The Pioneer Football League (PFL) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) as a football-only conference. It has member schools that range from New York, North Carolina, and Florida in the east to California in the west. It is headquartered in St. Louis, in the same complex that also contains the offices of the Missouri Valley Conference and Missouri Valley Football Conference. Unlike most other Division I FCS conferences, the Pioneer League consists of institutions that choose not to award athletic scholarships ("grants-in-aid") to football players.
The Chicago Rush are a professional arena football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Arena Football League. They are the second Chicago Rush team to play in the league. The original team played at the Allstate Arena from 2001 to 2013. They were a member of the Central Division of the National Conference of the AFL. Founded in 2001, the team qualified for the playoffs 11 out of 12 seasons and won one AFL championship, ArenaBowl XX in 2006. During their history, the Rush won five divisional titles and competed in the AFL Conference Championship six times, including four consecutive appearances from 2004 to 2007. They also had the largest market in the AFL.
The UNLV Rebels football program is a college football team that represents the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). The team is a member of the Mountain West Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision conference of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA). The program, which began on September 14, 1968, plays its home games at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada.
The Butler Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent Butler University, located in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Bulldogs participate in 20 NCAA Division I intercollegiate sports. After leaving the Horizon League following the 2011–12 season, nearly all teams competed in the Atlantic 10 Conference. The football team is a founding member of the non-scholarship Football Championship Subdivision (FCS)-level Pioneer League. On March 20, 2013, the Butler administration announced that the school would join the Big East, and moved to the new league July 1, 2013.
Robert Emory Lamb is an American college football coach and former player. He was most recently the head football coach at Mercer University, a position he assumed in 2011 when Mercer reinstated their football program after a 72-year hiatus. The Mercer Bears football program resumed play in 2013. Lamb served as the head football coach at Furman University from 2002 until his resignation in 2010.
The Drake Bulldogs are an NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision non-scholarship college football program representing Drake University. They currently compete in the non-scholarship Pioneer Football League and have been charter members of the conference since 1993. Drake began playing intercollegiate football in 1893.
The Mount Union Purple Raiders football program represents the University of Mount Union in college football at the NCAA Division III level as members of the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC). Mount Union have played their home games at Mount Union Stadium in Alliance, Ohio since 1913, which makes it the oldest college football stadium in Ohio. The Purple Raiders have claimed 13 NCAA Division III Football Championship and 34 OAC titles and have 12 undefeated seasons.
The Mercer Bears are the athletic teams of Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, United States. Mercer is the only private university in Georgia with an NCAA Division I athletic program and fields teams in eight men's and nine women's sports. The university competes in the Southern Conference for most sports. In 2013, the football team competed in the Pioneer Football League.
The Marist Red Foxes football program is the intercollegiate American football team for Marist College located in the U.S. state of New York. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and are members of the Pioneer Football League. Marist's first football team was fielded in 1978. The team plays its home games at the 5,000 seat Tenney Stadium at Leonidoff Field in Poughkeepsie, New York. The Red Foxes are coached by Jim Parady.
The Mid-American Conference football awards are given annually by the Mid-American Conference (MAC) at the conclusion of each college football season. The conference gives out a total of five awards, the Offensive, Defensive, and Freshman Players of the Year, the Coach of the Year, and the Vern Smith Leadership Award, which is given to the league's MVP in that season. The Vern Smith Award is selected by a vote of the coaches in the MAC while the remaining awards are selected by the MAC News Media Association.
The 2011 Valparaiso Crusaders football team represented Valparaiso University as a member of the Pioneer Football League (PFL) during the 2011 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by second-year head coach Dale Carlson, the Crusaders compiled an overall record of 1–10 with a mark of 1–7 in conference play, placing last out of ten teams in the PFL. Valparaiso played home games at Brown Field in Valparaiso, Indiana.
The 2012 Valparaiso Crusaders football team represented Valparaiso University in the 2012 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by third-year head coach Dale Carlson and played their home games at Brown Field. They are a member of the Pioneer Football League. They finished the season 1–10, 1–7 in PFL play to finish in ninth place.
The 2013 NCAA Division I FCS football season, part of college football in the United States, was organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level. The season began on August 29, 2013, and concluded with the 2014 NCAA Division I Football Championship Game on January 4, 2014, at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.
The 2013 Dayton Flyers football team represented the University of Dayton in the 2013 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by sixth-year head coach Rick Chamberlin and played their home games at Welcome Stadium. They were a member of the Pioneer Football League. They finished the season 7–4, 5–3 in PFL play to finish in a tie for fourth place. The team was awarded White-Allen Most Valuable Player Trophy.
The 2018 Drake Bulldogs football team represented Drake University as a member of the Pioneer Football League (PFL) during 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by fifth-year head coach Rick Fox, the Bulldogs compiled an overall record of 7–4 with a mark of 6–2 in conference play, tying for second place in the PFL. The team played its home games at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa.
The 2018 Marist Red Foxes football team represented Marist College in the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by 27th-year head coach Jim Parady and played their home games at Tenney Stadium at Leonidoff Field. They were members of the Pioneer Football League. They finished the season 5–6, 5–3 in PFL play to finish in a tie for fourth place.
The 2019 Drake Bulldogs football team represented Drake University as a member of the Pioneer Football League (PFL) during 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by first-year head coach Todd Stepsis, the Bulldogs compiled an overall record of 6–5 with a mark of 6–2 in conference play, tying for second place in the PFL. The team played its home games at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa.
The 2019 Jacksonville Dolphins football team represented Jacksonville University in the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by fourth-year head coach Ian Shields and played their home games at D. B. Milne Field. They were members of the Pioneer Football League (PFL). On December 3, 2019, Jacksonville University announced the discontinuation of the football program, making 2019 the final season of Dolphins football.
The 2019 Mercer Bears football team represented Mercer University as a member the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by seventh-year head coach Bobby Lamb and played their home games at the Five Star Stadium in Macon, Georgia. Mercer finished the season 4–8 overall and 3–5 in SoCon play to place seventh.
The 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season, part of college football in the United States, was organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level.
