The Randolph–Macon Yellow Jackets football team represents Randolph–Macon College in the sport of

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 ...

. In 1969 Randolph–Macon defeated the

University of Bridgeport The University of Bridgeport (UB) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin University; it retain its own ...

(

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

) 47–28 in the inaugural Knute Rockne Bowl laying claim to a shared College Division III National Championship with

Wittenberg University Wittenberg University is a private liberal arts college in Springfield, Ohio. It has 1,326 full-time students representing 33 states and 9 foreign countries. Wittenberg University is associated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ...

( Springfield, Ohio) which had defeated William Jewell College in the first Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl. The 4 teams had been chosen by the NCAA to compete in the first ever playoffs established for Division II schools. No complete playoff was set up until 1973. The 1969 football team was inducted into the college's Hall of Fame in 2004. The Yellow Jacket football team is currently coached by Pedro Arruza and won the ODAC championship in 2008. As of Nov 2013 the football team had posted a record 7 seasons with a winning record under Coach Arruza. The football team plays its home games at

Day Field Day Field is a 5,000-capacity stadium in Ashland, Virginia Ashland is a town in Hanover County, Virginia, United States, located north of Richmond along Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 7,225, up ...

History

Randolph-Macon has a rich football history dating back to 1881. Randolph-Macon was also a founding member of the

Eastern Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Association The Eastern Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Association (originally known as the Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Association) was founded in January 1900 by nine colleges in the state of Virginia. Originally, the association was divided into ...

(originally just the Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Association) in 1900, and remained full member of the association until the organization's demise in 1921. On November 24, 2020, the 1984 football victory over Hampden Sydney was voted the greatest football game in the history of Randolph Macon dating back to 1891. In this game, Randolph Macon’s defense forced five turnovers which allowed the explosive and record breaking offense to score 31 points in a 31-10 victory. This win allowed Randolph Macon to advance to the NCAA playoffs for the first time in the school’s history finishing the regular season ranked #5 in the nation and #1 in the NCAA South Region. During the historic 1984 season, Randolph Macon wide receiver Keith Gilliam broke the all time NCAA record by having nine consecutive receptions for touchdowns.

Playoffs

The Yellow Jackets have made the NCAA Division III playoffs six times, with

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Randolph-Macon Yellow Jackets football 1881 establishments in Virginia American football teams established in 1881