| Samford Bulldogs football | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
 | |||
| First season | 1902 | ||
| Athletic director | Martin Newton | ||
| Head coach | Chris Hatcher 8th season, 51–38 (.573) | ||
| Stadium | Bobby Bowden Field at
Pete Hanna Stadium (capacity: 6,700) | ||
| Field surface | LSR Blade | ||
| Location | Homewood, Alabama | ||
| NCAA division | Division I FCS | ||
| Conference | Southern Conference | ||
| All-time record | 474–464–47 (.505) | ||
| Conference titles | 5 (3Dixie, 2 SoCon) | ||
| Rivalries | Jacksonville State (rivalry) Furman Chattanooga Mercer Tennessee Tech | ||
| Consensus All-Americans | 27 | ||
| Colors | Blue and red[1] | ||
| Mascot | Sam, changed from Spike in 2017 | ||
| Website | SamfordSports.com | ||
The Samford Bulldogs football program is the intercollegiate American football team for Samford University located in Homewood, Alabama. The team competes at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon). Samford's first football team was fielded in 1902. The team was known as the Howard Bulldogs through the 1965 season when Howard College was renamed as Samford University. Howard was located in Birmingham, Alabama prior to 1957. Since 1958, the Bulldogs have played their home games at Pete Hanna Stadium, which now has a seating capacity of 6,700, in Homewood. Chris Hatcher has served as Samford's head coach since the 2015 season.
The Bulldogs have won 4 conference championships, with three coming in the Dixie Conference and two in the Southern Conference.
| Season | Conference | Coach | Overall record | Conference record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1933 | Dixie Conference | Eddie McLane | 8–5 | 6–2 |
| 1935 | Billy Bancroft | 7–1–2 | 3–0–1 | |
| 1936 | 5–3–1 | 4–1–1 | ||
| 2013† | Southern Conference | Pat Sullivan | 8–5 | 6–2 |
| 2022 | Southern Conference | Chris Hatcher | 11-2 | 8–0 |
† Co-champions
The Bulldogs have appeared in the I-AA/FCS playoffs six times with an overall record of 3–6.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals |
New Hampshire James Madison Youngstown State |
W 29–13 W 24–21 L 0–10 |
| 1992 | First Round | Delaware | L 21–56 |
| 2013 | First Round | Jacksonville State (#20) | L 14–55 |
| 2016 | First Round | Youngstown State (#13) | L 24–38 |
| 2017 | First Round | Kennesaw State (#16) | L 17–28 |
| 2022 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals |
BYE Week Southeastern Louisiana (#17) North Dakota State (#3) |
N/A W 48–42 OT L 9–27 |
Announced schedules as of July 9, 2024.[2]
| Site | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Away | atWest Georgia
atFlorida |
atCentral Arkansas | atIncarnate Word | atGeorgia Southern | atTennessee Tech | |
| Home | vs. Alabama State
vs. Tennessee Tech |
vs. West Georgia
vs. Incarnate Word |
vs. Tennessee Tech | vs. Tennessee Tech |
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