- Pittsburgh Steelers *

Charlie Tolar Charley Tolar (September 5, 1937 – April 28, 2003) was an early American Football League (AFL) star who played his entire career with the Houston Oilers. Biography Tolar attended Northwestern State University of Louisiana. At Northwestern, T ...

- Houston Oilers * Floyd Turner - New Orleans Saints, Indianapolis Colts, Baltimore Ravens * Odessa Turner - New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers * Kenny Wright - Minnesota Vikings, Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Washington Redskins

Future non-conference opponents

Announced schedules as of June 25, 2022.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Northwestern State Demons Football American football teams established in 1907 1907 establishments in Louisiana