The NAU Lumberjacks 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 wi ...

team for the

Northern Arizona University Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a public research university based in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was founded in 1899 as the final public university established in the Arizona Territory, 13 years before Arizona was admitted as the 48th state. ...

located in

Flagstaff, Arizona Flagstaff ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Coconino County in northern Arizona, in the southwestern United States. In 2019, the city's estimated population was 75,038. Flagstaff's combined metropolitan area has an estimated population ...

. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference. The school's first football team was fielded in 1915. The team plays its home games at the 17,500 seat Walkup Skydome.

Chris Ball Christopher Farley Ball (born May 7, 1963) is an American football coach and former player. He assumed the position as the head football coach at Northern Arizona University Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a public research university b ...

has been the head coach since the 2019 season.

History

The Lumberjacks have maintained numerous rivalries with their western counterparts. Competition has not only been limited to the west. The Lumberjacks have also taken on eastern programs such as the

Ole Miss Rebels The Ole Miss Rebels are the 18 men's and women's intercollegiate athletic teams that are funded by and represent the University of Mississippi, located in Oxford. The first was the football team, which began play in 1893. Originally known as ...

Florida Atlantic Owls The Florida Atlantic Owls are the athletics teams of Florida Atlantic University. The Owls participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)'s Division I as members of Conference USA. On October 21, 2021, Florida Atlantic acce ...

, and the Appalachian State Mountaineers. On September 18, 2021, Northern Arizona beat

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

for the first time since

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort to assassinate Emperor Hir ...

, winning 21–19. It was their first win against a FBS team since beating UTEP in 2018 and their third overall win against an FBS team since

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

. It is also the first time they beat a member of the

Pac-12 Conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS; formerly Divisi ...

Classifications

* 1937–1952: NCAA College Division * 1953–1968: NAIA * 1969–1972: NCAA College Division * 1973–1977: NCAA Division II * 1978–present: NCAA Division I–AA/FCS

Conference affiliations

* Independent (1915–1930, 1963–1969) *

Border Conference The Border Conference, officially known as the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association, was an NCAA-affiliated college athletic conference founded in 1931 that disbanded following the 1961–62 season. Centered in the southwestern United Stat ...

(1931–1952) * New Mexico Conference / Frontier Conference (1953–1962) * Big Sky Conference (1970–present)

Championships

Conference championships

Postseason results

NAIA

NCAA Division II playoffs

* NAU was runner-up in Big Sky to champion

Boise State Boise State University (BSU) is a public research university in Boise, Idaho. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding baccalaureate and master's degrees It became a pub ...

, which had a scheduling conflict.

NCAA Division I-AA/FCS playoffs

The Lumberjacks have appeared in the NCAA I-AA/FCS playoffs six times, with an overall record of 1–6.

Rivalries

Southern Utah

Northern Arizona leads Southern Utah 16–10 in the series through the 2021 fall season.

Current coaching staff

Notable former players

Notable alumni include: *

John Bonds John Bonds (born February 6, 1970) is a former American football quarterback who played two seasons in the Arena Football League (AFL) with the Arizona Rattlers and Memphis Pharaohs. He first enrolled at Arizona State University before transferri ...

* Shawn Collins * Michael Haynes *

Michael Mendoza Michael Mendoza is a former American football quarterback who played one season with the Los Angeles Cobras of the Arena Football League. He first enrolled at Los Angeles Harbor College before transferring to Northern Arizona University. He atten ...

Rex Mirich Rex L. Mirich (born March 11, 1941) is a former American football defensive lineman in the American Football League (AFL) and the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for Northern Arizona, Mirich was drafted by both the ...

, first Lumberjack football player to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame *

Keith O'Neil Keith Daniel O'Neil (born August 26, 1980 in Rochester, Michigan) is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys and Indianapolis Colts. He earned a Super Bowl ring with the Colts in Super Bo ...

Khalil Paden Khalil Alexander Paden (born October 5, 1989) is an American former gridiron football wide receiver. He played college football at San Jose State and Northern Arizona. He has also been a member of the Sacramento Mountain Lions, Calgary Stampe ...

Speedy Duncan Leslie Herbert "Speedy" Duncan (August 10, 1942 – December 9, 2021) was an American professional football player who was a cornerback and return specialist in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). He played co ...

: Played six years professional football in the American Football League (AFL). * Travis Brown: Played for the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 a ...

and

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division ...

from 2000 to 2003. *

Willard Reaves Willard Sheldon Reaves (born August 17, 1959) is an American-Canadian former professional gridiron football running back who played for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in Canadian Football League, and for the Miami Dolphins and the Washington Redskins ...

: Played pro football in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a c ...

and the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the majo ...

. In the CFL he played for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, where his team won the 1984

Grey Cup The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...

and, in the same season, Reaves won the Most Outstanding Player Award. He also played for the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) ...

and

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...

in the NFL. *

Tom Jurich Thomas M. Jurich (born July 26, 1956) is a former American college sports administrator and former football player. He previously served as the vice president and director of athletics at the University of Louisville. He was hired at the Universi ...

, former athletic director at the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one ...

Archie Amerson Archie J. Amerson (born August 24, 1974) is an American former professional Canadian football running back and slotback who played in the Canadian Football League (CFL) from 1997 to 2004, appearing in 122 regular season games for the Hamilton ...

Pete Mandley William "Pete" H. Mandley (born July 29, 1961 in Mesa, Arizona), is a former professional American football player who was selected by the Detroit Lions in the 2nd round of the 1984 NFL Draft. A 5'10" 191 lbs. wide receiver from Northern A ...

Allan Clark Allan Vincent Clark (born June 8, 1957) is a former American football running back in the National Football League who played for the New England Patriots, the Green Bay Packers, and the Buffalo Bills. Clark played collegiate ball for Nort ...

Derek Mason Derek Mason (born September 29, 1969) is an American college football coach. He currently is the defensive coordinator for Oklahoma State University. Mason served as the head football coach at Vanderbilt University from 2014 until midway throug ...

– college football coach *

Case Cookus Stephen Case Cookus (born October 6, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). As a true freshman at Northern Arizona University, he was named the recipient of the 2015 Jerry Rice Aw ...

References

External links

* {{Big Sky Conference football navbox American football teams established in 1915 1915 establishments in Arizona