2001 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football team

2001 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football
NCAA Division I-AA First Round, L 31–34 at Sam Houston State
Conference	Big Sky Conference
Ranking
Sports Network	No. 16
Record	8–4 (5–2 Big Sky)
Head coach	Jerome Souers (4th season)
Home stadium	J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome
Seasons ←  2000 2002  →

2001 Big Sky Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 1 Montana $^		7	–	0					15	–	1
No. 16 Northern Arizona ^		5	–	2					9	–	4
Portland State		5	–	2					7	–	4
Montana State		4	–	3					5	–	6
Eastern Washington		3	–	4					7	–	4
Weber State		2	–	5					3	–	8
Idaho State		1	–	6					4	–	7
Sacramento State		1	–	6					2	–	9
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll

The 2001 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football team was an American football team that represented Northern Arizona University (NAU) as a member of the Big Sky Conference (Big Sky) during the 2001 NCAA Division I-AA football season. In their fourth year under head coach Jerome Souers, the Lumberjacks compiled an 8–4 record (5–2 against conference opponents), outscored opponents by a total of 368 to 307, and tied for second place out of nine teams in the Big Sky. ^[1]

For the third time in school history, the Lumberjacks qualified to play in the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs. They lost by a 34–31 score to Sam Houston State in the first round. ^[2]

The team played its home games at the J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome, commonly known as the Walkup Skydome, in Flagstaff, Arizona.

The team's statistical leaders included Marcus King with 1,287 rushing yards (including 271 yards against Portland State and 248 yards against Eastern Washington) and Preston Parsons with 2,267 passing yards. ^[3] Linebacker Keith O'Neil received first-team All-Big Sky honors and later played four years in the National Football League.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
August 30	Cal State Northridge *		Walkup Skydome Flagstaff, AZ	W 30–17	4,633	[4]
September 8	Stephen F. Austin *		Walkup Skydome Flagstaff, AZ	W 10–3	7,011	[5]
September 15	at Oklahoma State *		Lewis Field Stillwater, OK	Canceled		[6]
September 22	at Southern Utah *	No. 25	Eccles Coliseum Cedar City, UT (rivalry)	W 41–12	6,201	[7]
September 29	at No. 23 Portland State	No. 21	PGE Park Portland, OR	L 30–33	7,231	[8]
October 6	Idaho State		Walkup Skydome Flagstaff, AZ	W 51–26	10,810	[9]
October 13	at Weber State	No. 22	Stewart Stadium Ogden, UT	W 42–32	6,893	[10]
October 20	No. 2 Montana	No. 18	Walkup Skydome Flagstaff, AZ	L 37–48	11,387	[11]
October 27	at Montana State	No. 21	Bobcat Stadium Bozeman, MT	W 35–28	10,857	[12]
November 3	No. 21 Eastern Washington	No. 17	Walkup Skydome Flagstaff, AZ	W 42–33	4,164	[13]
November 10	at Sacramento State	No. 16	Hornet Stadium Sacramento, CA	W 50–40	5,510	[14]
November 17	at Oregon State *	No. 13	Reser Stadium Corvallis, OR	L 10–45	39,096	[15]
December 1	at No. 13 Sam Houston State *	No. 15	Bowers Stadium Huntsville, TX (NCAA Division I-AA First Round)	L 31–34	8,134	[16]
*Non-conference game Rankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the game

References

1. "2013 Northern Arizona Football Media Guide" (PDF). Northern Arizona University. 2013. p. 79. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 4, 2021. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
2. 2013 Media Guide, p. 17.
3. 2013 Media Guide, p. 64.
4. Gary Fox (August 31, 2001). "Big-time finish carries NAU in opener". Arizona Republic. Phoenix, Arizona. p. C11. Retrieved October 27, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
5. Zack Hall (September 9, 2001). "Ugly, but it counts". Arizona Daily Sun. pp. B1, B6 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "NAU to face Beavers in schedule shuffle". Tucson Citizen. September 15, 2001. Retrieved August 1, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Lumberjacks capitalize on Southern Utah's mistakes". Arizona Daily Star. September 23, 2001. Retrieved August 1, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Late field goal lifts Portland St. over Northern Arizona". Great Falls Tribune. September 30, 2001. Retrieved August 1, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
9. "Lumberjacks rally to chop down Idaho State". The Times-News. October 7, 2001. Retrieved August 1, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
10. "NAU wins with King sitting out 4th quarter". Arizona Daily Star. October 14, 2001. Retrieved August 1, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Griz hold off NAU, 38–27". The Daily Inter Lake. October 21, 2001. Retrieved August 1, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
12. Zack Hall (October 28, 2001). "What starts well, ends well". Arizona Daily Sun. pp. B1, B6.
13. "King's 248 yards give NAU win". The Arizona Republic. November 4, 2001. Retrieved August 1, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
14. "Sac State suffers its seventh loss in a row". The Sacramento Bee. November 11, 2001. Retrieved August 1, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
15. "Smith breaks OSU record in rout of N. Arizona". Tri-City Herald. November 18, 2001. Retrieved August 1, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
16. Zack Hall (December 2, 2001). "Season slips away". Arizona Daily Sun. pp. B1, B7 – via Newspapers.com.