1981 Lamar Cardinals football team

1981 Lamar Cardinals football
Conference	Southland Conference
Record	4–6–1 (1–3–1 Southland)
Head coach	Larry Kennan (3rd season)
Home stadium	Cardinal Stadium
Seasons ←  1980 1982  →

1981 Southland Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
UT Arlington $	4	–	1	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
McNeese State	3	–	1	–	1			7	–	3	–	1
Arkansas State	3	–	2	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Louisiana Tech	2	–	2	–	1			4	–	6	–	1
Lamar	1	–	3	–	1			4	–	6	–	1
Southwestern Louisiana	0	–	4	–	1			1	–	9	–	1
$ – Conference champion

The 1981 Lamar Cardinals football team represented Lamar University in the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season as a member of the Southland Conference. The Cardinals played their home games at Cardinal Stadium now named Provost Umphrey Stadium in Beaumont, Texas. Lamar finished the 1981 season with a 4–6–1 overall record and a 1–3–1 conference record. A highlight for the season was a last second victory over the defending Southwest Conference champion Baylor Bears at the Bears' home field, Floyd Casey Stadium in Waco, Texas. ^[1]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 5	at Baylor *	Baylor Stadium Waco, TX	W 18–17	22,000	[2]
September 19	vs. Sam Houston State *	Houston Astrodome Houston, TX	W 50–7	12,500	[3] [4]
September 26	Southwest Texas State *	Cardinal Stadium Beaumont, TX	L 7–24		[5]
October 3	Stephen F. Austin *	Cardinal Stadium Beaumont, TX	L 10–13		[6]
October 10	at Northeast Louisiana *	Malone Stadium Monroe, LA	W 17–13		[7]
October 17	Louisiana Tech	Cardinal Stadium Beaumont, TX	L 7–16	9,208	[8]
October 31	McNeese State	Cardinal Stadium Beaumont, TX (rivalry)	T 20–20		[9]
November 7	at Arkansas State	Indian Stadium Jonesboro, AR	L 9–16	9,127	[10]
November 14	Southwestern Louisiana	Cardinal Stadium Beaumont, TX (rivalry)	W 14–12		[11]
November 21	at UT Arlington	Maverick Stadium Arlington, TX	L 7–31	8,000	[12]
November 28	at Southern Miss *	M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS	L 14–45	31,842	[13]
*Non-conference game

^{[14] [15]}

Postseason

Move to NCAA Division I-AA

The 1981 season marked the Cardinals' final season at the NCAA Division I-A level. The Southland Conference along with several other conferences including the Ivy League, Southern Conference, several members of the Missouri Valley Conference, as well as several other teams were forced down to NCAA Division I-AA after failing to meet attendance / stadium size attendance requirements. ^[16]

Head coach resignation

The 1981 season was Larry Kennan's last season as the Cardinals' head football coach. Kennan left the team after the conclusion of the 1981 season to take an assistant coaching position with the Los Angeles Rams. ^[17]

References

1. "Alabama Beats L.S.U.; Lamar Upsets Baylor 18-17". New York Times. September 6, 1981. Retrieved March 28, 2016. Mike Marlow kicked a 42-yard field goal with three seconds to play to give Lamar an upset of Baylor, the defending Southwest Conference champion, in a nonconference game.
2. "Marlow's kick gives Lamar miracle upset". The Orange Leader. September 6, 1981. Retrieved November 2, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Lamar romps over Sam Houston". Corpus Christi Caller-Times. September 20, 1981. Retrieved February 13, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Final 1981 Cumulative Football Statistics Report". National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved February 13, 2023.
5. "SWT trips Lamar". The Corpus Christi Caller-Times. September 27, 1981. Retrieved March 23, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
6. "SFA upsets Lamar on late TDs". The Shreveport Times. October 4, 1981. Retrieved November 2, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Lamar rallies by Northeast, 17–13". Longview News-Journal. October 11, 1981. p. 2B. Retrieved January 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Dunigan paces Tech over Lamar". The Town Talk. October 18, 1981. Retrieved July 2, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
9. "McNeese 20, Lamar 20". The Odessa American. November 1, 1981. Retrieved March 3, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
10. "Langford drums up victory for Indians". The Commercial Appeal. November 8, 1981. Retrieved August 12, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Cajuns lose by two". The Crowley Post-Signal. November 15, 1981. Retrieved November 2, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
12. "UTA claims crown". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. November 22, 1981. p. B1. Retrieved January 9, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
13. "Collier, Winder set standards in 45–14 victory over Lamar". The Clarion-Ledger. November 29, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
14. "2015 Lamar University Football". Lamar University Athletics. pp. 109–110. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
15. "1981 Lamar Cardinals Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved November 2, 2024.
16. Gordon S. White, Jr. (December 5, 1981). "Ivy League is Forced to Lose Major-team Football Status". New York Times. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
17. Thomas Rogers (June 7, 1982). "Sports World Specials; Quality Control Engineer". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 28, 2016.